N.C. State jumped on Francis Marion early Sunday, scoring a goal in the first minute of the game and winning 3-0 at SAS Soccer Park in Cary, snapping an eight-game winless streak.

The game was scheduled to be played at Method Road Stadium, but it was moved due to the wet conditions.

In the first 60 seconds of the game, sophomore defender Katie Ruiz hit a corner kick that landed at the feet of sophomore forward Briana Cunningham who knocked the ball into the net.

“[It] was a great finish by Briana Cunningham, absolutely brilliant,” coach Laura Kerrigan said.

Soon after the goal, Vera was taken off the field to rest a previous injury. The game continued on as State played stifling defense and prevented Francis Marion from getting anywhere near the Wolfpack goal.

“We moved the ball a lot, and our pressure helped us by allowing the other team to make more mistakes, so we could pounce on them,” redshirt freshman defender Nadia Aboulhosn said.

Finally the Pack broke free of the Eagles defense. Vera returned to the game and handled the ball with speed and accuracy as she maneuvered around four Francis Marion defenders and kicked a 20-yard goal into the net, giving State a 2-0 lead.

“I had a good ball to my feet from [freshman defender Alyson] Santilli, and I knew that two of them were in front of me and a couple came from behind me and surprised me and so I stopped real quick to let them go by,” junior Lindsay Vera said. “Once they [passed], it cleared some space for me to take a shot and, fortunately, it went in.”

Francis Marion was unable to score during the first half, and the Pack 2-0. Once the second half began, the game turned to a more physical match between the two teams. After 14 minutes, Ruiz was given a yellow card for excessive force.

“The game for everyone became more physical in the second half because the [referee] missed some calls, and the other team was going in late on some their tackles,” Ruiz said. “I don’t know if he thought I said something else, but that’s why he gave it to me.”

With 28 minutes left to play, Vera set up an open Aboulhosn who scored, taking the score to 3-0.

“[Vera] was just pure magic in the time she was in the second half,” Kerrigan said. “She created a great goal for us by switching the point and playing the ball over to Nadia and Nadia did a fantastic job finishing it.”

State will host Wake Forest on Thursday for it’s final home match of the season at 3:30 p.m. at Method Road.