Northwestern Readies For Clashes With Evansville, XavierNorthwestern Readies For Clashes With Evansville, Xavier
Ryan Kuttler/Northwestern Athletics

Northwestern Readies For Clashes With Evansville, Xavier

EVANSTON, Ill. (August 27, 2026) – Following an unbeaten opening week of the 2026 season, Northwestern (1-0-1) returns to action this week for a pair of contests.  

The Wildcats close out a two-game road swing through the Hoosier State on Friday evening, heading south to take on Evansville in a 7 p.m. CT kickoff at Arad McCutchan Stadium in Evansville, Ind.  A quick turnaround follows, as Xavier visits Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium on Monday evening at 6:30 p.m. CT.

LAST TIME OUT
Northwestern opened the new campaign with a pair of impressive showings.  The ‘Cats downed New Haven in their home opener, 3-1, last Thursday, before rallying back to earn a 1-1 draw against perennial Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) contender Notre Dame on Sunday evening.

Andrew Millar, Italo Addimandi, and Tre Barrett each tallied goals in the Wildcats’ win over New Haven, while Baraka Tarleton’s highlight-reel strike in the 76th minute brought Northwestern back on level terms against the Fighting Irish.

Northwestern Cruises Past New Haven In 2026 Opener, 3-1

Goals from Andrew Millar, Italo Addimandi, and Tre Barrett saw Northwestern defeat New Haven, 3-1, in its 2026 opener on Thursday, August 20 at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium.

SCOUTING EVANSVILLE
Evansville (0-2) dropped its opening two games of the 2026 season, falling to Bellarmine, 3-2, last Thursday before suffering a 3-0 setback against No. 22 Indiana on Sunday evening.

Friday’s clash with the ‘Cats will mark the Purple Aces’ second of four straight matchups with power conference opponents.

Under the direction of fourth-year head coach Robbe Tarver, Evansville earned a share of the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) regular season title last season, finishing 3-1-3 against league opposition as part of a 7-5-8 overall finish.

Preseason All-MVC pick Devin Shepherd looks to build off an outstanding rookie campaign in 2025. Shepherd, the Purple Aces’ top returning point-getter, closed last season with five goals, a mark that ranked second on the team, to go along with a pair of assists.

SCOUTING XAVIER
Xavier (1-0-1) enters Monday’s matchup in Evanston in the midst of an unbeaten start of its own. The Musketeers dispatched Purdue Fort Wayne, 2-1, in their 2026 opener on August 20, ahead of a scoreless draw, 0-0, with Bellarmine this past Tuesday.

Following a 5-6-4 (1-4-3 BIG EAST) finish in 2025, head coach John Higgins’ team was picked to finish third in the BIG EAST Conference’s Midwest Division.

Jonny Mennell further etched his name into Xavier’s record books in the Musketeers’ matchup with Bellarmine, posting his 20th career shutout to move to the top of the program’s all-time record board in the category. Mennell started in 11 games last season, closing the year with a 1.55 goals against average.

On the offensive front, Higgins returns two of his top three scorers from last season in Harun Bakaran and Gun Ha Lee, who both tallied three goals and an assist in 2025.

SERIES STUFF
Northwestern and Evansville will meet for the fourth time on Friday evening, a series that sits all square at 1-1-1 (.500) following a 1-0 win by the ‘Cats in last season’s matchup at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium.  Peter Riesz levied the deciding strike in the victory, scoring in the 28th minute.

Northwestern extended its lead in its all-time series with Xavier to 5-2-3 (.650) after Omar Jallow’s 87th-minute winner in a 1-0 triumph last season at Corcoran Field in Cincinnati, Ohio.  The victory marked the 100th career win for Wildcats’ head coach Russell Payne.

UP NEXT
Northwestern makes the trip north up Interstate 94 to battle Marquette on Saturday, September 5. Kickoff from Valley Fields in Milwaukee, Wis. is set for 1 p.m. CT.