NC State men’s soccer fell 2-1 to American in the Pack’s third consecutive loss at home after a six-game winning streak at Dail Soccer Stadium.
The Wolfpack (6-7, 1-4 ACC) desperately needed a win after going cold in the middle of conference play. Despite some tough losses against ACC competition, the red-and-white had consistently handled its midweek opponents — but that came to an end when a scrappy Eagles (3-3-4) team rolled into Raleigh.
“It’s disappointing because I don’t think we played poorly,” said graduate defender Kendall Edwards. “We controlled a lot of the play, but we were unlucky to not get more chances and shots on goal… For me though and for all of us, we were just not good enough.”
The first half proved to be a defensive battle, as both teams struggled to advance the ball. The gritty half ended without a single goal scored and only two corner kicks earned, both by American. The tight match proved to be an advantage for American, building the Eagles’ confidence up as the game remained even.
“[This is] one of the biggest games of the year for them.” Edwards said. “It’s important for us to be the aggressors. If you let teams linger in games, you give them confidence.”
Following halftime, the action quickly picked up with American scoring just four minutes into the half. The Eagles capitalized on a goal kick to quickly get up field before American forward Mustapha Sowe drilled a goal past freshman goalkeeper Ben Voase.
“The second half started pretty well, but it was just a bad goal to give up off of a goal kick,” Edwards said. “That was not good defending from us. It starts with me in the back and all of us together, finding ways to do better on simple things.”
Despite taking the lead, American was not satisfied with the score. On an eerily similar play to the Eagles’ first goal, the red-and-white allowed a goal kick to hurt it on the scoreboard — this time American forward Samuel Hershey hitting paydirt. Down by two, hope of a victory faded away.
Fighting to even the score, NC State earned a corner kick 84 minutes into the game. Freshman left back Gabi Velez sent the ball into a crowd of players, where Edwards headed the ball for the Pack’s first goal of the night. The goal marked Edwards’ first of the season and a rare occurrence for a defender.
“I was joking before the game that I need to get a goal before I leave NC State,” Edwards said. “Obviously it’s cool, but the result is really what I care about… It’s something I’ll look back on maybe later and be happy about.”
The Wolfpack fought till the end to even the score. With another goal kick lined up and just five minutes on the clock, the red-and-white found itself in prime position to strike. The Eagles had other plans, stifling the Pack and clearing the ball to the other side of the field. American defense held up and the visitors escaped Raleigh with the win over NC State.
“[We were] fighting back at the end,” said junior midfielder Will Buete. “We just got to move on to the next one.”
The Wolfpack will take a short trip to Durham on Friday, Oct. 13 for a rivalry clash with No. 15 Duke, the Pack’s third ranked match in four games. The game is set for 8 p.m.
