NC State women’s soccer has had two very different stretches of soccer to start out its 2024 season.
While the Pack was plagued by a lack of offensive production in its first three games of the season, the red-and-white has since reversed its fortunes. In fact, it found gold against the Charlotte 49ers with a 3-1 win on Wednesday at Dail Soccer Stadium in Raleigh.
The Wolfpack added on to a now 8-1 scoring run in its pair of victories in just as many games with its strong win over its intra-state opponents. NC State netted three quick goals within the first 25 minutes of the match and rode that lead all the way through an uneventful final half for the 3-1 win.
At the start of the season, head coach Tim Santoro preached the importance of his team having time to find itself. Considering the amount of new players and new tactics needed to succeed, Santoro was proud to see it all come together over the past two games.
“I knew it’s going to take time,” Santoro said. “12 new players, [we’re] piecing it together. I’ve been all over the place with lineups and combinations and formations, but I think we’re getting on to something. Just to all of a sudden have eight goals in two games and do it pretty comfortably, it shows that we’re making strides every game, and that’s what we have to keep doing.”
While the Pack trumped VCU in a rousing 5-0 win on Sunday in Richmond, it rewarded its raucous crowd at Dail Soccer Stadium in its return to Raleigh with three quick first-half scores.
The Pack’s turnaround came after a rough outing in Buies Creek, North Carolina against Campbell. Despite dominating in shots and possession, NC State made critical mistakes in front of the goals that resulted in a 2-1 loss. Santoro said he was also impressed with the mental bounceback and perseverance his team displayed after that loss.
“The progression is good,” Santoro said. “Every game, you can see things starting to click … and I was encouraged last Thursday by how much we created, how much we dominated — the way we lost was really tough. That was hard on the psyche. So the bounce back with these two is pretty good.”
Two of the team’s scores, including the opener, came courtesy of senior midfielder Annika Wohner. The veteran earned a brace in NC State’s match with the Rams and repeated the feat against the 49ers. Wohner’s already tied her number of goals scored from last season with four.
The senior drew first blood early on in the match after a deadly strike from just inside the box in the fifth minute. With an assist from freshman midfielder Mana Nakata, Wohner turned and laced a shot past the Charlotte keeper into the far side of the goal for the first score at Dail Soccer Stadium this season.
Wohner’s accounted for half her team’s goals over the course of its 8-1 run in the past two matches. While NC State always had the pieces, Wohner said it simply just took some time for everything to come together.
“Nothing really changed — things just clicked,” Wohner said. “We always had the girls. I think we have the potential. We have the potential to be great and it just kind of clicked. The goals came and scoring early always helps.”
With that early score in hand, NC State was keen on increasing its lead just like it did at VCU. Thirteen minutes later, the red-and-white doubled its lead when graduate midfielder Jaiden Thomas scored her first goal since 2022. While a season-ending injury sidelined her in 2023, Thomas wasn’t going to be stopped from tacking on another score for her team.
After another shot from the ever-threatening Wohner ricocheted off the Charlotte goalkeeper, Thomas smashed in her first score of the season into a near-empty net.
Once again led by Wohner, the Wolfpack offense wasted no time in scoring. Just six minutes after Thomas’ goal, Wohner received a cross-pitch through ball from junior defender Brooklyn Holt. With the opposing keeper running far from her goal to intercept the pass, Wohner simply beat the 49er to it. With a flick of her foot, Wohner and the ball were past the keeper and with another flick the ball was rolling into the net.
Wohner embraced the group of Red Terrors just behind the goal, relishing in her second straight game with a brace and in her team’s newfound success. Off-the-field work and team building had paid off for Wohner and her team.
“I think we got a lot of great girls,” Wohner said. “The team changed a lot from last year as well. Honestly, the girls — just off the field — we’re good together, and I think that starts showing on the field. … And I think that’s just working out lately, and I’m really happy about it.”
The 49ers struck with a score of their own before the first half was over, lifting a deep shot over the head of junior goalkeeper Olivia Pratapas. The 3-1 lead NC State held at halftime held as the final result of the game after a slow, uneventful second half.
The team’s win over Charlotte marks the 400th overall win in program history and made Santoro the second-most winningest coach in program history.
While NC State has more challenging opponents next on its schedule, such as a top 25 Colorado team on Sunday, the Wolfpack is feeling how good it is to have everything click and is looking forward to keeping that momentum going against tougher and tougher teams.
“Scoring goals is the best part about soccer,” Wohner said. “It’s the best feeling, especially at home with the fans, celebrating with them is great. The wins are so valuable right now. We need them and it’s kind of giving us a little push for the next couple games.”
