’Cats Stun No. 2 Maryland In Big Ten Opener, 4-0

EVANSTON, Ill. (September 11, 2026) — Northwestern captured a 4-0 victory over No. 2 Maryland in its Big Ten Conference opener on Friday night in Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium.

Peter Riesz, Italo Addimandi, Andrew Millar and Ethan Nakolo each scored a goal for the Wildcats (3-2-1, 1-0 Big Ten), who earned the highest ranked win of Payne’s tenure. Nakolo, Riesz, Aaron O’Reilly, Tyler Glassberg, Gabriel Smyth and Marco Silva tallied assists in the win.

“I got a lot of texts and calls, like ‘Are we ready for the upset?’ And I replied, ‘I don’t know what upset we’re talking about,’” said Riesz, who bagged his second goal of the season Friday night. “I’m pretty aware, and I think everyone on this roster is aware of what this team is capable of. We just showed what we can do on a Friday night in Evanston.”

The result marked Northwestern’s first victory over a top-five opponent since October 18, 2016, when the ’Cats knocked off No. 2 Notre Dame, 2-1, in overtime. The match is the most lopsided regular-season defeat for the Terrapins (5-1-0, 0-1 Big Ten) since October 7, 2000.

Dominic Pereira posted three saves as he recorded his first clean sheet of the 2026 campaign. 

Riesz delivered the opener in the 14th minute, firing a powerful effort from outside the box that beat Laurin Mack into the back of the net. Riesz’s goal followed a quick combination between O’Reilly and Nakolo, with the latter slotting a through ball into Riesz’s stride. 

In just the second match of the Riesz-Nakolo strike partnership, the duo wreaked havoc in the attacking third. 

“That’s what we’ve been excited about since last spring,” Payne said. “That strike partnership is one we’ve been cultivating, and it was good to see it tonight. They both got on the board, and there’s more of that to come.”

Riesz credited their collective work in the spring as a launching pad for his chemistry with the Oklahoma Christian transfer.

“From day one [when] he got in, I knew I had a good partner up top,” Riesz said. “We practiced a lot, we have our plays, we have our standards and we’re just trying to execute. We understand each other really well, and this relationship is just going to get stronger in the future.”

Addimandi, Northwestern’s scoring leader in 2026 with three goals in six matches, doubled the hosts’ lead. Silva whipped in an early cross, which found Glassberg at the far post. Glassberg headed the ball across the goalmouth, which Addimandi buried off his left foot.

The Northwestern backline held Maryland without a shot in the match’s initial 45 minutes to preserve a 2-0 halftime scoreline.

“It takes the effort to put that together,” Payne said. “They’ve had that all season within them. It just took some time for us to get there. Now, we have to keep that standard.”

The Wildcats weathered an early Terrapin barrage in the second half, before Andrew Johnson drew a free kick just outside the box in the 52nd minute. Millar stepped up to take the set piece and — from the tightest of angles — dispatched a driven effort that gave Northwestern a 3-0 advantage.

About 15 minutes later, Smyth sent a ball to Riesz on the right flank. The senior found Nakolo at the top of the six-yard-box, and Nakolo headed in his first goal as a Wildcat.

The Wildcats will return to action against No. 10 Michigan State in East Lansing, Mich. on Tuesday, September 15. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT on Big Ten Network.