Women's Soccer Holds First Official Practice

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BOONE, N.C. -  Appalachian State University women's soccer brought the energy and was flying all over the place on the first day of fall camp. 

Rundown
After the conditioning tests concluded, the Apps were ready to go at Ted Mackorell Soccer Complex. The first day consisted of high-flying transition games with the group practicing sets. App wasted no time kicking into high gear, and it needs to as ETSU is one week away on Aug. 8 in the first of two exhibition contests before the season opener against High Point on Aug. 17 in High Point, N.C.

Strickland on the First Day 
"It's great to be back out on the field. There was a ton of energy today. Since the girls, athletic training and strength staff worked so hard this summer, they were all flying! We are looking forward to getting back on the field and continuing to prepare for next week."

Who Returns
App State returns 19 letterwinners and six starters from last season, which includes a solid core in its two leading goal scorers in Kat Greer (five goals) and Ava Dawson (three goals),  the leader in assists (Emmily Cowie) and primary goalkeeper, Taylor Ray. Also returning for Appalachian is Jessica Easley, who finished tied for second with Cowie in minutes at 1,727 is back for her third season on the pitch. Looking to have breakout seasons are Maggie Hanusek, who scored a goal and played in 19 matches with eight starts and Alexa Asher (12 starts - 1145 minutes).

Letterwinners Returning
Sarah Murphy
Jamie Palermo
Kristin Brown
Blair Anderes
Kayce Ransone
Lauren Burke
Abbey Rand
Tess Cairney
Mary Perkins
Amber Anderson
Tristin Derrick
Megan McGuinness

Greer on the first day
"It was awesome to get back out on the field. Playing with the girls, they were pushing me through everything, and it was great to get back into it and be able to go full force again."

Greer on building chemistry 
"As we progressed throughout last season, we got closer on the field and figured out our strengths and weaknesses. A lot of us were here over the summer playing pickup. The cohesion that we have is going to be seen on the field, and we saw a little bit of it today."

Newcomers
The Mountaineers bring in seven highly-talented student-athletes, six of which are true freshmen and a transfer from Lees-McRae, Riley Neese. Amanda Sales, Nolly Niewald, Kirsten Seeley, Lindsey Poff, Jessica Peters and Lauren Murphy, the sister of senior Sarah Murphy, all look to make an immediate impact. Five of the six new Mountaineers are from North Carolina with Seeley from Virginia. 

What's Next
Appalachian will continue to prepare for its exhibition next week. Make sure to check back with appstatesports.com for more coverage on fall camp.