Alex Manuel
NC State's Women's Soccer team celebrates after a penalty goal during the game against Wake Forest in Dail Soccer Stadium on Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025. The Wolfpack defeated the Demon Deacons 2-1.
NC State women’s soccer extended its unbeaten streak to four games, taking down No. 12 Wake Forest 2-1 on Thursday evening.
“Fantastic win,” said head coach Gary Higgins. “Obviously, Wake Forest had an exceptional team; national championship game last year. It seems like they just reloaded and kept on going. So we had to dig deep, especially in the second half there. But I’m really proud of the girls for staying disciplined.”
The Wolfpack (3-6-4) began the match dominantly by applying heavy pressure to the Wake Forest (9-2-2) defense. Everything seemed to click for NC State, as players were consistently finding passing lanes and making effective runs. These efforts were rewarded after only eight minutes as the Pack was fouled in the box. Junior forward Jade Bordeleau stepped up and powered the penalty kick into the bottom left corner to open the scoring.
Two minutes later, freshman forward Daisy Duda set up Bordeleau for a strike past Wake Forest’s goalkeeper, doubling the Wolfpack’s lead only 10 minutes after kickoff.
NC State seemed untouchable for these first 15 minutes, but the Deacons started to find their rhythm and finally showed signs of competitiveness. Wake Forest controlled the possession and a couple of shots, even though they were off target, were enough to help shift the momentum their way.
Both teams went back and forth and shared possession for another 15 minutes, but the Demon Deacons dominated the ball towards the end of the half. Wake Forest kept applying pressure, but couldn’t quite find the flaw in NC State’s backline.
With only two minutes left in the half, the Deacons crossed the ball inside the box, and a header flew past senior goalkeeper Olivia Pratapas and found the back of the net. NC State returned to the locker rooms up one.
“Obviously, a difficult time to concede as we get into half-time,” Higgins said. “I thought we were definitely the better team in the first half, for sure. We dominated that first 30 minutes, and put a little bit too much pressure in the last 15 minutes. Just so many goals scored in the last five minutes of halves that we need to be a little bit more disciplined and aggressive.”
Wake Forest quickly set the tone in the second half by earning a dangerous free kick after only 30 seconds of play. Fortunately for the Wolfpack, the defense held on and cleared the ball to get some breathing room.
NC State responded by pressuring the Deacons high on the pitch and started to put their foot on the ball. While the first half’s offense was marked by collective efforts, the second half’s was relying on individual efforts, as Bordeleau and Duda were often taking multiple defenders on their own during counterattacks.
The biggest chance of the half came from a corner taken by Wake Forest, as a perfectly placed cross found senior forward Hannah Johnson, who powerfully headed it towards the net, only for the shot to be saved by Pratapas.
NC State maintained its lead until the final whistle, and left Dail Field with a hard-fought win and three points toward the standings. This victory marked the Pack’s first ranked win since 2021.
The Wolfpack’s next game is on Thursday, Oct. 9, as they travel to Massachusetts to face Boston College.