N.C. State got on top of Notre Dame early, but the Irish scored twice in the second half to earn a hard-fought 2-1 victory.
Senior midfielder Danny DiPrima’s first goal of the season gave the Wolfpack (4-4-4, 1-4-3 ACC) a 1-0 lead after 20 minutes, but Notre Dame’s goals in the 54th and 65th minutes ended State’s upset bid.
“We played really well for about 25 or 30 minutes,” head coach Kelly Findley said. “But we scored a goal and then we seemed like we weren’t sure if we could win the game.”
“I think it gives us confidence that we can play with one of the top teams in the country. It shows us that we’re close, and now we just have to believe in ourselves that we can win these games.”
The No. 2 Fighting Irish (8-0-5, 5-0-3 ACC) is on top of the ACC standings after the win, while the Wolfpack drops to 11th, ahead of only Pittsburgh.
“We expected to get a result and we’re disappointed that we didn’t,” DiPrima said. “We’ve just got to keep plugging on and get three points from all of our remaining games.”
Both teams came out of the gates firing, with chances coming thick and fast early on. The attacking mentalities of both teams made for an open, entertaining style of play.
State possessed the ball for the majority of the opening 20 minutes, but Notre Dame almost took the lead in the 19th minute. Senior forward Leon Brown fired a 30-yard rocket toward the bottom left corner of State’s goal.
But to the relief of the Wolfpack defense, Brown’s shot hit the post and bounced away harmlessly.
Less than two minutes after Brown’s shot hit the post, State took the lead. Senior midfielder Alex Martinez got free on the left wing and fired a low cross across the face of goal. With Notre Dame’s defense nowhere to be found, DiPrima executed a simple tap in at the back post to give the Wolfpack a 1-0 advantage.
But after State got its goal, Notre Dame started to assert itself offensively. The Irish controlled possession for the rest of the game, barely giving State any opportunities to extend its lead.
“When we got the goal, we kind of just sat off instead of really taking it to them and pushing them back even further,” DiPrima said. “That’s something we need to take into the next couple of games, whenever we get ahead to just keep pushing and not back off.”
“I think when we’ve watched video on them, they have a tendency to press if they give up a goal,” Findley said. “They’re number two in the country for a reason. They upped the pressure and we didn’t respond really well to that, but on the whole I think we played well.”
State entered halftime leading 1-0, thanks in part to some clutch saves from senior goalkeeper Fabian Otte. Otte held the Irish at bay, at least until the 53rd minute.
Notre Dame’s sophomore midfielder Connor Klekota sent in a cross from the left wing directed at sophomore midfielder Patrick Hodan. Through a crowd of Wolfpack players, Hodan bundled the ball into State’s net from four yards out.
State, who had worked so hard to protect its lead, lost most of its momentum after Hodan’s equalizer. The Irish quickly took advantage of the situation, seizing the lead in the 65th minute through junior defender Max Lachowecki.
The junior’s left-footed strike sealed the Pack’s fate, as Notre Dame weathered a late surge from the Wolfpack to seal its victory.
The Pack will look to bounce back against Liberty (7-5, 3-3 Big South) on Tuesday in Raleigh. The match against the Flames is the second of a four-game home stand for State, who closes out its home schedule on Oct. 29 against Appalachian State.
