Raleigh, N.C. – Senior Tzierra King netted a hat trick to rally N.C. State from a 1-0 deficit as the Wolfpack downed Furman, 3-1, in non-conference women's soccer action Sunday afternoon at Dail Soccer Complex in Raleigh, N.C.
 
Sophomore Erin Houlihan put the Paladins in front in the 15^th minute with her fourth goal of the season. Senior Caitlyn Reilly played a ball to Houlihan on the left wing and the forward muscled her way past a defender before curling her shot into the right side of the net at 14:25.
 
N.C. State answered the Paladin goal with two of its own in a span of 41 seconds. King took a Kristina Schuster pass and fired a shot that deflected off of the heel of a Furman defender and past Paladin goalkeeper Kellsey Weaver at the 16:44 mark to even the match. Seconds later, King raced into the box via a give-and-go and was denied by Weaver on her initial shot, but the forward pounced on the loose ball to score her second goal of the half at 17:25 to give the Wolfpack a 2-1 lead.
 
King capped the hat trick in the 50^th minute from the penalty spot after Furman was whistled for a foul in the box when a Paladin defender shielded a Wolfpack attacker from the ball as it rolled to Weaver. The penalty kick marked the 40^th career goal for King.
 
N.C. State (4-3-0) finished with a 13-7 edge in total shots and an 8-4 advantage in shots on goal. Weaver, who totaled five saves on the afternoon, made several diving stops in the second half, but N.C. State's Jessica Berlin notched three saves to help her team maintain the two-goal cushion.
 
Furman (5-3-0) will be idle until next Sunday, September 22, when it visits to Athens, Ga., to face the Georgia Bulldogs.