NC State
2-1-0, 0-0-0
#20 Seton Hall
2-0-1, 0-0-0
NC State Falls to #20 Seton Hall
9/3/2021 9:38:00 PM | Men's Soccer
RALEIGH – The NC State men's soccer team (2-1-0) suffered its first loss of the season on Friday night as it fell by a 3-1 score to No. 20 Seton Hall.
The game was the Pack's first in its George Tarantini Classic weekend, which the team is hosting in memory of the former head coach who passed away in September of 2019.
"I'm pleased that we were able to honor him (George Tarantini) and that we were able to have Page, his wife, here with us," said head coach George Kiefer. "I had a really good relationship with George. I have a lot of respect for what he did for the program, so to be able to do something in his name and keep that going is really important to us as a team."
NC State maintained control of possession early, but it was Seton Hall that struck first in the 20th minute for the first goal scored against the Wolfpack this season. Denis Kelmendi sent a ball across the box that found the head of CJ Tibbling, and Tibbling flicked it over to Johannes Pex for the short-range score from the right side.
It took the Pack just three minutes to even the score off a corner in the 23rd minute. AJ Seals served up a great ball from the right that reached Kuda Muskwe near the left post. The 6-2 forward had no problem heading it in to tie the game and to notch his first goal of the 2021 campaign.
Just BEAUTIFUL.@ajseals8 ➡️ @kudamuskwe10 ➡️ GOAL#GoPack // #90MinuteParty pic.twitter.com/1wc5LIgNBN
— NC State Men's Soccer (@PackMensSoccer) September 3, 2021
Muskwe's goal started a seven-shot streak, two of which were on target, for the Wolfpack in an offensive stretch dominated by NC State.
The teams headed into the locker room locked at one apiece, but Seton Hall struck quickly in the second half. Its score in the 50th minute was one of two headers off of corner kicks by the Pirates, the first coming from Luca Dahn off the ball by Kelmendi and the second credited to Paavo Riihjarvi with the assist from JP Marin (63rd minute).
"We'll just look to keep our heads up," said Kiefer. "We'll show them what we thought they did well and some areas we can improve. We're just focused on being good people to them. I'm pleased with where the team is, and I don't want to let one result deter us from causing problems that we don't have. We just have to keep getting better."
NC State continues action in the George Tarantini Invitational on Monday, Sept. 6 with a match against UCF. Kickoff between the Wolfpack and the Knights is set for 7 p.m. from Dail Soccer Stadium, and the match will be broadcast live on ACCNX.
#GoPack | @PackMensSoccer
Team Stats
Johannes Pex (2)
Assisted By: CJ Tibbling , Denis Kelmendi
GOAL by SET Pex, Johannes Assist by Tibbling, CJ and Kelmendi, Denis.
19:42
Kuda Muskwe (1)
Assisted By: AJ Seals
GOAL by NCSU Muskwe, Kuda Assist by Seals, AJ.
22:58
Luca Dahn (1)
Assisted By: Denis Kelmendi
GOAL by SET Dahn, Luca Assist by Kelmendi, Denis.
49:44
Paavo Riihjarvi (1)
Assisted By: JP Marin
GOAL by SET Riihjarvi, Paavo Assist by Marin, JP.
62:05
