Thursday, August 24
Raleigh, N.C.
7 p.m.
NC State
vs
Rutgers
NC State Hosts Big 10 Foe Rutgers on Thursday Night
8/23/2023 1:05:00 PM | Women's Soccer
RALEIGH, N.C. – NC State women's soccer returns to Raleigh on Thursday night for a matchup against Rutgers at Dail Soccer Stadium. Thursday night's matchup against the Scarlet Knights is set for 7 p.m. and will stream live on ACC Network Extra.
LAST TIME OUT
The Wolfpack rallied from a 1-0 halftime deficit to post a 2-1 comeback victory at Charlotte on Sunday night. In front of a Charlotte program record 1,607 fans, the Pack silenced the crowd behind Alexis Strickland's equalizer in the 77th minute before Leyah Hall-Robinson headed home the game-winner just over six minutes later in the 84th minute. Hall-Robinson, Jameese Joseph and Brianna Weber picked up assists as the Pack stormed back from a 1-0 halftime deficit to win for the first time since a 2-1 road victory at Clemson this past season.
SERIES HISTORY
NC State and Rutgers will square off for the sixth time on Thursday night. A few notes tracking the Pack's home matchup against Rutgers are listed below:
• First meeting between the two teams since Sept. 7, 2001. Rutgers secured a 3-0 victory over NC State in a neutral site matchup in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
• NC State won the first three matchups in the series to hold a 3-2 advantage in the all-time series. The Wolfpack shut out the Scarlet Knights in each of the first three matchups – 1-0 victory on Oct. 11, 1987, 4-0 victory on Oct. 9, 1988, and a 1-0 victory on Sept. 8, 1991.
• NC State is 1-0 against Rutgers in matchups played in Raleigh. Rutgers' two victories have come outside of Raleigh with a 3-1 victory in New Jersey before notching its 3-0 win in Harrisonburg.
STANDARD OF EXCELLENCE
NC State's sustained success has garnered national attention as the Wolfpack ranked No. 15 in SoccerWire's 2023 list of Top 50 Current NCAA Women's Soccer Programs. The rankings were based on a combination of final United Soccer Coaches Polls and Rating Percentage Index (RPI) from each season, with bonuses awarded for NCAA Tournament qualification and College Cup victories.
SCOUTING THE SCARLET KNIGHTS
Rutgers makes its first road trip of the season this weekend with a matchup at Dail Soccer Stadium. The Scarlet Knights opened the 2023 campaign with a 2-0 win over Holy Cross in its season opener before falling 1-0 to Hofstra on Sunday. Despite outshooting Hofstra 17-8 on Sunday night, the Pride grabbed a late winner in the 88th minute via Olivia Pearse's first goal of the season. Rutgers was ranked third in the Big 10's 2023 Women's Soccer Preseason Poll, slotting one spot ahead of NC State's other Big 10 opponent, Michigan State. Thursday's visitors also placed three players on the league's 2023 Big 10 Players to Watch List -- senior midfielders Sara Brocious and Becci Fluchel and junior forward Riley Tiernan.
MAKING DEBUTS
Four members of the Pack made their NC State debuts during the season opener, including Mackenzie Smith and Jade Bordeleau making their first-career starts. Alex Mohr and Mary Frances Symmes also logged their first-career appearances. Bordeleau netted the first goal of her career in NC State's season opener, finishing with her right foot from close range.
HOT START FOR HALL-ROBINSON
Senior Leyah Hall-Robinson is off to a hot start in 2023, leading the team with four points and two assists while sitting in a three-way tie for first with one goal. Hall-Robinson ranks 15th nationally with an assist per game and ninth overall in the conference with two points per contest. The senior will look to record a point for the third straight match for the first time in her career on Thursday night.
JOSEPH NAMED TO PRESEASON ALL-ACC TEAM
Jameese Joseph was named to the 2023 Women's Soccer Preseason All-ACC Team on Aug. 10. Joseph, an All-ACC honoree in back-to-back seasons, scored a team-high eight goals and recorded two assists for a team-best 18 points in 2022. Joseph was also included in TopDrawerSoccer's Preseason Top 100 Player List, checking in at No. 57.
BACK TO PROMINENCE
Since head coach Tim Santoro has taken over the program, the Wolfpack has surged back to national prominence. Prior to the breakout 2016 season, the Pack had not made the NCAA Tournament since 1996. Since 2016, NC State has earned an at-large bid every fall season, advancing to the Sweet 16 three times. Santoro's record in his first three seasons was 13-42-2. His record since the breakout 2016 campaign is 71-47-22.
MARIA'S MOMENT
Senior goalkeeper Maria Echezarreta enters her final season in an NC State uniform, starting all 51 games she's appeared in since arriving on campus. Echezarreta has amassed 198 career saves with a .764 save percentage and a 1.17 goals against average. The Wolfpack's ace between the posts has recorded 12 shutouts in her career and enters the 2023 season playing all possible 1,820 minutes during this past season.
