Fall sports are heating up for the Wolfpack, and the campus is buzzing with excitement over early challenges across numerous sports. Let’s take a look at what both soccer teams and the volleyball team has coming up this weekend.
Men’s Soccer
On Aug. 13, the NC State men’s soccer team opened up the season with a stalemate, tying the Appalachian Mountaineers 0-0. A disappointing home result, but the stout defense was a bright spot. The next week, the Wolfpack traveled to Connecticut and dealt the No. 24 University of Connecticut Huskies a 4-1 defeat. The Pack trailed 1-0 at halftime, but was given a spark from junior Tanner Roberts with goals in the 69th and 80th minutes. After the late lead, the team never looked back, adding on two late goals from freshman David Loera and junior Christoph Schneuwly to put the Huskies away.
The Pack’s regular season home opener was an exciting 3-2 victory over Florida Atlantic. The first half was a scoring frenzy, perhaps due to the rust that comes with an opening game. But the eventual game winner came in the 33rd minute from freshman Manny Perez. After the strike from Perez, the Pack defense stepped up and didn’t allow Florida Atlantic to finish any opportunities.
NC State looks to capitalize on its strong start with a win when it hosts LIU Brooklyn at 4 p.m. Friday in Dail Soccer Stadium. Further down the road, the men have a huge test when they host the fifth-ranked Clemson Tigers Sept. 8.
Women’s Soccer
The Wolfpack’s early exhibition games were a mixed bag, with a 3-0 victory against High Point University and a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Wake Forest.
The unfortunate home loss against the Demon Deacons seemed to spark a fire under the Wolfpack, who later traveled to Eugene, Oregon, to hang the Ducks a decisive 4-1 result. They stayed in the state of Oregon to defeat Portland 1-0. The theme of both games was the Pack’s defense, with goalkeeper Sydney Wootten only having to make two saves against the Ducks and one save against Portland.
The women’s team also had a successful regular season home opener, downing Coastal Carolina 3-0. It was a dominant effort, especially for the first regular game of the season. The Pack controlled possession for a majority of the match and fired 18 shots, 12 of which were on target.
The 25th-ranked Wolfpack looks to continue its 3-0-0 start and move up the national rankings when they host Princeton Friday at 8 p.m. in Dail Soccer Stadium.
Volleyball
The NC State volleyball team faced a tall task as it began their season by hosting the eighth-ranked Kansas Jayhawks twice in two days, along with NCAA tournament team Missouri State in between. The Pack fell short in all three contests, but remains hopeful as it sent two out of the three matchups into competitive five sets.
The first game against the Jayhawks was highly entertaining, as the Pack lost a tightly contested 3-1 result in a match that featured 26 ties and 12 lead changes. The next two games were just as close down the stretch, but the Pack has not yet found a way to finish against tournament teams. Despite seeing 0-3 as its record, the Wolfpack can take a lot of positives away from a challenging weekend and hopefully turn that experience into future wins.
The Wolfpack will travel to San Juan, Puerto Rico, to play the 12th-ranked Florida Gators Saturday and the Auburn Tigers Sunday in the ACC-SEC Challenge.
