Wolfpack men’s soccer is four games into its season, currently sitting at 3-1 overall following its most recent win against UCF on Monday, Sept. 6. Despite letting the game against No. 20 Seton Hall slip away, this Pack squad has already made vast improvements from what was seen a year ago.

This team came out of the gates hot, defeating No. 15 Virginia Tech 2-0 in a dominant showing on the road. Regardless of the match’s status as a preseason exhibition, the game had plenty of bright spots for the Pack’s outlook on the upcoming season. One bright spot in particular was the play of freshman forward Henrique Santos.

In his first appearance for NC State, Santos netted the Pack’s first goal of the season and hasn’t looked back since. Accumulating one goal and two assists in the Pack’s first four matches, Santos has been on a tear offensively, making plays on and off the ball. His most impressive performance to date came against UNC Asheville on Aug. 30, where Santos tallied a goal and an assist in the Pack’s 4-0 win. The young forward is also fearless when it comes to putting pressure on opposing keepers, with 13 shots in his short time with the team thus far. 

Santos isn’t the only first-year making waves, however, with freshman midfielder Luke Hille going on a dominant stretch of his own in his first few appearances in the red-and-white. Hille’s talent coming into NC State’s program was never in doubt, with the young-gun boasting a USL amateur contract with NCFC on top of being called up to the USA Boys National Team in his U14 days.

Even with so much going for him, the level of production from Hille so far remains unprecedented. In his two regular-season appearances so far this season, Hille has amassed three goals on eight shots. Despite the high scoring output, efficiency remains the name of the game for the freshman forward up to this point, whose shot on goal percentage sits right at .500. Unfortunately for the Pack, Hille has been dealing with a minor injury that has kept him off of the field in the team’s last two matches. Head coach George Kiefer remains optimistic that he’ll be back in time for the Wolfpack’s next appearance.

New faces have contributed the most to the Pack’s success so far, with the two previously mentioned freshmen performing above expectation and a pair of first-time goal scorers securing the victory for NC State over UCF in its most recent matchup. Regardless of the budding stars within the Pack’s system, familiar faces have certainly done their fair share to get the team to this point.

The dynamic duo of senior forwards Kuda Muskwe and Ivy Brisma is still finding its way onto the stat sheet, just not in the same fashion that it did a year ago. The pair of seniors found the most success on the field together last year, serving as the Pack’s one-two punch on offense, but that combo has seen a reduction this season. With the emergence of younger contributors, Muskwe and Brisma are not being depended on to be NC State’s primary source of offensive pressure but they remain key factors to the Pack’s success.

Muskwe has remained a guaranteed starter so far this year, and has one goal to show for it. While that seems unimpressive in comparison to the output from Santos and Hille, Muskwe has been consistent in getting shots on goal, with one in each game so far. Brisma is the player whose playing time has seemed to suffer the most from the breakout performances from the younger pair of forwards. The New Jersey native has only started one match this season but has made appearances in all four games. With one assist and a single shot on goal, it seems as if Brisma still has some work to do to adjust to this new-look offense, but there is still a whole lot of season left to be played.

Another familiar face the Pack is certainly glad to have back for another year is redshirt senior goalkeeper Leon Krapf, who has solidified himself as an irreplaceable component of NC State’s success. Boasting two clean sheets already this year, Krapf has looked as good as ever between the posts.

With 12 saves already on the year, Krapf is steadily climbing the ladder of all-time great goalkeepers at NC State. Despite the loss to Seton Hall where the Pirates managed to score three times on the Pack, Krapf has been solid to say the least. There is no reason for that to change any time soon, with the German native proving his ability to defend the net year in and year out.

Overall, the Pack has looked every bit of promising this season, but the real challenges are about to start rolling in. NC State will face off against No. 2 Clemson in its next matchup, which is the first ACC game of the year for the red-and-white. There’s no denying Clemson’s talent, but even in the down year that last season was for the Pack, the squad always gave the Tigers a run for their money.

That matchup against No. 2 Clemson is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 10 at Dail Soccer Field where the Pack will find itself with home-field advantage for the fifth consecutive game. The squad will likely need all the support it can get while facing off against such a formidable opponent, expect to see the Red Terrors out in full form. For those not able to attend the game, it will also be broadcast live on ACC Network Extra. This matchup could provide the Pack with the win it needs to soar into the NCAA top-25, and would also be a huge momentum boost as the team continues to face off against other battle-tested ACC opponents.