Coach Fatovic pleased with the Wildcats’ defense
MARQUETTE, Mich. – In a mid-day affair on the first Thursday of September, with the NMU men’s soccer team officially kicked off the 2025 campaign, playing G-MAC foe Northwood to a 0-0 draw.
A noon kick-off for the home opener saw on and off rain, wind into the upper teens, and sunshine ducking in and out of cloud cover as the Wildcats and Timberwolves clashed on the shores of Lake Superior. Primarily blowing West, the wind acted as a crosswind for a majority of the game before swirling toward the back half of action.
The ‘Cats had a strong first half, out shooting the ‘Wolves 8-3 with three on target to one, and all but one shot attempt coming from inside the penalty area. The second half was more even in the shot category, as NMU held a 10-9 advantage while both teams got three strikes on target. The Wildcats offense went to work on generating high-quality chances, garnering seven corner-kicks to the ‘Wolves one over the full ninety minutes. The offense generated dangerous chances, but it was the defending that head coach Alex Fatovic had high praise for.
“It was a good first performance. Our defending today was fantastic, that’s all we worked on in pre-season. We would have loved to get the full three points, but I am really pleased with the overall effort. We have to get better [at finishing] in the attacking side, we know that, but as a first performance, I am really pleased with the group.”
The Wildcats successfully kept a clean sheet in the home opener, making that consecutive shutouts going back to the end of last season. This also marks the second-consecutive season where the Wildcats blanked the Timberwolves to open a campaign (1-0 win in Midland to open 2024 season, and now 0-0 draw in Marquette to open 2025).
Goalkeeper transfer Asaf Kristal made his NMU debut, stopping all four shots that found the target to earn his first shutout in a Wildcat shirt. A handful of other newcomers made their debut for the green and gold, including features in the starting 11 from freshmen defenders Terry Grimaldi and Asa Dean, sophomore midfielder Andrea Mercanti, and junior defender transfer Owen Rutledge. Forward transfer Luca Rosen also made an impactful debut, recording 61 minutes and two shots, pacing both teams’ bench players in minutes and shots.
Captain Alessandro Scialanga, James Carr, and Quint Van Roij all turned in a full 90 minutes, followed by Jan Hoffmann (86), Tuen Van Gansewinkel (85), and Rutledge (82). Both Van Gansewinkel and Davian Gumbs led the field in shot attempts with four a piece, while Gumbs paced the field in shots on target with three.
Fans can catch the game replay on FloSports.
Up Next
The Wildcats round out opening weekend with a clash against NAIA DII side Lawrence Tech on Saturday, September 6. Kick-off is set for noon from the NMU Soccer Field.
