Two more matches at home to wrap up the regular season
MARQUETTE, Mich. — The NMU men’s soccer team earned its biggest win of the 2026 campaign, downing the Roosevelt Lakers 2-1.
Coming into the match, only two points separated the ‘Cats and the Lakers, with NMU holding 17 and RU 15. With the win, the Wildcats (9-4-2, 6-2-2 GLIAC, 2nd – 20 pts) now hold a two-game cushion over the Lakers (6-3-5, 4-3-3 GLIAC, 3rd – 15 pts), and sit just one point behind Saginaw Valley State for first in the conference.
The Wildcats began the match the same as on Friday, looking directly into the harsh wind that was whipping at near 30 mph again.
The Wildcats’ defense of Davian Gumbs, Noah Girard, Marcos Gallardo Rozano, and James Carr, along with stellar play from netminder Asaf Kristal, who made five saves on the evening, held for the first 30 minutes, keeping the Lakers offense scoreless despite plenty of pressure.
The Green and Gold then found a brilliant counter-attacking moment, starting and ending from the boot of Gallardo Rozano. The freshman center-back ran the length of the pitch, through Roosevelt defenders, before sliding a ball into Sergio Cano Castro on the right side of the box. Cano Castro’s finish was clinical, giving NMU a 1-0 lead.
The Lakers found the equalizer shortly after, as a Wildcat defensive header landed on the boot of Fynn Mewes, who made no mistake from the top of the area.
Between his defending and pace, Gallardo Rozano was the Wildcats impact player today, and he was rewarded with the defining moment in the second half. A quick passing play with Luca Rosen from a corner kick landed back onto the foot of the ‘Cats #3, whose left-footed delivery fooled Cedrik Stupler and curled into the far side, scoring the eventual game-winning goal at 57:17.
Kristal, Gallardo Rozano, and midfielder Xhoel Lutaj played the full 90, followed by major shifts from Girard (82), Cano Castro (80), and 77-minute performances from all of Carr, Gumbs, and Julius Lemm. Tyler Kowalczyk came off the bench early and was impactful all evening, logging 71 minutes as a substitute.
In the match, Roosevelt outshot the Wildcats 12-8, with six on target to three; NMU garnered two corner kicks to one and was whistled four times for offsides. Both teams were booked three times, and NMU was whistled for 16 fouls compared to eight.
The Wildcats now look ahead to senior weekend and a chance to play for a GLIAC regular season title. NMU begins with Davenport on Friday, October 23, at 12 p.m. ET, before hosting the current first-place team in the GLIAC standings, Saginaw Valley, on Sunday, October 25, at 12 p.m. ET for senior day.
