TOWSON, Md. – Junior
Meghan Smart's two goals powered Appalachian State University field hockey to a 3-0 victory over Towson on Friday afternoon.
The Mountaineers (1-0) have won three-straight season openers under head coach
Meghan Dawson. All three triumphs have been two-goal victories with Appalachian defeating Towson 2-0 in 2018 and La Salle 3-1 to open the 2017 campaign.
"I'm proud of our team today," Dawson said. "We came out hard at the start and carried that intensity throughout the game. We're a really strong unit and pride ourselves on working for each other."
The Black and Gold struck early when Smart notched an unassisted goal less than five minutes into the game. Sophomore
Friederike Stegen then doubled App State's lead just a few minutes into the second quarter to put App State up 2-0 at the half. Junior
Veerle Van Heertum earned the assist on Stegen's goal after she fired the original shot off a penalty corner before Stegen tapped in the rebound.
After no goals in the third quarter, Smart secured a brace in the 59
th minute to push Appalachian's lead to 3-0. Freshman
Sarah Farrell recorded her first assist in an App State uniform on Smart's final score of the game.
Appalachian outshot the Tigers 12-2, not allowing a shot to Towson (0-1) in the first half. Freshman
Pauline Mangold paced the Mountaineers with three shots, while Farrell, Smart and Stegen tallied two attempts each.
Senior goalkeeper
Rachel Gaines recorded a shutout in her second-straight season opener. The Kettering, Ohio native made two saves to nail down the shutout.
The Mountaineers continue their road trip at Georgetown (1-0) on Sunday at noon. The Hoyas defeated Davidson 5-2 on Friday, outshooting the Wildcats 22-7.
