Northwestern missed its opportunity to capture a share of the Big Ten regular season championship as it took on Michigan in Ann Arbor Sunday morning. It would have been the Wildcats’ first conference title since 2012.
The Wolverines (4-5-7, 2-1-5 Big Ten) had other plans, however, scoring two first-half goals and killing all hopes of an NU (10-3-3, 4-3-1 Big Ten) title en route to a 3-0 Michigan victory.
Wolverines midfielder Riley Ferch headed in a cross from defender Jason Bucknor in the 15th minute to put Michigan up 1-0.
In the 27th minute, Wolverines defender Moshtaba Al-Hasnawi dribbled right and fired off a shot. The ball deflected off a ‘Cats defender and beyond the reach of graduate student goalkeeper Jackson Weyman to widen the deficit to 2-0.
Forward Alex Waggoner nearly added a third for Michigan in the 35th minute, creating space on an NU defender, but Weyman made the save. Two minutes later, he fully extended to stop a rocket from Michigan midfielder Bryce Blevins to keep the game 2-0 at halftime.
The ‘Cats offense woke up in the beginning of the second half, controlling the ball in the final third. They continually sent the ball into the box, but Michigan’s back line and goalkeeper Isaiah Goldson held firm and secured a clean sheet.
In order to win the Big Ten regular season championship, NU needed to either win Sunday’s game or match Penn State’s result against Wisconsin. The Nittany Lions’ Van Danielson scored in the 68th minute in Madison to secure a 1-1 tie.
Michigan midfielder Duilio Herrera dribbled down the right sideline, cut inward, deked out Weyman and slid the ball to Waggoner, who buried the Wolverines’ third and final tally with seven minutes left to play.
The ‘Cats finished tied for third in the Big Ten as the regular season concluded. Following its draw, Penn State shared the regular season title with Indiana.
The Big Ten tournament kicks off Nov. 3, with NU hosting Michigan at Martin Stadium in a rematch on Friday.
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