BLACKSBURG – The spoils were shared at Thompson Field on Friday night, as No. 24 Virginia Tech and NC State played to a 0-0 draw.
Both goalkeepers and backlines showed up when called upon, as the Hokies and Wolfpack had quality opportunities throughout the night. Tech’s Cooper Wenzel and State’s Enzo Carvalho recorded three saves each.
Virginia Tech had an early opportunity when Harrison Krieg played Ethan Hackenberg in on goal just 90 seconds into the match, but the Wolfpack’s ‘keeper denied the early chance with his legs. That moment would serve as the Hokies’ most concrete chance in the first half.
Wenzel provided theatrics on his own end in the 21st minute, as he stopped a point-blank header within the six-yard box. The rebound fell to another NC State player, but again Tech’s senior goalkeeper made a close-range stop.
Off a corner moments later, Wenzel made a one-handed stop on an emphatic header. Floki Stephensen cleaned up the remnants off the line to keep the game scoreless, a scoreline that both teams would take into the break.
In the second half, the Hokies’ first shot on frame came off an Andy Sullins’ free-kick in the 71st minute on the edge of the box. The firmly hit left-footed shot had pace to it, but Carvalho was able to corral the effort comfortably.
Another break nearly came to Tech minutes later, as Ian Marcano played in Noe Uwimana, who charged down the right side of the pitch. As he reached the box, he rifled a ball across the box that could’ve served as a cross to Oliver Roche, who was making a run through the middle, but State’s keeper scooped up this shot, as well.
Similar to their first chance of the night, Hackenberg provided Virginia Tech’s final opportunity on the evening. The senior rose to a ball whipped in by Alex Perez, made good contact with his head, but the effort drifted just above the bar.
With the scoreless result holding, the Hokies recorded its first 0-0 draw since Sept. 2, 2022 vs. Radford.
The tie snapped a three-game conference skid for Tech, while it wasn’t a second consecutive 0-0 result for NC State, after it found similar fortunes at No. 2 Stanford last week.
Virginia Tech returns home on Tuesday at 7 p.m. for a matchup with Winthrop before taking the road to Winston-Salem, N.C. to face Wake Forest on Saturday, Oct. 19.
Hokie Club