Mountaineers Look to Clinch Postseason Berth in Home Finale Versus Louisiana

BOONE, N.C. - App State will host their home finale, Sunday, as they welcome Louisiana to The Valley, with Kickoff Set for 11 a.m. The match will be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
WIN AND IN: App State is on the verge of clinching a spot in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament, October 31-November 6 in Foley, Ala. The Mountaineers would secure a spot with either a win or a tie against the Ragin' Cajuns. They could also clinch a spot on Sunday as a result of a loss from Marshall or ULM. The top-10 teams in the conference advance to the tournament, with the six highest seeds earning a first-round bye. App State currently is the sixth seed.
 
ABOUT APP STATE: App State (5-7-4, 4-4-0) defeated Southern Miss, 1-0, on Thursday on a 14^th minute goal from Izzi Wood. It was Wood's team-best fifth goal of the season. Kerry Eagleston recorded seven saves, earning her sixth clean sheet of the season, which ties her mark from last year and places her one shy of matching the single-season program record. On the season Wood ranks fourth in the conference in shots (41) and is tied for seventh in shots on goal (19), while her five goals are tied for tenth. Shannon Studer is second on the team with six points, while Breckyn Monteith, who picked up the assist on Thursday has four points on the year. Eagleston also leads the Sun Belt with 81 saves.
 
ABOUT LOUISIANA: The Ragin' Cajuns (3-7-5, 2-4-2) are winners of two in a row, following a 3-1 victory over Troy on Thursday. Ruthny Mathurin scored two goals for Louisiana, while Alyssa Abbott scored the game-winner in the 52^nd minute. Mathurin leads the team with five goal on the season to go along with three assists, while Karleen Bedre has recorded a team high five assists and scored three goals. Libby Harper has played every minute this season in goal for the Ragin' Cajuns, posting a goals-against-average of 1.82 and a save percentage of .675. Prior to their back-to-back wins over ULM and Troy, the Cajuns had not won a match since opening the season with a win over FIU on August 18.
 
SERIES HISTORY: Sunday will mark the ninth all-time meeting between the Mountaineers and Ragin' Cajuns. App State leads the series 6-2-0, including a 2-0 victory last season. Breckyn Monteith scored in the 17^th minute on a Hayley Boyles assist, and Katie Fuller put the game away with a goal in the 57^th minute.
 
ELEVATING THE A: With two matches remaining in the regular season, App State has won four conference games, doubling their total from a season ago. The four wins match their win total from 2020, while a win against the Cajuns, Sunday, would be the most Sun Belt victories since their six wins in 2018.
 
HOME COOKING: App State has begun Sun Belt play 3-1 at home with wins over ULM, Coastal Carolina, and Old Dominion. Overall, the Mountaineers are 4-2-2 at home, compared to a 1-5-2 mark away from The Valley. App State has score 9 of its 13 goals on its own turf this season. The last time the Mountaineers won five home games in a season was in 2019 when they went 5-0-3 on their home field, including a 2-0-2 mark in Sun Belt play.
 
MIX 'N MATCH: App State has opened the match with a different starting lineup in all 16 contests this season. Goalkeeper Kerry Eagleston and defender Skyler Walk are the only players to start all 16 matches.
 
SPREADING THE WEALTH: Through 16 games this season, eight different players have scored at least one goal for the Mountaineers.
 
INCREDIBLE IZZI: Junior forward Izzi Wood scored her team-leading fifth goal of the season, Thursday at Southern Miss. Wood now ranks tied for tenth in the Sun Belt in goals, while ranking fourth in shots (41), and tied for seventh in shots on goal (19). She recorded her first career two-goal match Sept. 15 against Radford, becoming the first Mountaineer to record a two-goal game since Breckyn Monteith did so last year against Little Rock on October 24. Wood also scored twice in an exhibition match against UNC Asheville. She is playing for the first time since 2020 after missing last season due to injury.
 
WALK THIS WAY: Sophomore defender Skyler Walk has been a huge catalyst for the Mountaineers this season, playing more minutes than any other player on the campaign. Walk has played 1,417 minutes this year, playing all 90 minutes in all but one contest. She has played at least 132 more minutes than any other field player on the squad. Walk scored her first career goal last Friday, bouncing home a free kick from 45-yards out.
 
SUPER STUDER: Freshman Shannon Studer netted the game-winning goal in each of the first two conference games for App State. Sept. 18 against ULM she scored the lone goal of the match, in the 64^th minute, with App State playing with just 10 players on the field. Then on Sept. 22 against Coastal Carolina, she answered a game-tying goal by the Chanticleers in the 81^st minute with a tally less than a minute later. Her two game-winning goals this season are tied for fifth most in the Sun Belt. Studer has also recorded a team-best two assists this season, helping on goals against UT Martin and College of Charleston. As a true freshman, Studer has started 14 of the first 15 matches this season, playing 1,285 minutes on the campaign, the second most by an App State field player. She has played 90 minutes in seven matches this season, and her six points this season also rank second on the team. Studer has played both on the backline and in the midfield this season.
 
