STATESBORO, Ga. – With feels-like temperatures in the mid-90s at Bo Pitts Field, it was the visitors from Boone who came out of the gates red hot, scoring a pair of first half goals en route to a 2-1 victory over Georgia Southern.
The Mountaineers (4-3-2, 1-0-0) got on the board less than four minutes into the contest.
Stephanie Barbosa crossed a ball into the box and the pass bounced off an Eagles' (3-6-1, 0-1-) defender, who attempted to intercept, and came right to
Ellie Garrison, who unleashed a left-footed strike into the bottom-left corner of the net. The goal was Garrison's fourth of the season. She now has 12 points through just nine games this season, the most points by a Mountaineer freshman since joining the Sun Belt Conference.
App State doubled its advantage in just the 12th minute of play. After winning the ball in her own box,
Mumu Guisasola dribbled into space before threading a pass ahead to Barbosa just beyond midfield. Barbosa then slotted a pass through to
Izzi Wood, who outraced the Eagles defense before burying her team-leading fifth goal of the season. The goal was also Wood's 20th career tally, which moves her into a tie with Dana Murphy ('03-'06) for sixth-most in program history.
Wood finished with a game-high six shots and three on target, as well as a near goal that hit off the crossbar in the closing minutes of the opening half. App State outshot Georgia Southern 17-6 and 6-1 in shots on target.
The Eagles lone shot on goal resulted in their only goal of the game, a 33rd minute marker from Smith Cathey off a cross from Maya Zovko.
Georgia Southern played the final 35 minutes with only ten players after Kendall Wilson collected a pair of yellow cards and was sent off.
App State will continue its road trip with a stop in Lafayette, La. on Thursday to take on the Louisiana Ragin Cajuns. The match is set for 8 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on ESPN+.
