Northwestern’s 2-0 loss to Northern Illinois on Wednesday evening was, to say the least, sobering.
After upsetting reigning Big Ten champs, then-No. 15 Ohio State, on Sunday, NU was riding a particularly sweet high entering
Wednesday’s matchup at Lakeside Field. Their performance against the Buckeyes was undoubtedly their best of the season and, thanks to a three-win tear, the Wildcats were picking up some much needed midseason momentum.
But against the Huskies, whose brutal brand of soccer does justice to their mascot, the Cats lost their rhythm to the melee of a physical game that tallied 36 fouls.
“This game is at once humbling and exhilarating,” coach Tim Lenahan said. “What you saw here tonight was certainly a humbling game. I’m disappointed that we didn’t match their intensity.”
It was not just a matter of intensity but style that marked the difference between the two squads. In games like the matchup against Ohio State, NU has exhibited the kind of strategy that any soccer purist dreams of – a disciplined possession game that requires both patience and a high soccer IQ. Facing a Northern Illinois (6-4-2) team that favors long passes in behind the defense and that thrives on set pieces, NU (6-5-1) could not control the ball enough to connect and formulate its attack.
“We’re a possession kind of team and a combination kind of team,” junior forward Oliver Kupe said. “We did none of that today. We played into a kick the ball 90 yards, set pieces kind of game that is not our style.”
But it’s a style that the Huskies are well-suited to, and in the 17th minute of the first half Mike Mascitti capitalized off a Northern Illinois free kick from Mino Kayser that bent in from more than 20 yards out. Lurking at the back post, Mascitti beat junior keeper Drew Kotler with a neatly-slotted shot inside the six-yard box.
In the second half, NU mounted a more spirited attack as it hunted for an early equalizer. Both Kupe and senior forward Matt Eliason created scoring chances, recording two shots a piece.
After coming from behind against DePaul just last week to win 3-2, the Cats had the experience to chase the game. But, playing in its third mid-week game in three weeks, NU didn’t have the legs to stage another comeback.
“We came out with a little energy in the second half,” Lenahan said. “You know we were all fired up from the halftime speech. But there’s always a trap with these mid-week, mid-October games. You just hope as a coach that you can push through and get a result.”
In the 80th minute Northern Illinois notched an insurance goal in consistent fashion. Another Kayser free kick, this time a corner, found the head of 6-foot-5 Finn Jor, who coolly placed it out of Kotler’s reach for the final goal of the game.
“Allowing two set piece goals is unacceptable,” junior defender Peter O’Neill said. “We knew going into this game that they had big, strong guys off the set piece but we did not defend well enough.”
NU will now have to find its second wind against Penn State at home on Sunday. The matchup will be NU’s last of its five-game homestand.
“It’s tough after how well we played last Sunday to take a step back like this,” Kupe said. “But now we just know heading into Sunday that we have to regroup and win that game. We know how to recover after a loss because we’ve done it enough times at this point.”
