BOONE, N.C. — Appalachian State University women's soccer heads into Sun Belt Conference play on the road this weekend, starting with Troy on Friday, Sept. 16 at 7 p.m. and then finishing up at conference newcomer Coastal Carolina on Sunday, Sept. 18. Kickoff for the Sunday match is at 1 p.m.

The Mountaineers (5-3) dropped to tied for second in the Sun Belt after falling to nationally ranked, top 25 Texas Tech 2-1 at home. Appalachian currently ranks in the top two of four offensive categories in the Sun Belt, falling outside that in only shots – fourth (122). The team is tied for second in points (37), tied for third in goals (13), second in assists (11) and first in corners (62).

Individually, senior forward Jane Cline (Cornelius, N.C./Charlotte Catholic) continues to top the charts, ranking in the top 2 of seven offensive categories. Cline is currently first in shots (35), shots per game (4.38) and game-winning goals (three) and is second or tied for second in points (14), points per game (1.75), goals (six) and goals per game (0.75).

Also ranking well for the Black and Gold is redshirt senior Jenn Bass (Burlington, N.C./Williams (Clemson)), who is tied for third in assists right now with three on the year. Redshirt sophomore Erin Settle (Mooresville, N.C./Mooresville) dropped slightly in rankings, but still is tied for fourth in points (seven) and tied for third in goals (three).

Of the only three teams above Appalachian State in the Sun Belt Preseason Coaches Poll, the Mountaineers will face two of them in one road trip.

Toppling the Trojans

The Troy Trojans enter the match 4-4-1 this season, having played only three of those at home – winning all three. As a team, the Trojans rank toward the middle of the pack in the Sun Belt rankings but are coming off a year where they went 6-2-1 in the league.

Leading the attack for Troy individually this season has been Brooke McKee and Kate Lorenz. McKee leads the teams in shots with 22, points with seven and two game-winning goals so far this year. Lorenz has been handling the playmaking duties thus far, leading the team in assists with two.

Pulling the majority of the minutes for the Trojans in the net this season has been Mikki Lewis. At just shy of 700 minutes through eight games, the keeper has allowed just six goals, with 26 saves and four shutouts.

This is the second meeting between Troy and Appalachian State, with the series tied up at one win apiece. Last year's match was a 3-0 loss for the Mountaineers.

Chasing the Chanticleers

The Coastal Carolina Chanticleers enter this weekend 3-3-1 after a tough nonconference schedule. Coastal was able to tie Wake Forest 1-1 early in the season but fell 2-0 to Duke two weeks ago. 

The Chanticleers are another team that has struggled to make any headway in the rankings as a team, but the team finished 12-7-1 last season and 7-2-1 as a member of the Big South.

Leading CCU so far this season has been Amber Adams. Adams is the only Chaunticleer who ranks in the top 10 in the SBC, ranking fifth in shots (23), tied-sixth in points (six), tied-10th in goals (two) and tied-seventh in assists (two).

In the net for Coastal Carolina, for the most part this season, has been Becca Austin. Austin has logged 635 minutes and has 35 saves off of 110 shots faced and only eight goals allowed. 

A new member of the Sun Belt, this will be the first time the two teams have squared off as members of the same conference. Previously, the two teams have played six times, with Coastal Carolina owning a 3-1-2 record against the Apps. The last time the two teams faced off was in 2010 when the Mountaineers lost a grind-out match 1-0.

Notes

With the beating of Maryland on Sept. 4, Appalachian State beat their first "Power Five" university in program history and improved to 1-0 against the current Big Ten … it's the first time since Clemson came to Boone in 2011 that App has hosted a "Power Five" school ... Record Book Watch: senior Cline currently ranks tied for fifth all-time in career goals (22), tied for third all-time in career assists (13), sixth all-time in career points (57), and tied for ninth all-time in career shots (150) ... Cline also has five game-winning goals, ranking fifth since 2004 ... Cline is also one game-winning goal away this season from tying Dana Murphy (2004) for most game-winning goals in a season with four ... redshirt sophomore Settle was named SBC Offensive-Student Athlete of the Week after scoring two goals in her first matches back from tearing her ACL and being forced to miss last season ... junior defender Lindsey Tully (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Catholic) was named to the preseason All-Sun Belt team after being named first-team all-conference at the end of last season ... the Mountaineers were picked to finish fourth in the Sun Belt Preseason Coaches Poll with South Alabama (first), Troy (second), Coastal Carolina (third), ranking above them.