N.C. State will face No. 1-ranked UCLA at Method Road Soccer Stadium for an exhibition match Saturday. Coach George Tarantini explained this game is going to be very exciting with the new blend of youth and experience. The team plans on using its quickness to attack the Bruins’ defense.
“We are ready to play,” Tarantini said. “UCLA is a very quick and very skillful team. It’s a team that takes you on, and we need to be prepared. Everybody is ready, and we will take every opportunity we have.”
Senior midfielder El Hadj Cisse said the team is ready for the top-ranked Bruins.
“Coach wants us to know our mistakes before first game,” Cisse said. “We just have to keep working hard and know the system that the coach wants us to play with.”
Since the beginning of their training in the summertime, both the newcomers and the experienced players have been training together, Cisse said.
He said playing against the No.-1 team in the nation will help the new starters understand the level of play they will need for this season.
“That will be their first real NCAA game,” Cisse said. “So if they get used to that before their real season, it will be very good for them.”
Although the team trains together, co-captains Cisse and senior defender Hugh Cronin have been doing extra training together, building up their stamina to get ready for their upcoming senior season. “For us it’s our last year, and we are trying to go out with a bang and do everything we can to make sure that we are ready,” Cronin said. “We’ve been out here for the past week doing two [practices] a day. Everyone has the attitude that we are going to come out and get better.”
Cronin said the team has the ability to step up on the field and play with anyone. He said the team believes it has some of the best players in the country.
With temperatures on the rise, Cronin said he feels as though the team has an advantage over UCLA because the Wolfpack trains and plays in the heat while UCLA won’t be as accustomed to the heat.
This is not the first time the Wolfpack has played a high-ranked team. Last season, State defeated North Carolina and tied Clemson while both teams were ranked No. 1 in the country.
