KENOSHA, Wis. — Parkside women's soccer closes its six-match homestand Sunday, Sept. 27, with a matchup against No. 11 Grand Valley State at 11 a.m. CT at Wood Road Field. The Alumni Day contest will be the first of two scheduled regular-season meetings between the Rangers and the reigning GLIAC regular-season and tournament champion Lakers and will open a men's and women's soccer doubleheader in Kenosha.
Including Sunday's matchup, Parkside has just three home matches remaining on its 2026 schedule. The link for alumni to sign up can be found here.
The Rangers enter the weekend 5-2-1 overall and 3-1-0 in GLIAC play, tied with Saginaw Valley State for second place in the conference standings with nine points. Parkside split a pair of matches against its Upper Peninsula rivals last weekend, beginning with a 2-0 victory over Michigan Tech on Friday. Kayden Schmidt scored for the third consecutive match and provided the game-winner before Isabel Morales added her first goal as a Ranger in the 90th minute. The victory marked Parkside's fourth consecutive shutout.
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That streak came to an end Sunday, however, as Northern Michigan handed the Rangers their first conference loss of the season, 3-0. The Wildcats scored all three goals in the first half. It marked just the second time Parkside has been held scoreless this season and its first shutout loss of 2026.
Despite the setback, the Rangers remain one of the GLIAC's most productive attacking teams. Parkside leads the conference with 17 goals through eight matches and owns a plus-nine goal differential while averaging 2.13 goals per match, a mark that ranks among the top 60 nationally. The Rangers have also recorded 17 assists, tied with Grand Valley State for the GLIAC lead, and are averaging 18.25 shots per match.
Senior forward Kate Brown leads Parkside with nine points and a GLIAC-best five assists, with her assist total ranking 11th nationally. Four Rangers are tied for the team lead with three goals apiece in Rilyn Breinholt, Mary Leininger, Ava Rizzitano, and Schmidt. Rizzitano continues to generate chances at one of the highest rates in Division II, leading the GLIAC with 38 shots and averaging 4.75 per match, which ranks 12th nationally. She has placed 16 of those attempts on goal.
In net, sophomore Lindsey Ferrara has made 18 saves while posting a 0.95 goals-against average and four shutouts. Her four clean sheets lead the GLIAC through the first eight matches of the season.
Sunday, Sept. 27
No. 11 Grand Valley State at Parkside
11 a.m. CT | Wood Road Field | Kenosha, Wis. | Alumni Day
Scouting No. 11 Grand Valley State
The Lakers (5-1-2, 3-0-1 GLIAC) arrive in Kenosha as the only remaining team in the conference without a GLIAC loss and sit alone atop the standings with 10 points, one ahead of Parkside and Saginaw Valley State. Grand Valley State has yet to surrender a goal through four conference matches, outscoring GLIAC opponents 9-0.
GVSU went 1-0-1 last weekend, battling Ferris State to a scoreless draw Friday before earning a 2-0 victory over Saginaw Valley State on Sunday. The Lakers' lone loss of the season came Sept. 6 in a 1-0 road defeat against then-No. 16 Minnesota State.
Grand Valley State owns a plus-11 goal differential for the season, scoring 15 times while allowing just four goals in eight matches. The Lakers lead the GLIAC and rank 13th nationally with 20.13 shots per match and average 8.50 shots on goal per contest. Their 17 assists are tied with Parkside for the conference lead, while GVSU's 0.50 team goals-against average ranks among the best marks in Division II.
Vesna Dennison and Sonya Mehta lead the attack with four goals and 10 points apiece. Mehta has put a team-high 18 shots on goal, while Dennison has scored two game-winners. Ava Kozak and Lina Rea share the team lead with three assists each, and five different Lakers have recorded at least two assists this season. Eight different players have scored for GVSU.
Sophomore goalkeeper Macie Hunter has allowed only four goals in nearly 690 minutes in net, posting a 0.52 goals-against average with 12 saves and three individual shutouts. Grand Valley State has four clean sheets as a team this season.
The Lakers entered 2026 as the preseason favorite in the GLIAC, receiving nine of 10 first-place votes and 81 points in the coaches poll. Grand Valley State finished 19-2-1 overall and 13-1 in GLIAC play last season, capturing both the conference regular-season and tournament championships. Second-year head coach Katelyn Longino returned eight starters from that team, including Hunter, the reigning GLIAC Goalkeeper of the Year and a D2CCA third-team All-American.
Sunday will mark the 26th all-time meeting between Parkside and Grand Valley State, with the Lakers holding an 18-6-1 advantage in a series that dates back to 2003. Grand Valley State is 6-4-0 all-time in Kenosha, but the Rangers authored one of their biggest victories of the 2025 season when the Lakers last visited Wood Road Field. Parkside stunned then-No. 2 Grand Valley State, 1-0, on Oct. 17, 2025, when Rizzitano scored with just one second remaining in regulation. GVSU had won the first meeting between the teams that season, 1-0, in Allendale, Michigan. The last three meetings between the programs have all finished 1-0. The Rangers also own a memorable postseason victory in the series, eliminating Grand Valley State in the 2023 GLIAC Tournament semifinals in Marquette, Michigan, to advance to the conference championship match.
Following Sunday's match, Parkside will hit the road for the first time in exactly one month and begin a three-match road trip. The Rangers will visit Saginaw Valley State on Friday, Oct. 2, at 11 a.m. CT before traveling to Big Rapids, Michigan, to face Ferris State on Sunday, Oct. 4, at noon CT.
To keep up with the Rangers on Sunday, be sure to visit parksiderangers.com/coverage.
