NC State's historic run to national championship appearance ends with reflective appreciation

CARY — As a jubilant Washington team ran around the WakeMed Soccer Park pitch after netting the game-winning goal just 1:54 into the golden goal overtime period of the College Cup Final, the officiating crew opted to go to replay to confirm that the Huskies weren’t offside in NC State’s 18-yard box. 

It created an awkward pause in the celebration, which included Washington already holding the NCAA Championship trophy, but both teams huddled near their respective benches as the review felt like it moved at a snail’s pace. 

As NC State stood in front of its loyal fan base that seemed to grow throughout its run through the NCAA Tournament to its first-ever national championship match berth, the Wolfpack took a chance to take a deep breath. The outcome was likely decided — which it was after the officiating crew confirmed the goal to hand Washington its first title with a 3-2 win — but Wolfpack coach Marc Hubbard wanted to use the pause in the frenetic scene to reflect with his team. 

“‘Listen, this is probably it,’” Hubbard recalled telling his team. “‘Let’s continue to handle ourselves with some humility and pride. Hold your heads high and continue to represent the culture and what we’ve done.’”

It’s how his team has handled itself throughout the entire season, one that helped lift the trajectory of a once-struggling program to just a few bounces of a ball differently to a title in just his second season in Raleigh. But this was a moment that allowed the 44-year-old coach to take a step back with his squad, especially after it clawed its way back from a 2-0 deficit to level the score with a pair of tallies in the final 24 minutes to even force the extra time.

Hubbard is a coach that prides himself on serving as not only one that helps his players improve on the pitch, but also as human beings. And the grittiness of his roster to play the game into overtime was a perfect learning opportunity for him to display to his squad.

“It’s just a great core memory for these guys, not only the whole season, but their ability to be able to come back in these situations will give them confidence in their lives to go out and do great things,” Hubbard said. “When things are tough, they can react in a proper way. That’s what we talk about every day and I think that moment holds true. Nothing’s going to be perfect in their lives, if you can take a deep breath and reflect quickly before you react, that’s what that represents.”

While Hubbard spoke with his team, senior midfielder Taig Healy embraced the moment to enjoy his final seconds in a college soccer jersey. He took a leap of faith to join his coach to make the move from the University of New Hampshire to NC State ahead of the 2024 campaign, one that he looked back on with immense pride. 

“For me, I was just looking around at the other guys in the huddle and at [Hubbard], just knowing it was probably over, just ‘I’m so proud of every single one of us,’” Healy said. “It’s the most special team I’ve been a part of, so I just had a moment to soak it in.”

After all, he and the other 30 players on the Wolfpack roster continued the program’s meteoric rise through the national landscape this fall. NC State made a run to the Sweet 16 in Hubbard’s first season last year, but the Pack one-upped that with its deepest run in the NCAA Tournament to reach the title game in front of what was a home crowd just under six miles away from campus. 

NC State’s historic run through the field of 64 featured a pair of shutouts to open its stay before it earned a gritty road victory at No. 7 Georgetown to punch its ticket to its second-ever College Cup appearance. The Wolfpack proceeded to knock off Saint Louis on Friday night to advance to the title match, helping lift the program to new heights. 

Even though the Pack fell short despite a pair of goals from junior forward Donavan Phillip and Healy to force extra time, NC State was appreciative of its run to the pinnacle setting of college soccer. It didn’t end how the team would have liked — lifting the championship trophy with confetti falling down upon its players in front of a crowd that was filled predominantly with those donning red and white — but the impact of this season is likely to be felt for years to come.

Phillip, who finished the season as the Division I goals leader with 19, felt like this season’s team was able to do just that.

“I have one more year,” said Phillip, who turned down the MLS after last season. “I’m really feeling for those seniors and those guys that ended a little short. But they know they’re gonna leave the program in a better place. I feel like there’s only up from here.”

Hubbard and the Wolfpack turned a team that had missed four straight NCAA Tournaments before his arrival into a national contender on a dime. It was a quick yet intentional process, one that the veteran coach expected after doing the same with Division II Southern New Hampshire and UNH in his first 16 seasons, but the execution was impressive. 

The program made a leap most couldn’t have dreamed of before his arrival in Raleigh, but Hubbard engineered the turnaround by installing his winning culture in a blink of an eye. 

Healy found immense joy in the undertaking. 

“It’s special to be a part of the culture,” Healy said, “and to put the program back where it belongs.”

NC State reached rare air to cap the 2025 campaign. Of course the program has championship aspirations, but those will have to wait another calendar year. 

The climb to the mountaintop was difficult, one that required a near total roster overhaul as the Pack boasted just six players that were on the team when Hubbard arrived in December 2023, but the next endeavor could be even more taxing. 

“We want to make men’s soccer a prominent sport within the university and the ACC, the top soccer conference in the country,” Hubbard said. “It’s a school and a fan base that deserves that, and I think we’re there. But it’s not going to get any easier for us. 

“I think when we take over a program and rising, it’s easier to change that culture quicker. When we get to the top and there’s only a little bit more, that’s the hardest piece because you have to continue to sustain it knowing that some of the guys had that success. Finding ways to hold these guys accountable to do the little work every single day that adds up into these moments to get back here is a big challenge.”

There’s a lot of work to be done in the coming weeks and months to try to prepare for another run to the College Cup. Hubbard and his staff are likely to attack the transfer portal, which was critical to building its championship-level roster this fall, with a purpose once again, while also developing the young talent already on campus. 

That, however, can wait a few more days. NC State will be able to reflect on what it was able to accomplish in such a short time. The Wolfpack started doing that during the overtime replay review, but similar moments are likely to pop up in the months to come before the 2026 season kicks off next August. 

“I couldn’t be prouder of the group of individuals that we have in that locker room and what they’ve done this year,” Hubbard said. “The sun will come up tomorrow. We’ve got to get back to work and move on.”