MARQUETTE, Mich. - The Northern Michigan University men's soccer team is ready to open the 2023 season with a pair of matches at home, hosting non-conference opponents the Northwood University Timberwolves, and the Quincy University Hawks.

The Wildcats are set to square off with the Timberwolves on Thursday, September 31, at 12 p.m., followed by facing off with the Hawks on Sunday, August 3, at 2 p.m.

Head coach Alex Fatovic, coming into year two of his tenure as head coach for NMU men's soccer, had this to say about the upcoming season opener:

 "We're comfortable with where we are. We have every able body fit and ready to go… [and] the guys are excited, you can't really expect anything less in week one."

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Thursday, August 31 - vs. Northwood University at 12:00 PM
Live Stats | Watch on FloFC

Sunday, September 3 - vs. Quincy University at 2 PM
Live Stats | Watch on FloFC

Cat Nips

• The Wildcats return many key players, such as 2022 GLIAC Freshman of the Year and GLIAC First Team selection Tommaso Lami, NMU men's breakout player of the year and captain Kalvin Glodz, and GLIAC honorable mention in defensive standout Jan Hoffmann.
• The Wildcats welcomed 10 newcomers to the roster, highlighted by the D1 transfer striker Fernando Abascal, German goalkeeper Florian Palmowski, and Italian defender Alessandro Scialanga.
• Last season, the Wildcats finished 5-8-4 overall with a 4-5-3 conference record and were eliminated in the first round of the GLIAC conference playoffs.

A Look at Northwood University
An opponent that was previously in the GLIAC, the Timberwolves were selected to finish seventh of 11 teams in the G-MAC this season under the direction of head coach Stevie Shard, who is in his sixth season with the Timberwolves. The Timberwolves return top goal scorer Oliver Jarvis for his third season, along with G-MAC Third Team All-Conference selection, defender Neil Langan.

A Look at Quincy University
Another non-conference opponent, this time from the GLVC, the Hawks have been selected to finish 11 of 14 teams in their respective conference under head coach Mike Carpenter, who begins his 12th season with the Hawks this year. The Wildcats will play the Hawks in the second match of the year for the second time, with last year's match drawing a 2-2 result. 

Alex Fatovic Weekly Press Conference