#20 NC State won a crucial 1st round matchup versus #2 UNC in the first round of the ACC Men’s Soccer Championship in Cary, NC. In brutal weather conditions, the teams played two regulations and two sudden death overtimes without scoring a goal.
In the shootout, senior NC State goalkeeper Christopher Widman of Greensboro, NC saved the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th penalty shots in addition to scoring on the 3rd kick for NC State. Widman started and played every minute of every game this season for often criticized Head Coach George Tarantini’s resurgent program. The win moves the Pack to 13-6-1 and 3-5-1 in ACC play and in position for an NCAA tournament bid after a late season slide.
The ACC is the strongest conference in America in soccer with #2 Wake Forest, #4 UNC, #7 UVA, #12 Duke, #16 Maryland, #24 Boston College, and #25 NC State all ranked in college soccer’s version of the RPI.
This sets up a Friday night semi-final match against Boston College. In the regular season, NC State won a thriller by scoring in the 2nd sudden death overtime at NC State’s new soccer facility on campus. NC State controlled most of this game outshooting BC 19-7 and holding a 6-2 edge in corner kicks.
The event is being held at WakeMed Soccer Park and the semi-final match is set for 8 pm on Friday night pending any changes due to weather.
