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Ale Scialanga vs UWP
Captain Ale Scialanga vs Parkside last season

Men's Soccer Emily Radke - Athletic Communications Assistant

PREVIEW: Men’s Soccer Back at Home, Host Parkside in First GLIAC Match of the Season

MARQUETTE, Mich. - The Northern Michigan University men's soccer team will return to Marquette for a single-match weekend against the Parkside Rangers, with the 'Cats looking to clinch their second win of the 2025 season. 

This will be the fifth match of the season for the team, and the first of conference play. The 'Cats currently hold an overall record of 1-0-3.

Last weekend, the 'Cats ended with two draws on the road against two regionally ranked opponents, tying with Lewis (0-0) and Lake Erie (1-1). Teun Van Gansewinkel recorded the weekend's only goal for the Wildcats during the first half of Sunday's Lake Erie match, and Owen Rutledge was named GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts.

"At the end of the day, getting two points off those teams, you're happy with that," said head coach Alex Fatovic in his mid-week media availability. "Could've been six points, should've been four points, instead we got two... the message to the guys was "understand it is going to take the full ninety minutes" to get wins, and the fact we were in position to win [the Lake Erie game] says a lot about their character and where they're at."

Over the past weekend, Parkside was set to play Maryville and Upper Iowa. While the Upper Iowa match got cancelled, the Rangers ended in a loss against the Saints (1-2), setting the team's early-season record to 0-2-1. 

In the 2024 season, the two programs went 1-1 against one another: each team won one apiece. The Rangers came out on top early in the year, while the 'Cats found success later in the season.

The Wildcats will play the Rangers on Friday, September 19, a 12:00 p.m. kick-off.

Follow the Action
Follow @NMU_Msoc on Instagram and @NMU_Mens_Soccer on X (formerly known as Twitter) for updates leading up to and during the matches. 

Friday, September 19 - vs. Lewis at 12 PM
Watch  |  Live Stats 

Hear from Alex Fatovic
"Pleased with the road trip, but now it's on to the next one, [and] we've got a big one on Friday, and we learned a lot about the boys and what they're capable of... hopefully the guys can respond well, and we can get all three points at home."
 


'Cat Nips
  • The Wildcats enter the weekend in the regional rankings. Thanks to last weekend's performance, the 'Cats are the ninth-ranked team in the Midwest Region
  • Teun Van Gansewinkel remains the team's leader in points, with two goals in four games.
  • Asaf Krital, NMU's goalkeeper, has tallied 12 saves during the early stages of the Wildcat's 2025 season. This gives the Redshirt Junior a save percentage of .857.
  • NMU's team save percentage (.857), goals against average (.500), and shutout percentage (.500) all lead the conference
  • The 'Cats are averaging 12 shots per game, and have seen shots on goal from as many as seven different players.

A Look at Parkside
The Ranger's goalkeeper, Daniyal Rana, is currently recording 7.33 saves per game, making him fifth in the nation for all of Division II in this category. Rana has a total of 22 saves in three matches for the 2025 season. The team is currently averaging one goal per game, led by Eduardo Aguilera-Gillen, Parkside's leading goal scorer (2 goals on the season).

A disciplined team, the Rangers average the fewest fouls per game (10.33) and have been shown the fewest yellow cards (4) in the conference.

A historically strong team, the Rangers made the NCAA Tournament three straight seasons before taking a step back last season and an early exit from the conference tournament. Parkside enters the weekend looking to right the ship and get back to national contention. 



 
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Players Mentioned

Teun Van Gansewinkel

#7 Teun Van Gansewinkel

F
6' 0"
Sophomore
Owen Rutledge

#30 Owen Rutledge

D
5' 11"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Teun Van Gansewinkel

#7 Teun Van Gansewinkel

6' 0"
Sophomore
F
Owen Rutledge

#30 Owen Rutledge

5' 11"
Junior
D