MARQUETTE, Mich. — The Northern Michigan men's soccer team travels to downstate Michigan to face Davenport University on Friday for a weekend road trip. Following Friday's game, the Wildcats will travel to Purdue University Northwest.
The Wildcats are set to play the Panthers at 7 p.m. on Friday and then make their way to Indiana to play the Pride at 3 p.m. on Sunday.
WEEKLY NOTES:
FOLLOW ALONG
Fans can follow the action using live stats and video.
Follow @NMU_Wildcats on Twitter for continued coverage throughout the week.
Friday VS. Davenport
Live Stats:
http://www.sidearmstats.com/davenport/msoc
Video:
https://dupanthers.com/showcase?Live=2493
Sunday VS. Purdue Northwest
Live Stats:
https://pnwathletics.com/sidearmstats/msoc/summary
Video:
https://www.jedtv.com/pnw-athletics.html
PRESEASON POLL
After reaching the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) quarterfinals last spring, the Wildcats were pegged to finish fifth overall in the GLIAC preseason poll.
KEY RETURNERS
The Wildcats return the majority of their squad from 2020-21, including four who received All-GLIAC recognition. Senior
Kaffie Kurz was named to the All-Conference First Team last season, the first such honor of his career, while also being named 2021 Humanitarian of the Year by NMU for his leadership and charitable endeavors both on and off the pitch.
Second-Team honorees
Ryan Palmbaum and
Niko Scheibal also return to the team this season. Palmbaum led the team in assists (4), shots on goal (15) and goals (3; tied) while Scheibal returns after leading a strong defensive core in the spring.
LAST TIME OUT
In a nail-biter against Saginaw Valley on Sunday, the Wildcats went into double overtime with a final score of 0-0.
Northern came out on top with a 13-10 lead in shots throughout the double overtime match, with the Wildcats making a few extra attempts during the second overtime period, coming out with four shots.
Junior goalkeeper
Alex Weaver manned the net for the full 110-minute match stopping all 10 of the Cardinals' shots.
STAT LEADERS
This week, two 'Cats find themselves on the GLIAC statistical leaderboard, goalkeeper
Alex Weaver and midfielder
Ryan Palmbaum.
Junior
Ryan Palmbaum continues to rank second in the conference for total shots with a grand total of 48 shots.
After a 110-minute goalkeeping match last weekend for
Alex Weaver, he finds himself into the top five spot for goals-against average, coming out with a 1.39 average.
WILDCAT TALK
"Sunday against Saginaw Valley was a good match for us," said head coach
David Poggi. "I thought the scoreline was fair with almost even chances for both teams. Both teams played at the same level and taking a point is gonna help us."
"The conference is as even as it has ever been. It is going to come down to the last match for several teams. Hopefully, we take care of business sooner."
NMU VS DAVENPORT
The last time NMU kicked off against Davenport was on the NMU Soccer field in a tight 1-0 loss with the lone goal being scored early in the game.
The Wildcats have competed against Davenport eight times in their short program history, with their first season being 2016.
NMU VS PURDUE NORTHWEST
Last month Northern took the win against the Pride with a final score of 1-0 scored by
Maxime Doutre. The Wildcats took the field in September for a 1-0 win at home, with a 5-2 overall record against Purdue-Northwest since their first match in 2017.
