NC State men’s soccer passed its final preseason test with flying colors, knocking off VCU despite falling into an early hole. The Pack came up from behind to score a 3-1 victory over the Rams.
“This is not a game that you want to make a living chasing,” said head coach George Kiefer. “When you’ve been playing and have good experience, in this game you might give one up, and you just gotta keep to your ways to get it back.”
The Rams scored within minutes of the start of the match off a corner kick from VCU’s Gerardo Castillo. Down early, the Wolfpack did not panic – instead the team regrouped and put together a strong overall performance. Junior midfielder Vusumzi Plamana quickly evened the score by threading the ball just inside the goal off of an assist from sophomore midfielder Calem Tommy.
“We have a lot of guys that logged a lot of minutes last year,” Kiefer said. “They put the ball back at midfield, regrouped, and we tightened things up.”
Dissatisfied with a tie, the red-and-white struck again. Midway through the second half, senior forward Junior Nare passed the ball inside to freshman center midfielder Yuta Toya, who scored with ease. Suddenly seizing the lead and the momentum, the Wolfpack found itself in good position.
Toya continued to shine throughout the remainder of the match, later finding junior forward Luke Hille for the third Wolfpack goal of the night. While the entire team showed out, it was the midfielders in particular who led the charge offensively, scoring or assisting on each of NC State’s goals.
“We scored two goals off of our defending tonight,” Kiefer said. “That’s a pretty good reward, and I think they’re buying into their work without the ball pretty good.”
On the defensive end the Pack settled in nicely after the opening goal, shutting off any chance for VCU to steal a win. The red-and-white played with fiery intensity to keep the Rams away from the goal. Near the end of the first half, tensions ran high as VCU struggled to claw its way back into the game. A brief scuffle ensued, resulting in four yellow cards, including one for VCU head coach Dave Giffard.
Despite their aggression, the Rams never caught up with the Pack as the red-and-white defense proved to be too much for VCU to handle. No matter what the Rams tried, the Wolfpack maintained its tough, gritty defense – a sign that NC State is embracing the blue collar identity that Kiefer is instilling in his team.
“Coach Kiefer and the staff have implemented this standard and this mantra of our identity and our grit,” said graduate defender Kendall Edwards. “Whether it’s a freshman or a grad student like me, the identity of everyone is there.”
After a trio of exhibition wins, the Pack is set to open its regular season at Dail Soccer Field on Friday, Aug. 25 at 7 p.m. when the Radford Highlanders roll into Raleigh.
