NC State Wolfpack Classic (Round 2)

The weekend we'd all been waiting for; last Wolfpack Classic saw USC's Mens Basketball Team in the Final 4 of the NCAA tournament, as well as some incredible soccer by our girls that led to our own admission into the semifinals of the tournament where we lost to NC State themselves in a game that seemed to last forever.

This Wolfpack Classic we entered with clear eyes and full hearts looking for the same success we saw last year. The first game against Lynchburg started out slow, with the Gamecocks consistently missing the goal despite numerous chances. Finally a goal from Stefi Salas got the team going, and the game resulted in a 6-0 win. Stefi Salas and Natalie Drouillard ended with 2 goals apiece, and Rachel Teague added with 1 assisted all the way from Erin Smekurd in the backfield.

The second game was a rematch against NC State, though we were much more prepared and much less sore for this matchup. Fighting hard and looking to knock NC State out of their own tournament, the score was still 0-0 going into the last 10 minutes. On a well-played breakaway, NC State found the back of the net, and we looked forward to a possible knockout game, and also a rematch against ECU.

By the afternoon it had started pouring, and temperatures dropped close to freezing but we didn't let that get us down. Another tight game, we held ECU to 0-0 through 55 minutes, despite deteriorating field conditions and an overly-agressive team. ECU found luck off of a loose ball in the box with 15 minutes left, and despite a great rally by us afterwards (including a questionable no-call in the box) the game ended 0-1.

Overall another great weekend in Raleigh, the team played very well and showed much improvement over the earlier round robins. We'll be going home to rest and recover, and will be back at it in 2 weeks at UF.