Talk about a turnaround. The Northern Michigan women’s soccer team lived both ends of the scoreboard this past weekend, falling 4-0 to No. 3 Grand Valley State on Friday before roaring back with a dominant 4-0 win over Davenport on Sunday. In the span of 48 hours, the Wildcats went from ‘trying to survive’ to ‘setting the tone,’ giving fans, the coaching staff and perhaps the players as well—a whiplash-inducing swing of emotions.
Friday’s GLIAC home opener was understandably going to be a tough assignment. The third-ranked team in the country—the GVSU Lakers, arrived with their usual firepower and showed exactly why they’re the Midwest’s juggernaut. Grand Valley outshot NMU 27-6, transformed every set piece into a scoring opportunity, and rattled off three goals in the first ten minutes of the first half. By halftime, the game felt decided. By full time, the scoreboard read 4-0, and the Wildcats were left licking their wounds.
Head coach Erin Egolf says that the team’s mentality this game was lacking in the face of such an intimidating opponent: “I think the hard part for us is we know we can play it’s just how long, how long can we stick it out with Grand Valley? Most games when we’ve gone down a goal, there’s been an instantaneous response, our instantaneous response this game was really poor. They scored 3 goals in 8 minutes – and that’s something we have to collectively figure out a way to not allow that to happen.”
Still, there were glimmers of excellence. Goalkeeper Carly Sides, starting her second straight game, posted a career-high 11 saves—equaling the most recorded in a single game by a Wildcat keeper in three years. As a redshirt freshman standing 5’7, you would’ve thought she was standing 6’6—against an offense that refuses to let up, she stood tall, denying multiple close-range efforts that could have made the night even uglier. For a young NMU team, it was a test by fire, and the Lakers made sure everyone felt the burn.
But with the beautiful game, and such as life: sometimes the script flips faster than anyone expects.
Two days later, on the same field and under a sunny September sky, the Wildcats were the ones dictating the tempo. Facing Davenport, NMU wasted no time sending a message. Just 90 seconds into the match, Hannah Kastamo buried a cross from Addison Frantti to give the Cats their first early lead of the season. All of a sudden, Friday’s nightmare was old news.
From there, NMU set it to cruise control. Defender-turned-goal-delivery-service, Irene Kiilunen, bagged not one, but two goals from deep free kicks—the first two tallies of her collegiate career. Frantti added a goal of her own after linking up with Kastamo, swapping their earlier connection for NMU’s third. By the time Kiilunen’s second free kick bounced into the back of the net, the Wildcats had completely turned frustration into fireworks.
Sides, who had been under siege against GVSU, enjoyed a much more balanced afternoon and collected her first career clean sheet. The Wildcats outshot the Panthers 23-11, controlled 60% of possession, and played like a team determined not just to win, but to wipe away the taste of Friday’s defeat.
Head coach Erin Egolf, earning her first home victory at the helm, couldn’t help but beam after the game. “It was a tough result on Friday, and being able to come back, regroup, and establish some dominance today is a huge testament to their mentality,” she said. “This wasn’t a result that happened by accident – they put together a full 90 minutes of good soccer.”
The Wildcats (2-3-3, 2-2-0 GLIAC) now sit even in conference play, having delivered both their most lopsided loss and biggest win of the season in the same weekend. From getting shut out by a national powerhouse to dishing out a shutout of their own, NMU reminded themselves that resilience is part of their DNA.
The Cats will face Ferris State and Saginaw Valley next (this) weekend at home. If this roller-coaster weekend has any indication, buckle up—because NMU seems intent on keeping things interesting.
