Mountaineers Tangle with Panthers in Charlotte

OPENING KICK: As one of two Sun Belt teams with unblemished records, App State soccer returns to action Friday to take on Georgia State in a game that has been relocated to Charlotte due to the impact of Hurricane Helene. The contest will be played at the Queens Sports Complex, with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Prior to Sunday's postponement against Arkansas State, App State collected a 1-0 road win over Louisiana on Sept. 26. Izzi Wood netted the game's only goal with just over six minutes to play in regulation, receiving a clearance from Sydney Snowden and winning a one-on-one matchup to set up the shot and the finish. Snowden also made a big clearance defensively to prevent a goal in the 82^nd minute, while Sarah Wommack recorded a pair of saves and her fourth shutout of the season. App State has begun Sun Belt play with a pair of road wins, also taking down Georgia Southern 2-1 on Sept. 22. The Mountaineers enter Friday's match 5-3-2 on the year and winners of three straight.
 
ABOUT GEORGIA STATE: The Panthers enter Friday's contest 1-6-4 on the season and 0-1-2 in Sun Belt play, most recently falling 3-1 to South Alabama on Sunday. The Panthers have been winless for almost exactly a month, recording their only victory of the season against Kennesaw State on Sept. 5. Georgia State has been outscored 24-9 on the season and is allowing over 14 shots per game to its opponents. Reigning Sun Belt Freshman of the Year Aaliyah Faddoul leads the Panthers offense with three goals and three assists on the campaign, accounting for more than a third of the team's points. Jaddah Foos has played every minute in goal this season and has posted two shutouts.
 
SERIES HISTORY: App State and Georgia State are meeting for the 15^th time in the head-to-head series, with the Panthers holding a 10-3-1 advantage. The Mountaineers won the most recent meeting 1-0 in the 2023 regular season finale to clinch the best conference finish in program history. Summer Bowman headed home the game-winning goal off a crossing effort from Mumu Guisasola to help the Mountaineers pick up the win on the road.
 
INCREDIBLE IZZI: Graduate student Izzi Wood notched her sixth goal of the season in the Mountaineers' 1-0 win at Louisiana on Sept. 26 and has now tallied five goals across her last five games. Wood now sits in sixth place on the App State scoring list with 21 goals in her career. She also ranks fourth all-time in shots with 187 and seventh in points with 48. Wood leads the Sun Belt in shots (44) and game-winning goals (3) and is tied for the league lead in shots on goal (23) and goals (6), while ranking second in points (13). She also ranks in the top 20 nationally for shots and shots on goal per-game and game-winning goals. The Hickory, N.C. native was named a preseason All-Conference selection after earning second team All-Conference honors last season – becoming the first Mountaineer to collect postseason Sun Belt honors since 2018. She was also named second team All-Region in 2023.
 
ENTER ELLIE: Freshman attacker Ellie Garrison has needed little time to adjust to the college game. The 2023 North Carolina Golden Boot award winner set state records for career goals (230) and single-season goals (96) during her career at Wheatmore High School. Garrison has scored four goals and tallied four assists this season, tolling 12 points in her first ten collegiate games, the most points by an App State freshman in the Sun Belt era (2014-present). Garrison is tied for second in the Sun Belt in assists and ranks fourth in points.
 
A HELPING HAND: In the Mountaineers 2-1 win over Georgia Southern on Sept. 22, App State's second goal came off a beautiful passing sequence. Mumu Guisasola began the play by gaining possession in the Mountaineers own box, dribbled into space before threading a pass to Stephanie Barbosa just beyond midfield. Barbosa then slotted the ball ahead to Izzi Wood who registered what would become the game-winning goal. Barbosa and Guisasola both earned assists on the play and the Mountaineers have combined to total 15 helpers on their 16 goals this season.
                                                                                     
SIMON SAYS: Sophomore midfielder Olivia Simon scored the Mountaineers' lone goal in their loss at Davidson on Sept. 5. The goal was Simon's second of the season and sixth in two seasons with App State. Three of Simon's four goals last season came as part of a second-half hat-trick against Marshall. She finished the season as one of 12 freshmen in the country to record a hat-trick and the first App State player to record a three-goal match since 2014.
 
FRESH FACES: App State has seen nine freshmen or redshirt freshmen play in their first collegiate matches this season including five who have earned at least one start. Most notably, freshman Ellie Garrison leads the team in points, while pacing the Black and Gold with four assists. Redshirt freshman Sarah Wommack has played every minute in goal this season. In total, the Mountaineers have played 22 players this season.
 
FINDING THE NET: The App State offense has seen an uptick in production this season, averaging 1.60 goals-per-game which ranks fourth in the Sun Belt. App State has not finished a season with a mark higher than its current pace since 2013 when the team averaged 1.79 goals-per-game.
 
PROTECTING THE VALLEY: In Aimee Haywood's three seasons at the helm, the Mountaineers have been stout at home, compiling a record of 13-3-5 (.738), and outscoring their opponents 36-16 at The Valley over that span. The Mountaineers' loss to Radford on Thursday marked their first setback at home since October 2022, snapping a 13-match home unbeaten streak – the longest in program history.
 
WINNING WAYS: Since her hire in Dec. 2021, Aimee Haywood has quickly elevated the Mountaineers' program. After the team won just two conference matches in 2021 prior to her arrival, Haywood guided the team to a 5-5 mark in league play in 2022, despite being picked 13th in the Sun Belt preseason poll. Last year, the team finished third in the Sun Belt, winning four of their final five regular season games, and going unbeaten at home. Haywood led the Mountaineers to a 2-0-2 start through the team's first four games of the season, marking its best start since 2007. With a record of 20-18-9 in three years at App State, Haywood boasts the best winning percentage of any coach in program history.
 
PRESEASON PROJECTIONS: App State earned a first-place vote and was tied for sixth in the 2024 Sun Belt Coaches Poll. It marks the first time since joining the league that the Mountaineers have garnered a first-place vote and represents the highest predicted finish since 2017.
 
UP NEXT: App State is scheduled to host Coastal Carolina next Thursday at 6 p.m.