App State Squares Off with Longwood Thursday

OPENING KICK: Unbeaten through three matches for the second time in the last three years, App State Soccer will round out its three-game homestand with a matchup against the Longwood Lancers. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. and the match will be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Shannon Studer scored for the second consecutive match, while Sarah Wommack registered a career-high six saves in a 1-1 draw with Charlotte. Both teams registered double-digit shots in a high-paced match, particularly in the final 45 minutes of play. Ellie Garrison registered her first career assist, while Lauren Smith made her collegiate debut for App State.
 
2023 RECAP: App State is coming off a record-setting 2023 campaign. The team finished third in the Sun Belt standings, marking the best conference finish in program history. App State finished with a record of 9-6-3 overall and 6-2-2 in conference play, marking the most overall wins and most conference wins since 2018. The Mountaineers finished third among North Carolina programs with an RPI of 75, trailing only UNC and Duke. App State set program records for shutouts (8) and fewest goals allowed (16), while forward Izzi Wood was named second team All-Sun Belt, becoming the first Mountaineer to garner All-Conference recognition since 2018.
 
ABOUT LONGWOOD: The Lancers enter the match at 0-2-1 on the season, picking up their first point on Sunday in a 2-2 draw at Western Carolina. Longwood was in position to win the contest but conceded a goal in the 90^th minute of play. Coryn Silberstein and Taylor Hoag each scored for the Lancers after the team had been shut out by Loyla (Md.) and Richmond in its first two matches of the year. The Lancers are coming off a 5-7-5 season in 2023, where they went 3-2-3 in Big South play. The Lancers are coached by Todd Dyer who founded the program in 1993 and is now in his 31^st year at the helm.
 
SERIES HISTORY: App State and Longwood have met eight times in program history, all between 2004 and 2012. The Mountaineers hold a 7-1 advantage over the Lancers, most recently picking up a 3-0 victory in Boone on Sept. 2, 2012, in a game in which the Mountaineers rattled off 25 shots.
 
SUPER STUDER: Junior midfielder Shannon Studer has registered two goal and an assist across the last two matches. Studer scored the first goal of the season for the Mountaineers in the ninth minute of play against Wofford on Thursday. Studer then set up Kaytan Kroboth for the second goal of the match, giving her a three-point game for the first time in her career. Against Charlotte on Sunday, Studer began a nice passing sequence which culminated with her going top shelf for the finish – assisted by Stephanie Barbosa and Ellie Garrison. Studer ranks Despite primarily playing defense the past two seasons, and defensive midfield this year, the Waxhaw, N.C. native has registered six goals and six assists in her career in a Black and Gold uniform. Studer's two goals and five points this season are both tied for fifth in the Sun Belt.
 
INCREDIBLE IZZI: Graduate student Izzi Wood was named to the 2024 Sun Belt Preseason All-Conference team. Wood scored her first goal of the season last Thursday, heading home a corner kick service from Kyli Switalski. The goal was the 16^th of Wood's career, moving her into sole possession of ninth place on the all-time scoring list. Wood also ranks eighth in program history for shots with 154. Wood was named a second team All-Conference selection last season, becoming the first Mountaineer since 2018 to earn that distinction. Wood ranks fourth in the Sun Belt with 11 shots and tied for seventh with five shots on goal this season.
 
PROTECTING THE VALLEY: App State enters play Sunday riding a 12-game home unbeaten streak dating back to October 2022. The Mountaineers posted an unbeaten home season in 2023, going 6-0-2 at The Valley, and outscoring their opponents 14-2 in those matches. It marked the first unbeaten season at home since 2019, and the active streak is the longest in program history. App State has outscored its opponents 6-1 at home so far this season.
 
TAKE FIVE: App State's five-goal game against Wofford last Thursday tied the highest scoring output under head coach Aimee Haywood. App State also put up five goals in a 5-1 home victory over Marshall last year in Sun Belt play. The last time the Mountaineers scored at least five goals in a shutout came on Sept. 1, 2019, when they defeated UNC Asheville 6-0.
 
NEW IN NET: Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Sarah Wommack takes over for Kerry Eagleston who set all-time saves record with 416, making a program-best 91 starts across the last five seasons. Wommack was a two-time All-State selection at Northwest Guilford high school and at 6'0 tall is both tall and athletic. Wommack posted four saves and a shutout in her first start against NC State. Through three matches, Wommack is tied for the Sun Belt lead with two shutouts and ranks third in goals-against average (.333) and save percentage (.933).
 
ENTER ELLIE: Freshman forward Ellie Garrison registered her first career point, picking up an assist on Shannon Studer's goal against the 49ers on Sunday. Garrison joins the Mountaineers after posting one of the best high school careers in North Carolina state history. Competing for Wheatmore High School, Garrison set the state record with 230 goals in her four-year career, including a state-record 96 as a senior, and was the recipient of the North Carolina Golden Boot award in 2023.
 
REACH FOR THE SKY: App State's back line is anchored by four-year starter Skyler Walk. The Charlotte, N.C. native has played nearly every minute of every game for App State and has totaled over 5,000 minutes in her four years with the program and has played all 90 minutes in a game 51 times. She helped the team set records for shutouts and fewest goals allowed last season.
 
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.
 
SETTLERS OF KAYTAN: Sophomore forward Kaytan Kroboth scored her first career goal in the 5-0 victory over Wofford last Thursday. Kroboth also recorded an assist on Shannon Studer's goal, collecting her first three-point match. Kroboth has started each of the first two matches for the Mountaineers this season, after coming off the bench in 17 matches as a freshman.
 
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 will travel to Auburn Sunday, to face a ranked Tigers team that is 3-0 on the season and has outscored its opponents 13-0. App State has never faced Auburn and will take aim at the program's first ranked win. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. ET on SECN+.