The past year provided several banner moments throughout Northwestern athletics.

Women’s soccer shot up the national rankings, field hockey clawed its way back to a second consecutive national championship appearance, men’s basketball stunned then-No. 1 Purdue and punched its ticket to the Big Dance, fencing trounced No. 1 Notre Dame in Ryan Fieldhouse, softball won a regular season and Big Ten Tournament title and lacrosse cut down the nets in Cary, North Carolina as national champions.

These feats, among many others, wouldn’t have been possible without the stars donning purple and white. New sensations soared to sky-scraping summits, sidelined superstars returned to the limelight and each Wildcat worked relentlessly to improve their respective programs.

With conference and national accolades up for grabs in each of NU’s 19 varsity squads, here’s four Cats carrying breakout potential.