App State Faces Davidson in Sunday Showdown

OPENING KICK: Looking to rebound from back-to-back losses for the first time this season, App State Soccer heads down the Mountain on Sunday for an in-state showdown with Davidson at 1 p.m. The match will be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Izzi Wood scored a pair of first-half goals, both assisted by Ellie Garrison, to give the Mountaineers a 2-1 lead going into halftime, but after being unable to convert a penalty kick in the second half the momentum swung in favor of the Highlanders, who scored three unanswered goals in a 4-2 victory in Boone. App State tallied 25 shots on the night but was outshot 8-7 in shots on target.  
 
ABOUT DAVIDSON: The Wildcats enter the weekend at 3-1-1 on the season, following back-to-back 2-0 wins over Gardner-Webb and Longwood. Since dropping its opener to VMI on Aug. 15, the Wildcats are riding a four-match unbeaten streak and has conceded just three goals on the season. Maddie Moody leads the Wildcats with three goals this season, while Dakota Lyons has added a goal and two assists. Emily Smith has played every minute in goal for the Wildcats and has needed to make just seven saves through five matches. The Wildcats are already a win shy of their win total from 2023 when they went just 4-11-2 and 1-7-2 in A10 play, in Riley Piechnick's first season leading the program.
 
SERIES HISTORY: App State and Davidson will meet for the 30th time in program history, dating back to their days as rivals in the Southern Conference. The Wildcats lead the all-time series 19-7-3, but App State won the most recent meeting 1-0 in the spring portion of the 2020-2021 campaign. The lone goal in the match came on a penalty kick in the 61st minute, in a match that featured just 11 total shots.
 
INCREDIBLE IZZI: Graduate student Izzi Wood notched two goals in the Mountaineers loss against Radford on Thursday. The brace was the second of Wood's career, with the other also coming at home against the Highlanders in 2022. Wood now as three goals on the season and 18 in her App State career, moving her into a tie with Allison Osborne (1995-98) for seventh on the all-time scoring list. Wood also ranks fourth all-time in shots with 172. She currently leads the Sun Belt with 29 shots and 15 shots on goal this season, while her three goals and seven points are tied for third and sixth in the league respectively. 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 was named the Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week on Tuesday, following a pair of goals in the Mountaineers 2-0 win over Longwood on Aug. 29. Garrison assisted on both App State goals on Thursday against Radford and now has totaled seven points in her first six collegiate games. Garrison is tied for the conference lead with three assists and is in a tie for sixth in the Sun Belt with seven points. 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.
 
SUPER STUDER: Junior defensive midfielder Shannon Studer has registered two goals and an assist across her first six matches of the season. Studer scored the first goal of the season for the Mountaineers in the ninth minute of play against Wofford on August 22. 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 Aug. 29, Studer began a nice passing sequence which culminated with her going top shelf for the finish – assisted by Stephanie Barbosa and Ellie Garrison.
 
NEW IN NET: Redshirt freshman goalkeeper Sarah Wommack has posted three shutouts in her first six career matches this season. Wommack is tied for second in the Sun Belt in shutouts, while her 27 saves are also the second-most in the conference. Additionally, Wommack ranks seventh in save percentage (.771) and eighth in goals-against average (1.33). Wommack took over for Kerry Eagleston who set all-time saves record with 416, making a program-best 91 starts across the last five seasons.
 
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.
 
TAKE FIVE: App State's five-goal game against Wofford on August 22 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.
 
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 53 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. 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.
 
FRESH FACES: App State has seen eight freshmen or redshirt freshmen play in their first collegiate matches this season. Kyli Switalski was inserted into the starting lineup on Aug. 29 against Longwood, becoming the fourth freshman or redshirt freshman to earn at least one start this season. Following her two assists against Radford on Thursday, Ellie Garrison leads the team in assists and is tied for the team lead in points.
 
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.
 
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.
 
UP NEXT: App State will close out non-conference play on Thursday when they travel to Fort Myers, Fla. for a matchup with Florida Gulf Coast at 7 p.m. The Eagles are 1-3 on the season after picking up their first victory of the campaign against DePaul last Sunday. Their match on Thursday against FAU was postponed due to inclement weather.