For nearly two-thirds of Friday night’s home contest against ACC opponent Virginia Tech, the NC State men’s soccer team looked completely comfortable.
A pair of stunning goals from sophomore winger Travis Wannemuehler and freshman midfielder Zach Knudson saw the Pack (3-3-2, 0-2-1 ACC) cruising to victory up 2-0 while playing some of its best soccer to date.
However, it took just a single minute for the Pack to implode, losing its lead, a player to a red card and its momentum, before eventually conceding in the final minute to lose 3-2.
With nine games left in the season, there’s still time for the Wolfpack to rattle off a string of victories and push for a tournament bid. With that in mind, here are three questions that will determine the rest of the season.
Can Travis Wannemuehler maintain his good form?
Despite being a regular starter and featuring in all 17 games last season, the winger hadn’t scored a goal until Friday’s game against Virginia Tech (6-3-0, 2-1-0 ACC). Despite showing glimpses of his potential, Wannemuehler always seemed like he couldn’t keep up with his own creativity and struggled with his decision-making.
The last few weeks have seen a complete turnaround, and Friday’s match was easily his best for the Wolfpack so far. Wannemuehler torched the Hokies’ defense and opened his account for State in stunning fashion in the 23rd minute.
The Evansville, Indiana native skipped past pressure, played a 1-2 pass with red-shirt senior striker Nick Surkamp, chested the ball down and hit a dipping half volley off the bounce with the outside of his right foot. The shot neatly arched over the Hokies’ 6-foot-5-inch freshman goalkeeper Ben Lundgaard and into the net.
Just a few minutes later, Wannemuehler nearly scored another top class goal, cutting inside from the right and bending a shot toward the far corner with his left foot, but the ball just sailed over.
If Wannemuehler can keep making correct decisions, beating defenders and contributing goals and assists, State’s attack will massively improve.
What is Zach Knudson’s best position?
With the departures of winger Alex Martinez to the MLS and center attacking midfielder Nazmi Albadawi to the Carolina RailHawks in the summer, State lost its two most potent individual attacking threats, but through the addition of Knudson, who joined the Wolfpack in the spring, head coach Kelly Findley has replaced two players with one.
Equally adept in central midfield or on either flank, Knudson has grown into State’s primary individual offensive catalyst. Against Tech, the Players Development Academy standout scored a tremendous solo goal, running nearly 60 yards with the ball at his feet from right to left before slotting the ball past Lundgaard into the lower corner for his third goal of the season and is tied with senior striker Surkamp in points (8), but provides far more than goals and assists.
Despite the importance of his movement, passing and dribbling, Knudson has yet to be fielded in a consistent position. In State’s 4-3-3, he has played both as a left interior midfielder and as a winger in the front three. While versatility is part of his game, State must find the best application of his considerable skill set.
Is he better attacking through the middle, providing energy and creativity, or is he more effective assisting and finishing from the flank, with more freedom to attack in transition?
Can State’s defense cope without Clement Simonin?
While freshman center back Conor Donovan has performed solidly for the Wolfpack, his partner for most of the season, senior Clement Simonin, has dominated. The Frenchman is comfortable on the ball, possesses a fantastic passing range and defends the box with authority. However, he’s sidelined due to injury, forcing head coach Findley to turn to his depth.
Against Virginia Tech, freshman Mattias Fracchia got the start and for 58 minutes looked every inch the highly rated defender identified by NC State alum and US U-20 National Team head coach Tab Ramos, but his error in the 59th minute: miscommunicating with junior goalkeeper Alex McCauley, failing to clear the ball and then fouling and conceding a penalty while earning himself a red card, showed he still needs time to find his feet in this State side.
Senior Moss Jackson-Atogi will have to step into the defense, and while the Raleigh native is an accomplished and experienced veteran, his skill set isn’t well-suited to mesh with Donovan’s because they don’t contrast. Both are primarily “stoppers” who run down opposing attackers, block shots and defend in the air, but State’s passing game requires a player with passing range to activate the flanks with quick diagonals. One of the two must contribute in this area.
