After an upset win over No. 14 Virginia last weekend, Boston College men’s soccer looked to continue that momentum against conference foe No. 2 NC State.
In a conference game against such a highly-ranked opponent, it was never going to be an easy affair for the Eagles. And coming into the game, NC State was yet to concede a goal all season.
That statistic held up on the field on Friday night at the Newton Soccer Stadium, as BC (4–4–0, 1–2–0) lost 2–0 as the Wolfpack (7–0–1, 1–0–1) shut down any and all offensive attacks the Eagles put together.
NC State’s defensive dominance revealed itself from the start.
The Eagles struggled to string passes together in the face of a dominant NC State press, and consistently struggled to get out of their own half. As a result, their only outlet seemed to be long balls over the top. On defense BC sat back, inviting the Wolfpack to launch its offense into action.
NC State willingly accepted that invitation. Their midfield attack allowed the Wolfpack to move the ball quickly as it freed up its wide players to attack both of BC’s wings.
This proved to be the biggest threat to BC, as the Eagles were forced to defend a barrage of crosses in the first half.
This wasn’t helped by the 11 corners which BC conceded in the first half alone, together with nine fouls—a handful of which came in wide areas.
In the 28th minute, this aerial pressure proved too much for the Eagles, and NC State’s six-foot-two striker Donavan Phillip from Saint Lucia delivered a thumping header into the top corner of BC’s net.
The Wolfpack kept its foot on the gas, and Phillip struck again two minutes later with another header, only for the goal to be disallowed because of a simultaneous foul on BC defender Fynn Henze.
A big part of the problem was the Eagles’ lack of any attacking outlet. Anytime they won the ball back, there were no offensive options to progress up the pitch with.
BC failed to record a shot on goal in the opening half, compared to the nine goalkeeper freshman Andrej Borak had to defend against. The Eagles’ already challenging first half concluded with a yellow card for midfielder Connor Gibson.
Thompson’s halftime talk seemed to have been a productive one, however, since the second half told a different story.
Two shots on goal in the opening 2:11 helped to reinvigorate BC’s offense, and the Eagles looked much sharper in possession.
“This is one of the top-ranked teams in the country, and the second half showed that we can play with a team like this,” Thompson said.
They also managed to disrupt NC State’ rhythm in defense, providing an answer to the constant pressure BC had faced in the first half. Halfway through the second half, the game had become scrappier and more contested, and NC State’s dominance on the ball had become noticeably challenged.
The tension broke in the 70th minute when Phillip scored his second goal of the night. He headed the ball home after Borak’s initial athletic save parried in Phillip’s direction, allowing for the rebound score.
As often happens in a tight 1-0 game, this second goal proved to be the most important. Despite a few convincing offensive plays from BC, the Wolfpack sealed a victory on the road to maintain its unbeaten streak. NC State is still yet to concede a goal through eight games.
Thompson praised his team’s heart in the performance, but noted their need to come out with more confidence from the outset, particularly against top-ranked teams.