Northwestern dropped its second straight game to a Big East team Saturday, falling 3-1 to Marquette.
Wildcat substitute Italo Addimandi scored the lone goal for NU midway through the second half in a frustrating game characterized by passivity and a lack of creativity from Northwestern. The ‘Cats had nine more shot attempts and six more corners yet fell to the opportunistic Golden Eagles.
Both teams walked onto the pitch in Milwaukee looking to bounce back after losing their previous game, but neither started with overwhelming tenacity.
Northwestern rolled out a hybrid of its typical 4-2-4 formation, swapping in Baraka Tarleton, Yuval Nimrodi and goalkeeper Gino Cervoni for Gabriel Smyth, Addimandi and Dominic Pereira. The emerging Smyth sat out due to a red card he picked up in NU’s previous game against Xavier.
The ‘Cats controlled the lethargic game from the jump and built its attack with long runs from the midfield. The purple and white defense effectively held a high line and easily dealt with the barrage of Marquette long balls. An aggressive NU press caused several Marquette mistakes, but Northwestern was time and time again unable ever to string together enough passes to create a serious threat. The first 15 minutes of the game were played in the Golden Eagles’ half, but they remained comfortable building from the back and keeping the ball away from the Wildcats. Johnson looked like the most determined ‘Cat in the first half as he frequently asked questions of Marquette when he cut in from the left side.
The tide turned about 30 minutes into the match. Marquette started to progress its buildup into the Northwestern half and threw in crosses that caused panic among the Wildcat defense. The first Golden Eagle shot of the game broke the ice and put them up 1-0 35 minutes into the game on a slow-rolling cross put in the back of the net by an unmarked Mads Konrad Horgøien.
The half would end with Marquette leading despite a 6-1 shot advantage for Northwestern. Coach Russell Payne made several changes to the frontline throughout the first half, but none provided enough of an offensive spark to even the match.
The ‘Cats entered the second half down one on the scoreboard but likely feeling good about their overall composure and control. They might have felt too good as Marquette struck again less than a minute into the half. Northwestern simply forgot to mark all the attackers in the box, and Marquette’s second tap-in goal went past Cervoni. Northwestern responded with more pressure and possession time in Golden Eagle territory, but it still couldn’t generate any serious chances.
The Wildcat offense finally did something 60 minutes into the match when Andrew Millar lobbed a cross into Addimandi, who headed the ball into the goalkeeper before putting it away with his chest. It was Addimandi’s second goal of the season and a breath of hope for NU.
The final 30 minutes of the game were a back-and-forth, slow-moving affair, with Northwestern’s best chance generated at the 66-minute mark when Peter Reisz zipped a ball into a streaking Millar. Millar made solid contact with the cross but hammered it into the Marquette keeper, who diverted the ball away from the net.
Northwestern controlled the ball for much of the remaining time but chose to rely on weak crosses that didn’t strike any fear into the opposition. Marquette snagged another goal with seven minutes remaining to go up 3-1 and hand Northwestern its second loss of the season.
It doesn’t get any easier from here for the Wildcats as they travel home to host their toughest test so far this season. Northwestern’s next match is its first conference game against No. 2 Maryland on Friday at 6:30 p.m. CT.
