The Northern Michigan men’s soccer team had the chances, the possession, and the pressure – what they didn’t have was the result. Despite dominating large stretches of play, the Wildcats fell 3-1 to the Parkside Rangers in their GLIAC opener at home last weekend.
The start was promising for the Cats, clad in green and yellow. Just nine minutes in, sophomore forward Luca Rosen stepped to the spot after a Parkside handball and drilled a penalty into the net for his first career goal. The Wildcats nearly doubled their advantage minutes later as Rosen smacked the post, and Teun Van Gansewinkel forced a diving stop from the Ranger keeper.
“I think we played a fantastic first half,” head coach Alex Fatovic said. “Guys came out and executed the plan to perfection. We were up a goal within seven minutes – I thought we played really, really well.”
Unfortunately for the squadron, the match would quickly turn bitter. Parkside tied it on a penalty kick of their own in the 30th minute, and with the clock ticking down to halftime, disaster struck. A Northern clearance attempt ricocheted like a foosball into the Wildcats’ own net with just one second left in the half, handing the Rangers a 2-1 lead. Heads were hung in defeat – what else could have been done?
“They had more goals than shots,” Fatovic said. “Their only shot was a penalty kick. I don’t think you can get much better than that. I was at a loss for the guys, because they played great and still found themselves down a goal.”
Northern nearly equalized after halftime when Owen Rutledge’s header beat the keeper but was cleared off the line by a Parkside defender. Instead, the Rangers pounced on a rebound in the 55th minute to extend their lead to 3-1. The Wildcats didn’t stop pushing, unleashing nine second-half shots – six in the final 10 minutes! But none found the back of the net.
By the numbers, NMU controlled the match: 16-9 in shots, 8-4 in shots on goal, 4-1 in corners, and 62% possession, most of it in the attacking half. Rosen finished with a career-high nine shots, five on frame, while goalkeeper Asaf Kristal added to his strong start with several key saves. But the final scoreline favored Parkside, handing NMU their first loss of the season.
“The biggest takeaway was that we’ve got to do a better job of closing teams out, not letting
them get an inch of pace, especially on our home field,” Fatovic said.
Now the Wildcats turn the page with their first GLIAC road trip of the year. They’ll face Purdue Northwest on Friday before traveling to Roosevelt – currently ranked eighth in the Midwest Region – on Sunday.
The matchups won’t be easy. Purdue has scored two or more goals in each of its last three outings, while Roosevelt boasts one of the conference’s most dangerous attackers in Fynn Mewes, who leads the GLIAC in goals, points, and game-winners.
“Any time you go on the road in the GLIAC, nothing is easy,” Fatovic said. “You’re away from home, you’re out of your routine. Right now we’re focusing on Purdue before we turn our attention to Roosevelt.”
The Wildcats, once ranked ninth in the region, will be looking to make a statement and climb
back into the top 10 as September comes to a close.
