Sunday, August 31
Salt Lake City, UT
9 PM
NC State
at
Utah
Women’s Soccer Heads West to Face Utah Sunday
8/30/2025 12:00:00 PM | Women's Soccer
SALT LAKE CITY – NC State women's soccer (0-4-1, 0-0-0 ACC) heads west for a road nonconference match at Utah on Sunday, Aug. 31 at Ute Field. The game kicks off at 9 p.m ET (7 p.m. MDT) on ESPN+.
Last Time Out
A brace from Jade Bordeleau, with both goals assisted by freshman Daisy Duda, wasn't enough as NC State fell 3-2 to Western Carolina on Wednesday, Aug. 27 at Dail Soccer Stadium.
The Pack dictated play early with its high-pressure attack, nearly opening the scoring in the fourth minute on a Bordeleau chance. That was the first of 23 shots for NC State, which broke through in the 22nd minute when Duda sent a cross into the box that Bordeleau finished for her first goal of the year and the Wolfpack's first lead of the 2025 campaign. Western Carolina equalized late in the first half, with Gabriela Vatrano lofting a shot over keeper Emily Earles in the 40th minute to make it 1-1 at the break.
The Catamounts grabbed the lead again just 90 seconds into the second half on a goal from Ava Robitaille, but the Pack responded in the 65th when Bordeleau headed home a Duda corner to level the score at 2-2. With both sides pushing for a late winner, WCU struck in the 86th minute as Vatrano's service into the box found Sofia Goclowski for the match-deciding goal.
A Win Would …
Sunday will be just the second all-time meeting between NC State and Utah. The only prior matchup came in 2023, when the teams played to a 1-1 draw at Dail Soccer Stadium.
Scouting the Utes
Utah enters Sunday's match with a 2-1-1 record through its first four contests. The Utes own wins over Gonzaga (2-1) and Westminster (4-0), while dropping a 2-0 result to Utah Valley and most recently earning a 1-1 draw at Utah State.
Lilliah Blum and Shannon Davidson pace the Utah attack with two goals each, while goalkeeper Erin Gibbs has played the majority of minutes in net, recording nine saves with a .692 save percentage.
The Utes are led by fifth-year head coach Hideki Nakada, who guided Utah to an 8-6-5 mark in 2024, including a 5-3-3 conference record that marked the program's best league finish since 2018. Utah was picked ninth in the Big 12 preseason poll heading into the 2025 campaign.
Chances Being Created
Through its first five matches, NC State has scored just three goals but has consistently applied pressure with a +25-shot margin (73-48) and a +13 edge in shots on goal (34-21). Two of the Pack's three goals have come from set pieces. As the season progresses, NC State will look to turn its steady chance creation into more consistent scoring output.
Bordeleau Braces
Bordeleau notched the second multi-goal performance of her career with a brace in Wednesday's match against Western Carolina. She was also the last NC State player to score multiple goals in a game, recording a hat trick against George Washington on Sept. 15, 2024. After leading the Pack with four goals in 2024, the junior continues to spearhead NC State's attack and remains a go-to option in the final third.
Welcome Home, Coach Higgins
NC State McMurray Family Director of Athletics Boo Corrigan named Higgins the sixth head coach in program history in December 2024. Higgins arrived in Raleigh after three seasons at East Carolina, where he guided the Pirates to a historic 2024 campaign that included a 10-4-7 record, an American Athletic Conference title, and the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament berth.
Prior to his time at ECU, Higgins coached at his alma mater, Lenoir Rhyne, leading the Bears to multiple NCAA Tournament appearances. The former standout player brings more than a decade of coaching experience and a proven track record of building winning programs.
Higgins' first year with the Wolfpack features an entirely new coaching staff. Associate head coach Joanna Fennema, a former North Carolina standout, led Lenoir Rhyne to the 2024 NCAA Tournament. Assistants David Rodriguez (NC Courage Academy) and Juan Basabe (Lenoir Rhyne) also join the staff, each bringing valuable collegiate and club-level experience.
Breaking Down the Roster
NC State opens 2025 with a 25-player roster featuring 14 returners and 11 newcomers, including five transfers, four freshmen and two sophomores. By class, the Pack have five seniors (one redshirt), nine juniors (one redshirt), seven sophomores and four freshmen.
The team returns its 2024 leaders in goals and points, Bordeleau, and assists leader, Mana Nakata. Five starters from last season are back: Nakata (18 starts), Olivia Pratapas (17), Yuna Aoki (14), Alex Mohr (12) and Bordeleau (11).
Three transfers arrive from programs led by current staff including Mackenzie Smith and Roberts from ECU and Lilly Soltz from Lenoir Rhyne.
Up Next
NC State travels to face Elon on Thursday, Sept. 4. The game kicks off at 7 p.m. on Flo College.
