Women's Soccer to Open Sun Belt Play This Weekend

BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State University women's soccer (1-5-2) kicks off Sun Belt action this weekend with a pair of road contests beginning with South Alabama on Friday at 8 p.m. and then traveling to Atlanta for a 1 p.m. contest against Georgia State on Sunday.

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@AppStateWSoccer vs. @SouthAlabamaSoc | Friday, Sept. 15 | 8:00 p.m. (ET) | Mobile, Ala. | South Alabama Soccer Complex
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@AppStateWSoccer at @GSUWomensSoccer | Sunday, Sept. 17 | 1 p.m. (ET) | Atlanta, Ga. | GSU Soccer Complex
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About the Mountaineers
The Mountaineers are coming off a tight 2-1 overtime setback to UNCW last Saturday after forcing overtime in Wilmington. It was the second match in a row the Apps came back from a one-goal deficit, as the Black and Gold picked up their first win of the season in a 3-2 triumph over Davidson. Appalachian had to come back from one goal on two separate occasions, while Ava Dawson scored two goals in the match, and Sharon Osterbind would score the game-winning knock in the second half. 

Sun Belt Play
Appalachian finished 5-4-2 last season in Sun Belt play including a 5-1 finish going into the conference tournament after a 0-3-2 start to league action. The Mountaineers rode a four-match win streak going into the Sun Belt semifinals before falling to South Alabama.The Black and Gold advanced to the semifinal round for the second-straight season after defeating Louisiana in the opening round, 3-0.  App State is 2-1 all-time in Sun Belt openers and is 1-1 when opening up league competition on the road. 

Osterbind Coming Along
After coming away with zero points in the first six matches of the season, the redshirt senior has come on strong with a goal and two assists over the last two contests. Osterbind is tied for first on the team with two helpers and is tied for eighth in the Sun Belt in the category. Against Davidson, she provided the Mountaineers with the game-winning score. 

Dazzling Dawson
The sophomore has upped her play with a team-high three goals over the six games she has appeared in, while she is tied for third in the Sun Belt in goals and tied for eighth with six points thus far. 

Scouting South Alabama (2-4-1)
The Jaguars are 2-0-1 in their last three matches while most recently playing Mississippi State to a 1-1 draw. USA Head Coach Richard Moodie is in his first year as the head coach after boasting a 36-7-1 mark at Carson Newman over a two-year mark. The Jaguars are led by Tiina Trutsi and Rio Hardy, who each have three goals. Trutsi has amassed a team-high seven points while Ana Helmert and Ashleigh Pyle both have an assist. Justice Stanford has played all seven matches as the primary goalkeeper, allowing 1.52 goals per contest and a .718 save percentage.

Scouting Georgia State (2-4-1)
Georgia State is coming off a 2-0 win over Chattanooga following a pair of losses to Tennessee Tech and Mercer, respectively. Both of the Panthers' wins have come at home as they boast a 2-1 mark on their field. GSU is led by first-year head coach Ed Joyce, who is on the Panther sidelines after spending two seasons as an assistant coach at Campbell. Alex Addington and Suzanne Arafa are the student-athletes for GSU that have two goals to lead the way. Three student-athletes have seen action between the posts, but Brie Haynes has played a majority of the minutes at goalkeeper.

Series History
South Alabama - USA has the upperhand in the all-time series with a 3-1-1 mark. The Mountaineers went 1-1 against the hosts, including a thrilling 4-3 victory at home last season.

Georgia State - The Mountaineers are 1-3-1 against the Panthers and drew to a 1-1 tie in the most recent matchup last season.

What's Next
Appalachian will host back-to-back Sun Belt matches against Troy (Sept. 24) and Arkansas State (Sept. 29) to close out the month.