The NC State men’s soccer team secured its first conference win, beating the Virginia Tech Hokies 1-0 at Dail Soccer Field on Friday, Sept. 23.
Sophomore forward Luke Hille scored the game’s lone goal in the 31st minute. A free kick from graduate midfielder Connor Kelly found its way to Hille, who flicked the ball past Virginia Tech goalkeeper Ben Martino.
“Once you open the doors, the momentum shifts,” Hille said. “So we were feeling really good after the first goal went in, and just kind of managed, for the rest of the game, to stick together. We battled it out until the final whistle.”
The Wolfpack (3-3-1, 1-2 ACC) defense stifled the Hokies (1-6-1, 0-3 ACC) for the majority of the game, even holding Virginia Tech to zero shots in the first half. Though Hille was the only name on the scoresheet, the Pack shut out the Hokies thanks to its airtight defense across 90 minutes.
“It was nice to have a full week of training,” said head coach George Kiefer. “We did tweak certain things. I thought in the actions we were trying to create, we did a good job of it. I thought [we were] defensively sound for the most part. In 90 minutes they had one good look. I was pleased with that.”
The Hokies threw large numbers forward for the majority of the second half, trying to increase the pressure on NC State and force a tying goal into the net. However, sophomore goalkeeper Lucas Hatsios rose to the challenge, combining with his teammates to keep the Hokies off the board during a mad scramble around the goal line in the 65th minute.
Virginia Tech put forth another frantic series of attacks to try to tie things up, but NC State shut the door to lock in the victory. After a pair of ACC losses on the road against then-No. 4 Wake Forest and then-No. 10 Pittsburgh, the Wolfpack hopes to build on the momentum of this win moving ahead in conference play.
“First ACC game at our home field, it couldn’t get better than this, three points,” Hille said. “We have a full week of training again to prepare for Louisville. All the guys are confident and ready to get after it.”
The Pack will remain in the friendly confines for a showdown against the No. 25 Louisville Cardinals on Friday, Sept. 30. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