UP NEXT
NC State heads to the Centennial State for a matchup at Colorado on Aug. 31. The Wolfpack's first of two games in Colorado is set for 9 p.m. ET in Boulder and will stream live on the Buffaloes' Colorado Live Stream.
LAST TIME OUT
The Wolfpack rallied from a 1-0 halftime deficit to post a 2-1 comeback victory at Charlotte on Sunday night. In front of a Charlotte program record 1,607 fans, the Pack silenced the crowd behind Alexis Strickland's equalizer in the 77th minute before Leyah Hall-Robinson headed home the game-winner just over six minutes later in the 84th minute. Hall-Robinson, Jameese Joseph and Brianna Weber picked up assists as the Pack stormed back from a 1-0 halftime deficit to win for the first time since a 2-1 road victory at Clemson this past season.
SERIES HISTORY
NC State and Rutgers will square off for the sixth time on Thursday night. A few notes tracking the Pack's home matchup against Rutgers are listed below:
• First meeting between the two teams since Sept. 7, 2001. Rutgers secured a 3-0 victory over NC State in a neutral site matchup in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
• NC State won the first three matchups in the series to hold a 3-2 advantage in the all-time series. The Wolfpack shut out the Scarlet Knights in each of the first three matchups – 1-0 victory on Oct. 11, 1987, 4-0 victory on Oct. 9, 1988, and a 1-0 victory on Sept. 8, 1991.
• NC State is 1-0 against Rutgers in matchups played in Raleigh. Rutgers' two victories have come outside of Raleigh with a 3-1 victory in New Jersey before notching its 3-0 win in Harrisonburg.
STANDARD OF EXCELLENCE
NC State's sustained success has garnered national attention as the Wolfpack ranked No. 15 in SoccerWire's 2023 list of Top 50 Current NCAA Women's Soccer Programs. The rankings were based on a combination of final United Soccer Coaches Polls and Rating Percentage Index (RPI) from each season, with bonuses awarded for NCAA Tournament qualification and College Cup victories.
SCOUTING THE SCARLET KNIGHTS
Rutgers makes its first road trip of the season this weekend with a matchup at Dail Soccer Stadium. The Scarlet Knights opened the 2023 campaign with a 2-0 win over Holy Cross in its season opener before falling 1-0 to Hofstra on Sunday. Despite outshooting Hofstra 17-8 on Sunday night, the Pride grabbed a late winner in the 88th minute via Olivia Pearse's first goal of the season. Rutgers was ranked third in the Big 10's 2023 Women's Soccer Preseason Poll, slotting one spot ahead of NC State's other Big 10 opponent, Michigan State. Thursday's visitors also placed three players on the league's 2023 Big 10 Players to Watch List -- senior midfielders Sara Brocious and Becci Fluchel and junior forward Riley Tiernan.
MAKING DEBUTS
Four members of the Pack made their NC State debuts during the season opener, including Mackenzie Smith and Jade Bordeleau making their first-career starts. Alex Mohr and Mary Frances Symmes also logged their first-career appearances. Bordeleau netted the first goal of her career in NC State's season opener, finishing with her right foot from close range.
HOT START FOR HALL-ROBINSON
Senior Leyah Hall-Robinson is off to a hot start in 2023, leading the team with four points and two assists while sitting in a three-way tie for first with one goal. Hall-Robinson ranks 15th nationally with an assist per game and ninth overall in the conference with two points per contest. The senior will look to record a point for the third straight match for the first time in her career on Thursday night.
JOSEPH NAMED TO PRESEASON ALL-ACC TEAM
Jameese Joseph was named to the 2023 Women's Soccer Preseason All-ACC Team on Aug. 10. Joseph, an All-ACC honoree in back-to-back seasons, scored a team-high eight goals and recorded two assists for a team-best 18 points in 2022. Joseph was also included in TopDrawerSoccer's Preseason Top 100 Player List, checking in at No. 57.
BACK TO PROMINENCE
Since head coach Tim Santoro has taken over the program, the Wolfpack has surged back to national prominence. Prior to the breakout 2016 season, the Pack had not made the NCAA Tournament since 1996. Since 2016, NC State has earned an at-large bid every fall season, advancing to the Sweet 16 three times. Santoro's record in his first three seasons was 13-42-2. His record since the breakout 2016 campaign is 71-47-22.
MARIA'S MOMENT
Senior goalkeeper Maria Echezarreta enters her final season in an NC State uniform, starting all 51 games she's appeared in since arriving on campus. Echezarreta has amassed 198 career saves with a .764 save percentage and a 1.17 goals against average. The Wolfpack's ace between the posts has recorded 12 shutouts in her career and enters the 2023 season playing all possible 1,820 minutes during this past season.
UP NEXT
NC State heads to the Centennial State for a matchup at Colorado on Aug. 31. The Wolfpack's first of two games in Colorado is set for 9 p.m. ET in Boulder and will stream live on the Buffaloes' Colorado Live Stream.
Players Mentioned
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Midfielder
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Defender
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