GREENSBORO, N.C. – Looking to build on the momentum from its unbeaten opening weekend, the App State Softball team will trek approximately 113 miles down the mountain to Greensboro for the Spiro Classic, hosted by UNCG, this Thursday-Saturday.
The Mountaineers will face off with UNCG twice (Thursday and Saturday), Columbia twice (Friday and Saturday) and Fairfield (Saturday). App State will kick off the weekend on Thursday against the host, with first pitch scheduled for 3:30 p.m. All games this weekend will be available to follow along via Live Stats at appstatesports.com
The Matchup
- Who: App State (4-0) vs. UNCG (1-4) // Columbia (0-0) // Fairfield (2-2)
- Where: UNCG Softball Stadium // The Spiro Classic // Greensboro, N.C.
- When: Thursday, Feb. 12 – Saturday, Feb. 14
Tune In
- Live Stats: appstatesports.com (all games)
Last Time Out
The Mountaineers opened their season with a statement by sweeping the UNCW Tournament last weekend, downing Kennesaw State (5-3), George Washington (11-0) and UNCW twice (4-3 and 15-9). App State showcased strong pitching in the first two games before flexing its offensive muscle in the last two games with 26 combined runs on Saturday and Sunday.
Four players totaled at least five hits for App State in Wilmington in
Dakota Daniel,
Julia Girk,
Grace Barrett and
Makayla McClain. Daniel paced the App State offense in hits with seven in 13 at-bats, while both Barrett and McClain led the team in RBIs with six apiece. App State also hit five home runs last weekend, with
Emilie Ching and McClain each tallying two and
KB Bradshaw hitting one.
In the circle, App State's pitchers were stellar, totaling a 2.96 ERA for the weekend and punching out 20 batters.
Sophie Moshos led the way, allowing just one earned run in 11.1 innings, while going 2-0 with a save against UNCW on Sunday.
Camryn Fisher was another bright spot for App State, as she also went 2-0 with a save and struck out a team-high 11 hitters in 13.2 innings. Fisher recorded a scoreless 2.2 innings and earned a save in her collegiate debut against Kennesaw State on Feb. 6.
Leading Off
App State's 4-0 start marks the best start to a season in program history. The team's best start before this season was 1-0 (did it six previous times).
App State was one of 29 Division I teams that went unbeaten during opening weekend. The Mountaineers were one of 14 Mid-Major teams to go undefeated during opening weekend, and currently stand 20th nationally in wins. The Mountaineers were one of two Sun Belt teams (Georgia State) to open the season with a perfect record.
The Mountaineers' sweep of the UNCW Tournament also marked the first time that they have swept a tournament since 2023, when they also swept the UNCW Tournament from Feb. 24-26. App State has swept just two tournaments since 2020 (also swept the D9 Citrus Blossom Tournament in 2020).
This weekend's tournament in Greensboro will mark App State's second straight weekend at an in-state location. The Mountaineers will play at three different North Carolina locations this season before wrapping up the early portion of their nonconference schedule in Boone with the Mountaineer Classic from March 6-8. App State won't travel further than 350 miles from Boone until April 10.
App State's 15 runs scored against UNCW last Sunday marked the fifth time this decade that it has tallied 15 or more runs. App State's 15 runs against the Seahawks were the first time it has tallied a 15-run game since Feb. 18, 2024.
Scouting the Mountaineers
App State returns an experienced group in 2026, as eight position players who started at least 35 games last season are back for another year. The Mountaineers will return all three of their all-conference players (Moshos, Barrett and McClain), as well as
Leah Gore (11 home runs and 34 RBIs in 2025) and
Macy Hamby (nine home runs and 29 RBIs in 2025).
Additionally, App State welcomed a batch of nine newcomers to the mountain this offseason (five freshmen and four collegiate transfers). App State saw an immediate impact from several newcomers in Wilmington, as Daniel led the team in hitting and Ching smoked a team-best two home runs. Additionally,
Taylor Schafer totaled three hits and four RBIs with a .500 on-base percentage to open her collegiate career.
Following last weekend's unbeaten start, App State enters the Spiro Classic with 22 different top-100 national stat rankings. Of these top-100 marks, App State ranks 31st in runs scored per game, plating 8.75 runs per game. The Mountaineers closed last weekend with back-to-back double-digit run games, marking the third time in the
Whitney Jones era that it has done that. The Mountaineers will look to post a third straight 10-run game for the first time since April 12-16, 2015.
App State saw two players named to the 15-player Preseason All-Sun Belt team on Jan. 28 in Barrett and McClain. It marked the first time that two Mountaineers garnered preseason recognition by the Sun Belt. The Mountaineers were one of four Sun Belt programs with multiple preseason All-Sun Belt selections.
McClain, who is back for her second season in the Black and Gold, was named as the 23rd-best Mid-Major player in the country by D1 Softball on Jan. 19. McClain was named to the All-NFCA Mid-Atlantic Region second team after the 2025 season, and was named Sun Belt Player of the Week a program record three times in 2025. The Liberty, N.C., native opened her year with six hits, two home runs and a team-best six RBIs.
Moshos, who was named to the All-Sun Belt second team in 2025, is back to lead the Mountaineers' pitchers again this season. She entered 2026 after recording one of the best seasons in program history last season, as she posted 16 wins, 118 strikeouts and a team-low 3.51 ERA. Moshos allowed just one earned run last weekend, while striking out seven hitters, which now puts her at 459 career strikeouts entering this weekend.
Series History
- App State vs. UNCG
- Record: 25-23
- Last Meeting: March 13, 2024
- Trends:
- The Mountaineers and Spartans will meet for the first time in just under two years on Thursday. App State and UNCG have played in Greensboro in five of the last six games between the two programs.
- App State enters Thursday's game having won six of the last seven games against the Spartans.
- App State vs. Columbia
- Record: 0-0
- Last Meeting: N/A
- Trends:
- The Mountaineers will play against the Lions for the first time on Friday.
- App State's game against Ivy League opponent Columbia will mark just the fourth game in which App State will play against a current Ivy League team. The Mountaineers are 2-2 against the Ivy League.
- App State vs. Fairfield
- Record: 2-0
- Last Meeting: Feb. 26, 2005
- Trends:
- App State and Fairfield will play each other for the first time in nearly 21 years on Friday.
- The Mountaineers have never lost to the Stags in two previous matchups (both neutral games).
Up Next
Following the Mountaineers' doubleheader on Saturday, App State will next head to Chapel Hill for the Tar Heel Invitational from Feb. 20-22. App State will meet four different teams in Chapel Hill, squaring off with Princeton twice (Feb 20 and 21), Rider (Feb. 21), N.C. Central (Feb. 22) and North Carolina (Feb. 20). The Mountaineers will kick off the tournament with a doubleheader on Friday against Princeton and North Carolina, with first pitch against the Tigers scheduled for 12:30 p.m.
