BOONE, N.C. - The Mountaineers return to Ted Mackorell Soccer Complex Thursday to host ETSU at 7 p.m. It's Pediatric Cancer Awareness Night at the stadium, and fans are encouraged to wear gold, and join the team in supporting Brenner Children's Hospital in conjunction with the Go4thegoal Foundation. The match will be broadcast on ESPN+.
ABOUT APP STATE: App State (1-1-3) is looking to rebound from its first loss of the season, falling to Clemson, 3-0, on Sunday.
Kerry Eagleston made a season-high 13 saves in net for the Mountaineers, facing a career-high 32 shots in the contest. The last time the Mountaineers played in Boone they collected their first win of the season, defeating UT Martin, 2-1. App State also has posted three scoreless draws this season against Liberty, USC Upstate, and George Mason.
Izzi Wood leads the Mountaineers with nine shots on the season, she has also scored a goal.
Skyler Walk has played all 450 minutes along the back line this season, the only field player to do so.
ABOUT ETSU: The Buccaneers (1-2-2) are coming off a 6-0 loss to Vanderbilt, Friday night. ETSU has two common opponents with App State already this season, posting a 1-0 win over USC Upstate and falling 4-0 to Liberty. ETSU has also recorded a 2-2 draw with Gardner-Webb and a scoreless draw with Presbyterian. Junior forward Emma Arnold has netted two of the Bucs three goals this season and has added one of their two assists. Sophomore goalkeeper Ashton Blair has started four of the team's five games in net.
SERIES HISTORY: Thursday will mark the 11
th all-time meeting between App State and ETSU. The Mountaineers hold a 7-2-1 advantage over the Bucs, but most recently lost 1-0 in double-overtime in 2014 in a match played in Johnson City.
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.
SCORELESS DRAWS: Following a 0-0 draw at George Mason, the Mountaineers have now 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.
BETWEEN THE PIPES: Senior goalkeeper
Kerry Eagleston has been a mainstay between the pipes for the Mountaineers, playing and starting in 59 games across four seasons. Eagleston is tied atop the Sun Belt in saves (25), while ranking second in shutouts (3), fourth in goal against average (.800), and fourth in save percentage (.862). 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. 15, Kerry Eagleston ..............................................2019-present
4. 14, Megan Roebrson ...............................................2012-2015
Career Saves:
1. 375 Kelley Guinn ..................................................... 1994-1996
2. 369 Breland Meany...................................................2001-2004
3. 319 Caroline Clarke.................................................. 2007-2010
4. 284 Kerry Eagleston................................................2019-present
IZZI RETURNS: After missing the 2021 season due to injury, junior
Izzi Wood wasted no time making an impact in 2022. In the Mountaineers first win of the season, Wood tallied the game-winning goal against UT Martin, August 25. Wood also recorded a two-goal game in a scrimmage against UNC Asheville. She leads the team with nine shots through five games.
WALK THIS WAY: Through five games this season, sophomore defender
Skyler Walk has played every minute of every match, totaling 450 minutes on the field. Walk is the only field player for the Mountaineers to have accomplished this feat, and she has played at least 19 more minutes than any other player this season. App State overall is a very deep team as 24 players have earned playing time, while 15 have earned at least one start.
NEW FACES: The Mountaineers 2022 roster features 14 newcomers in addition to 19 returners (8 returning starters). Winthrop transfer
Anna Kate Highsmith scored the Mountaineers first goal of the season, on an assist from freshman
Shannon Studer. Nine newcomers have earned playing time in the first four games of the season with Highsmith, Studer,
Lela Stark,
Gabby Tremonti,
Lela Stark, and
Katie Schumacher earning at least one start.
DOMINANT D: App State set the tone defensively to begin the season, allowing one goal or fewer in four of their first five contests this season. If you add in two exhibition matches, App State has allowed just five goals in seven games on the year.
SPRING HAS SPRUNG: The Mountaineers impressed in the spring season posting wins over UNCG, Radford, and High Point. Their lone loss in the spring came to South Carolina, which had made it to the elite eight in the 2021 NCAA Tournament. Five different players combined to score seven goals in the spring slate.
UP NEXT: App State will travel back to South Carolina this weekend for a meeting with the College of Charleston, Sunday at 1 p.m. The Cougars are members of the CAA. The game will be streamed on Flo FC.
