Wolfpack women win two

In matching 2-0 wins in non-conference play, N.C. State defeated Western Carolina Friday and UNC-Wilmington Sunday at the Method Road Soccer Stadium.

Both games played out similiarly with the Wolfpack failing to score in the first half of either match, doing all its scoring in the second half.

However, coach Laura Kerrigan thought that the team played better in the first half against the Seahawks.

“Today in the first half, I thought we dominated on 50-50 balls in the first half and we weren’t very smart on our finishing, and that was the difference,” Kerrigan said.

Junior Jessica O’Rourke captialized on a booming free kick from freshman Katie Ruiz in the 75th minute. Ruiz’s kick traveled from about five yards behind midfield into the inbox where O’Rourke finished it off with a goal.

“It was a great ball by Katie Ruiz, and I was just following it, making sure it went in,” O’Rourke said. “It was right where it needed to be.”

Thirteen minutes later, sophomore Mallory Schmidt sent in another goal that Kerrigan called “fantastic,” and put the game out of reach.

“In the second half, Wilmington came out a little bit sharper,” Kerrigan said. “We weathered the initial storm and then we started finding players. The more we possess the ball, the more free kicks we’re going to get, which is how we scored.”

The Pack had four different players contributing to the scoring, with freshman Briana Cunningham and sophomore Lindsey Vera netting goals against Western Carolina.

“We played much better today than we did on Friday,” Kerrigan said. “The second half we played much better on Friday. The first half was a bit of a mess, which [was] our first 45 minutes of playing in real competition.”

Several freshmen got their first taste of significant playing time, and for the most part were pleased with how they did — adjusting to the collegiate level and being very active on the field.

“I was pumped,” freshman Chantalle Dugas said. “You have to come out aggressive, because if you come out soft the opposition is going to take advantage of that.”

While improving to 2-0 on the year, the Pack still hopes to get off to faster starts and then have something to show for it.

“I wish we could score in the first,” O’Rourke said. “We need to come out in the first half and finish it as opposed to the second half.”