Wildcat women dominate in soccer win over Tech
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MARQUETTE -- Final scores often don't really illustrate the domination by one team in any kind of sporting event.
That certainly seemed true for the women's soccer team at Northern Michigan University, which defeated Upper Peninsula rival Michigan Tech 4-0 at the NMU Soccer Field on Sunday afternoon.
While 4-0 is fairly decisive victory in soccer, it didn't show Northern's advantage in statistics like shots, which the Wildcats really dominated -- 33-6 in total shots and 17-1 in shots on goal.
NMU, which also took four of the game's five corner kicks, improved to 8-3-3 overall and 5-3-2 in the league to play a bit of catchup with the leaders in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
Northern not only moved from fifth place into a tie for fourth with 17 points, but pulled within four points of GLIAC coleaders Grand Valley State and Wayne State. GVSU, the former leader alone, only pulled off a 1-1 tie with Davenport on Friday.
The Wildcats have four games left in the regular season, all conference affairs, beginning with two in the next week at home vs. sixth-place Wisconsin-Parkside at 3 p.m. Friday and vs. eighth-place Ferris State at 3 p.m. Sunday.
They'll need good results from them as they hit the road for their final games a week later at the team they're tied with, Davenport, and at coleader Grand Valley.
On Sunday, NMU posted its fourth straight shutout, each authored in net by Northern goalkeeper Carly Sides, who has six in all this season.
She didn't have a lot of activity this time, though, with just a single first-half save. But she's helping hold up the defensive side of the Wildcats' recent domination in scoring, 20-2 in the last seven games, a 5-0-2 record in that stretch.
On Sunday, freshman midfielder Sole Corley didn't waste a whole lot of time getting her team on the board, scoring less than two minutes in by using a header off a free kick from Irene Kiilunen.
Within 10 minutes, freshman forward Izzy Armstrong made it 2-0, and it went to 3-0 with about 14 minutes remaining in the first half after senior forward Madison Bilbia scored from an assist by sophomore midfielder Gretchen Ellis.
Ellis also scored the only goal of the second half, what was termed a "wonder goal" by NMU Sports Information in its account of the game.
Corley's goal was her fifth this season, matching sophomore forward Addison Frantti for the team lead. Armstrong's determined run got her her second goal, while Bilbia joined the five-goal club while keeping her Wildcats' lead in points. Ellis also put in her second goal of the campaign.
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Northern Michigan University's Lily Senese, right, can't quite get to the ball before Michigan Tech's Braydin Noble passes it during their GLIAC game played at the NMU Soccer Field in Marquette on Sunday. (Photo courtesy Cara Kamps)