The Student News Site of Northern Michigan University

The North Wind

The North Wind

The North Wind

Meet the Staff
Molly Birch
Molly Birch
Editor-In-Chief

My name is Molly, and I am in my second year at NMU. I come from Midland, MI, probably one of the most boring places on earth. However, we do have the only Tridge in the world, so that’s pretty nifty...

The North Wind Editorial Sessions
About us

The North Wind is an independent student publication serving the Northern Michigan University community. It is partially funded by the Student Activity Fee. The North Wind digital paper is published daily during the fall and winter semesters except on university holidays and during exam weeks. The North Wind Board of Directors is composed of representatives of the student body, faculty, administration and area media.

PROFILE — Katie Buhrmann is a 2022 alum of NMU and the executive administrative assistant in NMUs Office of Institutional Effectiveness. She recently self-published her first book of poetry. Photo courtesy of Katie Buhrmann
Alumni Katie Buhrmann explores South Korea through language
Katarina RothhornMarch 28, 2024

NMU soccer drops 2 close home games, including No. 1 GVSU

The Northern Michigan University soccer team lost two GLIAC games this weekend, first to No. 1 Grand Valley State University and then to Ferris State. Both were 1-0 decision’s.

The first game against the top-ranked Lakers (7-0-0, 2-0-0 GLIAC) bode well for Northern. The first half was typical of play for the Wildcats, consisting of strong passing and ball control. NMU had 4 shots, including one that bounced off the crossbar by forward Casey Wilcox. The ball didn’t get into the net in the second half either for the ‘Cats, but GVSU forward Ashley Elsass’ shot did, leading to the 1-0 final.

“We had a 50-50 shot of winning,” head coach Matt Granstrand said. “I can’t fault our effort, I can’t fault our performance. We rose to the challenge to play against a great team.”

This is the third time that GVSU has been held to only one goal this year (the first two times against reigning NCAA Division II champs University of Tampa in the first game of the year, and to Division I Missouri-St. Louis). The Wildcats felt that this was a major accomplishment.

Story continues below advertisement

“This was the best game this team has ever played,” senior Brittany Buchanan said. “We held the best team in the country to one goal that happened in the second half. Other teams are going to see this, and they’re going to have to watch out now.”

That good feeling did not last long for Northern, as the Wildcats were defeated by Ferris State (2-3-0, 1-1-0 GLIAC) on Sunday. The lone goal of the game came quickly, as Bulldog Megan McCabe scored just three minutes into the game.

The Wildcats came close to scoring at the end of the first half with a desperation shot that went wide right of the goal. The shot came from a one-on-one between Meghan Sarna and the FSU goalie ending with another Bulldog defender giving a slide tackle to end the threat.

“I’m a sweeper, so I’ve never been one-on-one with a goalie like [that] before,” Sarna said. “I didn’t really know what to do, and it’s kind of frustrating.”

The Ferris State game was the third straight 1-0 loss to conference opponents. The Wildcats (4-5-0, 0-3-0 GLIAC) have not been able to find the goal this season in GLIAC play but have seven players who have scored.

“This is my fourteenth year as a coach, and this is the most bizarre thing I’ve seen in my life,” Granstrand said. “Were playing great soccer, were doing everything right. We’re not finishing.”

More to Discover