NC State
1-0-0, 0-0-0
High Point
0-1-0, 0-0-0
Men’s Soccer Wins Thriller in Season Opener
8/23/2024 9:06:00 AM | Men's Soccer
RALEIGH, N.C. – NC State men's soccer kicked off its new era under head coach Marc Hubbard with a gritty 3-2 win over High Point in the season opener.
A new section in the history books of Pack Men's Soccer was created last night in front of a large crowd of 2,584 at Dail Soccer Field.
In the 19th meeting between the Wolfpack and the Panthers, tensions ran high in the attempt to claim a victory to begin their seasons. Newcomer, Taig Healy, had several close shots from the top of the box to put the Pack in scoring position.
However, High Point got on the board first in the 30th minute, when Brendan Krueger, scored off of a goalie deflection inside the box. The pace of the game picked up on both sides and instantly much more physical after the red-and-white went down 0-1.
In the 41st minute, Liam Bennett set up for a free kick sent in to Santiago Hoyos. Hoyos, contested the ball to towards the goal but it was saved by the goalie. Will Buete finished off of the deflection to claim the first NC State goal of the season and bring the game to a 1-1 tie to close the first half.
High Point's assistant coach was awarded a yellow card directly after this goal.
Coming out of the second half, possession time remained split for either side but physicality and speed of the game grew even higher. Six more yellow cards would be awarded across the two teams and their staffs throughout the the remaining 45 minutes.
Not long into the second half, High Point struck again off of a short corner free kick sent in by Jefferson Amaya to Frankie De Francesco, reclaiming the 2-1 lead.
In the 66th minute, Taig Healy was finally able to finish one of the six total shots he had on the night. Battling in the box, Drew Lovelace was able to poke out a ball to Healy to record the goal to make it 2-2.
What turned into a panicked frenzy on either side to get scoring opportunities, looked like it was going to result in a 2-2 draw. That was until senior captain, Vusumzi Plamana, netted his first-ever career goal to seal the deal over the Panthers in the final two minutes of the game.
Original service came from a throw-in by Isaac Heffess that was contested for a group looking to head the ball. Once it came down Plamana, was able to first time the ball with his right foot from inside the top of the 18 to earn the first Wolfpack victory of the season.
Up Next
NC State stays home for another home game, this Sunday, August 25th, to take on Florida Gulf Coast at 4 p.m.
@PackMensSoccer | #GoPack | #90MinuteParty
Team Stats
Brendan Krueger (1)
Assisted By: Alfred Baafi
GOAL by HPU Krueger, Brendan Assist by Baafi, Alfred.
29:52
Will Buete (1)
GOAL by NCSU Buete, Will.
41:08
Frankie De Francesco (1)
Assisted By: Jefferson Amaya
GOAL by HPU De Francesco, Frankie Assist by Amaya, Jefferson.
54:12
Taig Healy (1)
Assisted By: Drew Lovelace
GOAL by NCSU Healy, Taig Assist by Lovelace, Drew.
66:07
Vusumzi Plamana (1)
GOAL by NCSU Plamana, Vusumzi.
88:33
