BOONE, N.C. - ASU's Ryan Lavigne notched his third goal of the season but the Mountaineers surrendered a second-half goal, as Appalachian men's soccer tied visiting UNC Asheville, 1-1, in front of a record crowd Tuesday night at ASU Soccer Stadium. Appalachian's record stands at 4-2-2, while UNC Asheville moves to 1-5-2 (0-1 Big South).

Boone's High Country Soccer Association sponsored a "Pack the Mack" event to draw increased fans. The game's attendance of 727 marked a new stadium record for the Ted Mackorell Soccer Complex.

Lavigne's goal came early. In only the eighth minute, junior Lee Williams spotted his classmate from quarter field and fed a well-placed ball. Lavigne fired his shot from the top of the box and found the back of the net for his team-high third score of the year.

UNC Asheville leveled the score early in the second half. In the 51st minute, Bobby Castro fed David Wood deep in ASU territory. Wood drew ASU keeper Danny Free off his line and lofted the shot in from 18 yards. Wood's equalizer was his first goal of the season.

Appalachian maintained offensive pressure throughout the half, recording 12 shots in the period and building a 19-6 advantage in shots overall. The Mountaineers also forced 12 corner kicks compared to the Bulldogs' four.

In the end, the Apps failed to penetrate past UNCA keeper Lassi Herskanen, and the teams walked away with a 1-1 draw.

Free finished with two saves in net, while ASU's Sekani Sinclair notched a game-high six shots.

"On the whole, we played well," commented ASU coach Matt Nelson. "We made some mistakes that we have to correct, but their keeper played a great game. We created a lot of chances and had shots go off the post; our performance was good."

With its initial non-conference games in the book, Appalachian's focus now turns to its conference slate. "Now it matters," added Nelson. "Heading into the conference games, it's time to really focus." The Mountaineers travel to Elon (2-5-1) for their first league game on Saturday, Oct. 1.