For all things NC State women's soccer, follow @packwsoccer on social media.
Last Time Out
A brace from Jade Bordeleau, with both goals assisted by freshman Daisy Duda, wasn't enough as NC State fell 3-2 to Western Carolina on Wednesday, Aug. 27 at Dail Soccer Stadium.
The Pack dictated play early with its high-pressure attack, nearly opening the scoring in the fourth minute on a Bordeleau chance. That was the first of 23 shots for NC State, which broke through in the 22nd minute when Duda sent a cross into the box that Bordeleau finished for her first goal of the year and the Wolfpack's first lead of the 2025 campaign. Western Carolina equalized late in the first half, with Gabriela Vatrano lofting a shot over keeper Emily Earles in the 40th minute to make it 1-1 at the break.
The Catamounts grabbed the lead again just 90 seconds into the second half on a goal from Ava Robitaille, but the Pack responded in the 65th when Bordeleau headed home a Duda corner to level the score at 2-2. With both sides pushing for a late winner, WCU struck in the 86th minute as Vatrano's service into the box found Sofia Goclowski for the match-deciding goal.
A Win Would …
- Mark the first victory for the Wolfpack under first-year head coach Gary Higgins.
- Be the 403rd win in program history.
- Be Higgins' 111th win in his coaching career.
- Mark the first-ever win over Utah in the all-time series.
- Be the first victory of the 2025 campaign for NC State.
Sunday will be just the second all-time meeting between NC State and Utah. The only prior matchup came in 2023, when the teams played to a 1-1 draw at Dail Soccer Stadium.
Scouting the Utes
Utah enters Sunday's match with a 2-1-1 record through its first four contests. The Utes own wins over Gonzaga (2-1) and Westminster (4-0), while dropping a 2-0 result to Utah Valley and most recently earning a 1-1 draw at Utah State.
Lilliah Blum and Shannon Davidson pace the Utah attack with two goals each, while goalkeeper Erin Gibbs has played the majority of minutes in net, recording nine saves with a .692 save percentage.
The Utes are led by fifth-year head coach Hideki Nakada, who guided Utah to an 8-6-5 mark in 2024, including a 5-3-3 conference record that marked the program's best league finish since 2018. Utah was picked ninth in the Big 12 preseason poll heading into the 2025 campaign.
Chances Being Created
Through its first five matches, NC State has scored just three goals but has consistently applied pressure with a +25-shot margin (73-48) and a +13 edge in shots on goal (34-21). Two of the Pack's three goals have come from set pieces. As the season progresses, NC State will look to turn its steady chance creation into more consistent scoring output.
Bordeleau Braces
Bordeleau notched the second multi-goal performance of her career with a brace in Wednesday's match against Western Carolina. She was also the last NC State player to score multiple goals in a game, recording a hat trick against George Washington on Sept. 15, 2024. After leading the Pack with four goals in 2024, the junior continues to spearhead NC State's attack and remains a go-to option in the final third.
Welcome Home, Coach Higgins
NC State McMurray Family Director of Athletics Boo Corrigan named Higgins the sixth head coach in program history in December 2024. Higgins arrived in Raleigh after three seasons at East Carolina, where he guided the Pirates to a historic 2024 campaign that included a 10-4-7 record, an American Athletic Conference title, and the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament berth.
Prior to his time at ECU, Higgins coached at his alma mater, Lenoir Rhyne, leading the Bears to multiple NCAA Tournament appearances. The former standout player brings more than a decade of coaching experience and a proven track record of building winning programs.
Higgins' first year with the Wolfpack features an entirely new coaching staff. Associate head coach Joanna Fennema, a former North Carolina standout, led Lenoir Rhyne to the 2024 NCAA Tournament. Assistants David Rodriguez (NC Courage Academy) and Juan Basabe (Lenoir Rhyne) also join the staff, each bringing valuable collegiate and club-level experience.
Breaking Down the Roster
NC State opens 2025 with a 25-player roster featuring 14 returners and 11 newcomers, including five transfers, four freshmen and two sophomores. By class, the Pack have five seniors (one redshirt), nine juniors (one redshirt), seven sophomores and four freshmen.
The team returns its 2024 leaders in goals and points, Bordeleau, and assists leader, Mana Nakata. Five starters from last season are back: Nakata (18 starts), Olivia Pratapas (17), Yuna Aoki (14), Alex Mohr (12) and Bordeleau (11).
Three transfers arrive from programs led by current staff including Mackenzie Smith and Roberts from ECU and Lilly Soltz from Lenoir Rhyne.
Up Next
NC State travels to face Elon on Thursday, Sept. 4. The game kicks off at 7 p.m. on Flo College.
For all things NC State women's soccer, follow @packwsoccer on social media.
Players Mentioned
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