Wildcats did not have a shot on goal in the contest
UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. – The Northern Michigan University (MNU) men’s soccer team (4-4-4, 3-4-1 GLIAC) fell on the road to the Saginaw Valley State (SVSU) cardinals by a margin of 3-0 in a rainy Sunday morning GLIAC matchup.
The Cardinals outshot the Wildcats 24-4 on the day, including a 12-0 difference in shots on goal. Despite the pressure, NMU goaltender Asaf Kristal recorded eight saves to help give his team a chance.
Evan Baker headed in the opening goal in the 35th minute after a crossing pass from Liam Zimmerman to put SVSU ahead 1-0 heading into the halftime break. The Cardinals would then tack on two more late in the game to secure the 3-0 victory and avenge their recent loss to the Wildcats just nine days prior.
How it Happened
The Cardinals came out aggressive in the first half, applying pressure to the NMU defense throughout the opening half, including a pair of throw-in attempts into the box from near the corners approximately five minutes into the match, but the Wildcat defense fended off the attack. Wildcat goaltender Kristal would then make a diving play in the bottom left of the net to keep the score knotted up at 0-0.
Saginaw Valley believed that they had scored the opening goal of the game a few minutes later, but after a team save narrowly prevented the ball from crossing the goal line, Kristal secured the ball to silence the celebrations. However, The Cardinals were eventually able to break the deadlock in the 35th minute after Zimmerman sent in a crossing pass from the left sideline to the box where Baker was awaiting to head in the first goal of the game and put SVSU ahead.
SVSU continued to apply pressure with a pair of corner kick opportunities late in the half, but the NMU defense steered them away, allowing only one shot attempt during the stretch that safely drifted wide to the left. The Wildcats would then counter attack with just over a minute before the break, but SVSU goalkeeper Nick Kay managed to scoop up the ball off of the crossing pass, just preventing what would have been a shot at a wide open net to tie up the score as the Cardinals held on to take a 1-0 advantage into halftime.
The Wildcats would look to apply more pressure on the Cardinals in the second half in search of the equalizer, including earning a pair of corner kick opportunities, but the SVSU defense held firm.
Despite a strong defensive effort in the wind and rain, the Cardinals would tack on a pair of insurance goals as Matty Telfer centers the ball to Narcis Gravalda who fired in his first career goal in the 85th minute, and Gabe Olla pushed the score to 3-0 a few minutes later on a quick counterattack to close out the match.
Up Next
The Wildcats return to action on Wednesday, Oct. 22 for a GLIAC road matchup in Kenosha, Wis. against the Parkside Rangers with kickoff scheduled for 1 p.m., Eastern Time.
