NC State men’s soccer fell flat on the road against the No. 10 Louisville Cardinals, with the final result almost guaranteed by halftime in a lopsided 5-2 loss.
From the start, it was clear that Louisville (6-1-1, 1-1-1 ACC) was the better team, as the Cardinals quickly scored in just 13 minutes. Falling behind early against one of the nation’s top squads is less than ideal, but the Pack (5-4, 1-2 ACC) worked hard to stay in the game.
However, after a brief break from scoring, Louisville turned on the jets and stunned the red-and-white. Louisville’s John Barker doubled the lead with a 28th minute goal that started an avalanche against the Pack. Minutes later, the Cardinals’ midfielder Sander Roed, who already had recorded an assist, tacked on a goal to make the score 3-0.
The snowball effect continued when Barker struck again just two minutes later. Down 4-0, the Wolfpack’s hopes of pulling an upset were quickly crushed. Heading into halftime, the Cardinals had already proved themselves to be worthy of their lofty ranking, creating an insurmountable gap on the scoreboard.
NC State got on the board once the teams retook the field. 53 minutes into the match, junior forward Luke Hille cut into the deficit to make it 4-1. All season, Hille has been the Wolfpack’s go-to scoring option, leading the Pack in goals and points.
Despite the red-and-white’s quick goal to open the half, the Cardinals remained firmly in control. 77 minutes into the game, Louisville reasserted its grip, scoring a fifth and final goal to restore the four-goal gap between the teams.
Before the final whistle, though, NC State found one more goal courtesy of freshman right wing Hakim Karamoko.
One key difference between the two teams was capitalizing on opportunities to score. Both the Wolfpack and the Cardinals racked up shots, recording 14 and 18, respectively. However Louisville converted at a much higher clip and enjoyed an offensive explosion as a result.
Moving forward, NC State will play more teams just as talented as the Cardinals and should be more competitive. However, cleaning up defensively will be critical for the Wolfpack to have a successful ACC campaign.
The red-and-white will look to get back on track on Wednesday, Sept. 27 at Dail Soccer Stadium when Gardner-Webb rolls into Raleigh for a midweek showdown.