THE MAGIC OF MONTEITH: Junior Breckyn Monteith tallied her second assist of the season on Thursday, setting up Izzi Wood for her 14^th minute tally. Monteith also scored a goal against Marshall, September 25^th, to give her four points on the season, which ranks third on the team. Monteith scored 10 goals a season ago, one shy of a program record.
 
IT BEGINS WITH BARBOSA: Sophomore Stephanie Barbosa has become increasingly involved in the offensive production for the Mountaineers. September 25 at Marshall, she picked up her first assist of the season, feeding Breckyn Monteith on the game-tying goal. Barbosa also scored her first goal of her career at The College of Charleston, when she headed home a cross from Shannon Studer. Barbosa has played at least 30 minutes in every match this season.
 
BETWEEN THE PIPES: Senior goalkeeper Kerry Eagleston has been a mainstay between the pipes for the Mountaineers, playing and starting in 70 games across four seasons. Eagleston recorded six saves against Georgia Southern, Oct. 9^th to move her into third place in program history. Eagleston leads the Sun Belt in saves (81), while ranking second in save percentage (.818), and tied for third in shutouts (6).
 
Last season, Eagleston led the Sun Belt with 113 saves, while also ranking tied for second in shutouts (3), fifth in save percentage (.813), and tenth in goals against average (1.37). She recorded double-digit saves three times, including a career-high 20 saves against Wake Forest, the second-most in a match in program history.
 
THE KERRY COUNTER:
Career Shutouts:
1. 24, Breland Meany...................................................2001-2004
2. 21, Caroline Clarke................................................. 2007-2010
3. 18, Kerry Eagleston ..............................................2019-present
4. 14, Megan Roebrson ...............................................2012-2015
 
Season Shutouts
T1. 7 Breland Meany...........................................................2001
T1. 7 Breland Meany.......................................................... 2002
T1. 7 Breland Meany.......................................................... 2003
T1. 7 Caroline Clarke.......................................................... 2009
T5. 6 Kerry Eagleston………………………………..…..2022
T5. 6 Kerry Eagleston.....................................................2020-21
T5. 6 Emma White.............................................................. 2006
T5. 6 Caroline Clarke...........................................................2010
 
Career Saves:
1. 375 Kelley Guinn ..................................................... 1994-1996
2. 369 Breland Meany...................................................2001-2004
3. 340 Kerry Eagleston................................................2019-present
4. 319 Caroline Clarke.................................................. 2007-2010
 
HAYWOOD AT THE HELM: Aimee Haywood was announced as the fifth head coach in App State soccer history when she was hired in December. Haywood joins the Black and Gold following a two-year stint at Queens University where she helped the Royals to a 16-5-1 record last season on their way to the second round of the Division II NCAA tournament. Haywood went 23-7-2 in two seasons at Queens. Prior to that she spent four years leading her alma mater, Ohio Dominican, where she complied a 44-25-10 record. In 2017 she led the Panthers to a program-record 16-win season that culminated with their first Division II NCAA tournament win.
 
ROLLING IN THE DEEP: Team depth is an aspect that has been prominently on display for the Mountaineers this season. On a roster comprised of 33 players, 26 have seen playing time already this year. Of those, 19 different players have earned at least one start, including newcomers Shannon Studer (15 starts), Anna Kate Highsmith (10), Katie Schumacher (13), Gabby Tremonti (5), Felicia Erkenfeldt (3), Lela Stark (5), Emilene Parham (1), and Izzy Lusardi (1).
 
SCORELESS DRAWS: Following a 0-0 draw at George Mason on Aug. 28, the Mountaineers have posted three scoreless draws on the season, the most since 2010 when they recorded four on the year. They finished that season with five draws overall, the most in program history.
The Mountaineers opened the season with back-to-back scoreless draws, against Liberty and USC Upstate. Previously, the last scoreless draw involving App State came October 1, 2020 against The Citadel. The last time the Mountaineers posted scoreless draws in consecutive games was October 18 and 20 of 2013 when they did so against Wofford and Furman respectively. All scoreless draws prior to this season included overtime, which has since been eliminated from regular season contests.
 
UP NEXT: App State will travel to San Marcos, where they will face Texas State in their regular season finale, Thursday at 8 p.m. ET. The match will be broadcast on ESPN+.