Wildcats fall to SVSU 2-0 to end the regular season
MARQUETTE, Mich. — The NMU men’s soccer team fell 2-0 to the #14 Saginaw Valley State Cardinals in the GLIAC regular season title match.
The Wildcats (10-5-2, 7-3-2 GLIAC, 2nd – 23 pts) were handed its first home loss of the season at the hands of the Cardinals (9-1-6, 7-1-4 GLIAC, 1st – 25 pts). Despite the loss, the Wildcats’ second-place GLIAC finish is the highest regular season finish in program history, and its 10 wins are the most in a single season.
With the result, the Cardinals were crowned GLIAC Regular Season Champions and will host the 2026 GLIAC Postseason Tournament. NMU will travel to Saginaw Valley as the #2 seed in the tournament and will face the #3 seed in the semifinals.
The Wildcats honored seniors Robert Wright, James Carr, Davian Gumbs, Asaf Kristal, and Luca Rosen prior to kick-off.
Kristal kept the game scoreless in the opening moments, as he stoned Matty Telfer one-on-one from in tight after he was sprung on a counterattack. The ‘Cats had a free kick from on top of the area that was blocked, and Asa Dean’s follow-up attempt was saved. The Cardinals struck at the half-hour mark, as a corner kick from Amadou Kouyate found the head of Kai Forsyth on the back post. Forsyth’s head found a good connection to give the Cardinals the lead.
The Wildcats started the second half with maybe the worst thing this team could see: Luca Rosen down with an injury. Rosen was taken off just six minutes into the half, and the nation’s most dangerous scorer would not return.
The Cardinals doubled its lead with a near-identical play from the first tally. Kouyate played an in-swinging corner that found the head of Forsyth, and the Cardinals were up 2-0 with 15 minutes to play.
Freshman forward Sergio Cano Castro was shown his second yellow card with one second left on the clock and will now be ineligible for the GLIAC semifinals next weekend.
For the match, both teams registered 17 shot attempts, with SVSU holding an 8-4 advantage in shots on target. SVSU held a 7-6 corner advantage, both teams were shown three yellow cards, and the ‘Cats were whistled for 23 fouls to 22.
The semi-final match at Saginaw Valley will take place on Friday, November 6. Time TBD.
