NC State grabs point with 1-1 draw at Syracuse in regular season finale

In the final game of the 2022 regular season, NC State women’s soccer traveled to Syracuse, and recorded a 1-1 draw with the Orange on Thursday, Oct. 27.

After going 0-4-1 in its last five matches, the Wolfpack (7-7-5, 2-6-2 ACC) once again found itself down early on. However, the Pack battled back, drawing even with the Orange (8-7-3, 1-5-3 ACC) in the 70th minute thanks to a clutch goal from senior forward Jameese Joseph. 

Joseph’s eighth goal of the season came at an opportune moment, stopping the bleeding of NC State’s two-game losing streak. Joseph leads the team in goals, a majority of which have come late in games when the Pack needs it the most. It wasn’t any different against Syracuse, as her right-footed strike equalized it for NC State at just the right moment. 

While Joseph evened the score, Syracuse was able to establish a quick 1-0 lead right from the starting whistle. The Orange earned a penalty kick on its first possession, and slotted it away to jump ahead of NC State. Similar to its last game, the Pack conceded a goal within the first five minutes. This time however, NC State was able to slow down its opposition and find a goal of its own. 

In contrast to most of its other games this season, NC State kept pace with its opponents in terms of shots, and even outshot its opponents 12-8 in the first half. Despite the large amount of shots, NC State couldn’t bag the equalizer until the 70th minute. 

Meanwhile, Syracuse fired 19 shots, just one more than NC State. Junior goalkeeper Maria Echezarreta who’s been a star for the red-and-white all season, closed out the regular season with another strong performance, tallying six saves. She fended off a persistent Syracuse attack, one that put up nearly 20 shots on goal and nine corner kicks. 

With NC State putting up a large amount of shots, and earning a point on the road, the Wolfpack put up a solid outing in its final game of its season, especially after dropping its last two matches. 

While this is the last game of its regular season, NC State will likely see more action in the NCAA tournament, which starts in early November.