The NC State women’s soccer team dropped a pair of road contests this weekend, losing to No. 20 ranked Georgetown by a score of 6-0 on Friday and to Maryland, 2-1 on Sunday evening.
The Wolfpack (1-3) headed to Washington D.C. for the first road trip of the season to take on the undefeated Hoyas (3-0-1), which boast the No. 6 ranked player in the country, senior midfielder Daphne Corboz, according to Top Drawer Soccer.
The Hoyas’ distinct quality proved too much for the young Wolfpack team, and Georgetown rolled to an easy win. Senior forward Vanessa Skrumbis scored a brace and recorded an assist, while the aforementioned Corboz notched a goal and three assists.
A notable addition to the Pack’s lineup was freshman defender and former Bayern Munich standout Franziska Jaser. A member of the German Under-20 National Team, which won the U-20 World Cup, Jaser arrived to training last Wednesday and already earned a starting spot.
Freshmen have made an impact on the Pack’s performance, with freshman forward Anna Lindberg leading the team in shots (three) along with three more freshman recording one shot apiece.
Heading into Sunday, the Pack looked to shake off the lopsided Georgetown loss and bounce back against former ACC opponent, Maryland (2-2).
Starting the match Sunday, almost two hours later than anticipated due to inclement weather, the Terrapins struck first in the 37th minute off a cross. Although down, the Pack was not out. With consistent pressure, State fired off three shots in the final five minutes of the opening half.
After halftime, the Pack looked to get back into the game by building on the strong end to the first half’s performance, and after maintaining possession for the opening two minutes, freshman forward Kayla Saager provided the equalizing goal in the 48th minute. Junior midfielder Jenna Kalwa got the assist after a nice spell of combination play.
The Terrapins took the lead back in the 52nd minute, however, when a Maryland player capitalized on a loose ball in the box following a corner kick.
State pushed hard for the equalizer and ramped up the pressure, and this high-intensity approach led to the Pack firing off four shots in the last twelve minutes of the game. The best chance came from the brilliant run of junior forward Brittany Stanko. The Glenmoore, Pennsylvania native slipped in behind the defense and beat the keeper, only to have her efforts negated by the line judge calling the play offside.
With eight seconds remaining, freshman forward Kayla Saager fired off a shot from twenty-five yards, only to have it narrowly miss high, and the game finished 2-1 in favor of Maryland to hand the Pack its third loss of the season.
In only his second year, Head Coach Tim Santoro is still in the building phase with his young team that features multiple freshmen starters. Losses, at this point, are expected given the team’s past two seasons and core of young talent.
The Wolfpack returns home to take on the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers at the Dail Soccer Stadium on Thursday at 7 p.m.
