BOONE, N.C. – The third-seeded App State soccer team opens Sun Belt tournament play against sixth-seeded Louisiana in Foley, Ala. on Monday at noon ET on ESPN+. The matchup features the only two 11-win teams in the Sun Belt this season and will be the first time that the two teams face off this year. App State is looking for its first postseason victory since 2021.
App State (11-3-4, 6-2-2) enters the tournament following a 3-0 victory against Troy on Nov. 1. The Mountaineers continued their record-setting season tying the most regular season wins (11) and Sun Belt wins (6) in program history. Individually,
Ellie Garrison set the single-season records for goals (12) and points (26) with a brace in the victory against the Trojans. Garrison was named a first team All-Sun Belt selection on Thursday. Despite not having to make a save against Troy, goalkeeper
Hanna Skogsfors matched the single-season shutout record with her eighth of the season. She was named to the All-Sun Belt third team.
The defense extended the single-season shutout record with their tenth clean sheet of the season. The team has conceded just 13 goals in 18 regular season matches. Sophomore center backs
Maddie Williams and
Lucy Harrington were named second and third team all-conference respectively. App State is ranked no. 1 in the country for corner kicks, recording 150 this season, an average of 8.33 per game. The Mountaineers have outshot their opponents 13.6-6.6 on average and are ranked third in the Sun Belt for shots. Garrison leads the team in goals with 12 on the season,
Libby Bermingham follows with eight.
Hayden Petrick leads the Mountaineers in assists with five.
Louisiana (11-5-3, 5-3-2) returns to the pitch after a 2-1 win against Arkansas State securing its 11th win of the season, the most in program history. Madelyn Linenkugal and Salma Elhaimer each scored a goal for Louisiana, with Linenkugal securing the game winner. The Ragin Cajuns come in at the sixth seed for the conference tournament. First team all-conference selections Carson Glenn (11 goals, 5 assists) and Miku Kurihara (12 goals, 3 assists) lead the team offensively this season. Kurihara was named the Sun Belt midfielder of the year. Louisiana has outscored its opponents 45-22 on the season, scoring at least three goals in a game nine times. Natalie Mayes made 18 starts for the Cajuns in goal, posting a 1.27 goals-against average and a .708 save percentage.
App State and Louisiana have played 11 times, with the Mountaineers leading the series 8-3. The last time these two teams met was in 2025 where Louisiana earned a 1-0 win in Boone on a goal from Glenn. Monday marks the second postseason meeting between the two programs, with App State winning 2016 Sun Belt tournament. The Mountaineers scored three second-half goals in a 19-minute span in a 3-0 victory in the quarterfinals.
The Mountaineers will look to repeat that history on Monday and make it back to the semifinals for the first time since 2016. With a victory App State would face the winner of (2) Old Dominion and (7) Marshall on Wednesday at 5 p.m. ET.
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