Northwestern Lands All-American Lacrosse Transfer from James Madison

The 'Cats are bringing in one of the top players in the transfer portal.

Northwestern head coach Kelly Amonte Hiller speaking to her team in the NCAA Women's Lacrosse Final Four on May 23, 2025. | Photo: Northwestern Athletics

Northwestern's 2025 season came to an end in the National Championship just 10 days ago, and head coach Kelly Amonte Hiller is already hitting the recruiting trail to reload the roster ahead of next season.

The Wildcats are set to graduate eight of their 12 starters, but a big splash in the portal could play a major role in getting Northwestern back to the title game. On late Monday night, Jake Epstein of The Daily Northwestern and USA Lacrosse Magazine reported that James Madison attacker Maddie Epke had committed to transfer to NU.

Epke seemingly made it official by tagging Northwestern Lacrosse in her Instagram bio. She played under Amonte Hiller and alongside star Wildcat Madison Taylor at the 2024 U-20 World Championship in Hong Kong, winning a gold medal for Team USA.

In her junior 2025 season, Epke was named a First-Team All-American, the AAC Attacker of the Year and a nominee for the Tewaaraton Award. Epke thrived in the draw circle, ranking second in the NCAA in total draw controls (235) and draws per game (12.37). She is also the Dukes' all-time program leader with 485 career wins in the circle.

Epke will look to replace graduating draw specialist Sam Smith, who has taken the bulk of the duties over the last three years. However, Epke also projects to significantly contribute to the team's scoring.

Taylor set the single-season NCAA record with 109 goals this season, but the Wildcats' next-highest scorer totaled just 42 goals. When opponents such as North Carolina were able to limit Taylor, the rest of NU's lineup struggled to provide complementary scoring. Epke led James Madison with a career-high 65 goals in 2025, also adding 23 assists.

Epke will play her final year of eligibility in 2026. Northwestern has reached the National Championship game in each of the last three seasons, winning the program's eighth title in 2023.