The NC State women’s soccer team took down Furman by a score of 3-1 on Sunday afternoon on the back of a hat trick from senior forward Tziarra King.
While King shone brightest for the Pack, it was a solid performance all around with the Wolfpack (4-3-0) outshooting the Paladins (5-3-0) by a total of 13-7, eight of the Pack’s shots hit the target. The Wolfpack did not start the match well, but after Furman’s opener, it was all NC State for the rest of the game.
The Wolfpack had a slow start to the match and ultimately allowed the opening goal as Furman put up 4 shots in the first 15 minutes of the match.
“From the jump, we have to do a better job of just being tuned in from the beginning,” King said. “When a situation like that happens we never hang our heads. We always just try to fight and get back. So we knew if we got that next goal we were still in the game and that’s where I stepped up.”
The lead did not last long however as the Wolfpack equalized just two minutes later and took the lead just 41 seconds after its first goal. Both goals were scored by King.
“We try to do something like that we always say within five minutes of a goal anyway, respond with whatever,” NC State head coach Tim Santoro said. “Even if we score we want to score a second one right after. Yeah, three minutes and then we got two goals within two minutes after that three minutes. It was good to see that.”
The first of King’s goals was a stunning solo effort as the forward took the ball off a Furman defender just outside the box before cutting in past a few players and finishing it across her body into the near post. It was one of those goals that words do not do justice to, but luckily NC State Athletics tweeted it out for those who missed it.
King’s second goal was less of a spectacle but it was just as important. Senior midfielder Ricci Walkling broke into the box and slipped the ball toward an onrushing King, whose first shot was saved but the rebound fell right to her and she made no mistake on the second shot.
Apart from the wild three-minute stretch which featured all of the first half’s goals, the first half was relatively quiet. The Wolfpack narrowly outshot the Paladins 6-5, but the Wolfpack’s chances were much better with five of its efforts finding the target, compared to two of the Paladin’s.
It did not take long in the second half for King to find the net again as the senior converted a penalty five minutes into the half for her hat trick. Sophomore midfielder Toni Starova drew the pen after she was played into the box by King.
The hat trick is the second of King’s Wolfpack career with the first coming on Oct. 29, 2017 in a 4-1 win over Notre Dame.
The Wolfpack continued to dominate for the remainder of the game with a few different players nearly finding the back of the net. The best of the chances were from freshman forward Jameese Joseph who did well to beat a few defenders and get a shot away on multiple occasions.
Efficiency was the name of the game for King, as all five of her shots found the target on the way to her three-goal haul.
“She’s an important player for us,” Santoro said. “We don’t measure it by goals, more so how she plays and she played well today. There was goals, but her play was good today and that’s what we look at.”
King’s hat trick brings her to 40 career goals for the Wolfpack, enough to put her fifth in the all-time rankings, just two behind the two players tied at 42, a tally she should easily hit this season.
The result is an important one for the Pack as it paves the way for better play ahead of the difficult ACC schedule which starts on Sept. 22.
“We played really well the other night and lost,” Santoro said. “We knew we weren’t a 3-3 team but after that slow start and giving up that first goal, we were pretty good with the changes we made. We made four or five subs and the level never skipped a beat. We kept it pretty high level. Probably could’ve had more goals, but it was good to get back on track.”
NC State will be back in action on Wednesday night as it heads to ECU to face the Pirates at 7 p.m.
Senior midfielder Tziarra King keeps a close eye on the ball as it moves up field. King acquired the second hat-trick of her career and lead NC State in their 3-1 victory over Furman University on Sunday, September 15, 2019.
