In a sluggish battle plagued by adverse weather conditions, NC State men’s soccer fell at home to the No. 15 Louisville Cardinals 1-0 on Friday, Sept. 30.

After a scoreless first half for both sides, the Cardinals (6-2-2, 2-1-1 ACC) were able to get out to a 1-0 lead in the 59th minute. And despite the Wolfpack (3-4-1, 1-3 ACC) upping its intensity and pressure on the Louisville defense in the second half, the Cardinals were able to capture their third win from their last four matches at Dail Soccer Field.

Pouring rain and heavy winds played a major part in the outcome, rendering the field nearly unplayable, especially in the second half. With the water-logged pitch making it a challenge to dribble and pass the ball, both sides had trouble navigating the conditions, resulting in players slipping and sliding all over the field. It was a physical match through and through, with 18 total fouls called.

After a relatively uneventful first half, the latter 45 brought much more action. With field conditions rapidly deteriorating due to the persistent rainfall, multiple rain delays were taken in an attempt to clear the pitch. In the midst of all that, Louisville struck in the 59th minute, scoring the only goal of the match.

The Cardinal goal seemed to light a fire under the Pack however, as it displayed an increased level of intensity once it faced the 1-0 deficit. Multiple opportunities were created and nearly scored on, but the Louisville defense and water-logged field had other ideas.

Offensive pressure generated by sophomore forward Luke Hille, graduate midfielder Conor Kelly and graduate defender Alex Bautista threatened the Cardinal defense, but the Pack wasn’t able to take any quality shots on goal despite progressing the ball down the field effectively.

With the field conditions becoming more of a factor as time ticked down, NC State desperately looked for the equalizer. Even though it tallied five shots in the second half, the Pack only registered one on goal across the whole 90, ultimately failing to find the back of the net.

With the loss, the red-and-white move to 1-3 in conference play and will look to follow through on its scoring opportunities, and stay drier, in its future matchups.

Next for the Pack is a non conference match against High Point University. Kickoff against the Panthers is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 4 at 7 p.m.