Wildcats end season 7-8-5 overall
ALLENDALE, Mich. — The NMU women’s soccer team’s postseason came to a close today, as the fifth-seeded Wildcats fell to the host and sixth-best team in the nation, the Grand Valley State Lakers, 4-0.
The Wildcats (7-8-5, 6-6-2 GLIAC) advanced to the GLIAC Semifinals for the sixth consecutive season, and with the loss today, the Green and Gold snapped an impressive three-straight appearances in the GLIAC Championship.
With the win, the top-seeded team in the conference and host, the No. 6 Lakers (18-2-0, 13-1-0 GLIAC), will be on its home pitch for a chance at the GLIAC Championship. The last time GVSU made it to the conference championship was 2022, a 2-1 win over NMU at the GVSU soccer field.
The Lakers took an early two-goal lead, as All-GLIAC First Team selection Alli French scored a pair of goals in the first 13 minutes, coming less than five minutes apart in the ninth and 13th minutes. The Lakers had a commanding advantage on the stat sheet, outshooting the ‘Cats 7-1, with five on target to none, and amassing four corner kicks. Eight of the Wildcats’ starting 11 played the full 45 minutes.
Kendall Aikens and Mackenzie Ford added two more tallies in the second half, and the Lakers would advance to the GLIAC Championship.
Along with goalkeeper Jillian Thompson, the ‘Cats got 90-minute performances from Hannah Kastamo, Kenna Alexander, Addison Wargo, Irene Kiilunen, and Ava Buhlman.
How It Happened
The Lakers opened the scoring just under ten minutes into the match. Aikens drove to the right touchline just outside of the box before playing a low-driven cross into the goalkeeper’s area. French was able to get good body positioning and redirected the ball past Thompson from a tight spot.
The Lakers doubled its lead just a few minutes later. A corner kick was sent into the box, bounced around, and the ‘Cats got a boot on it to clear. The clearance attempt took a deflection and landed on the foot of Mehta just outside the box. Her pass into the area found French, who added her second tally of the game.
Aikens added the third Laker goal just over five minutes into the second frame, getting some ball luck along the way. A cross into the box was handled and cleared by a Wildcat defender, but took a deflection and landed on the foot of Aikens. Her shot took another deflection on the way to the goal, completely changing trajectory and finding the back of the net.
Ford added the fourth tally for GVSU around the seventy-minute mark, as Williams’s corner kick found her teammate in the box, and a well-placed header beat the NMU keeper.
