FOLEY, Ala. – Appalachian State's Jordan Grigsby scored the game-winning goal off a corner kick from Tess Cairney in the 109th minute, as the Mountaineers rallied for a 2-1 win in the second overtime over the ULM soccer team Monday in the opening round of the Sun Belt Championships at the Foley Sports Tourism Complex.
"I was proud of the way we went about our business and we continued to carry a threat throughout the game," ULM head coach Sean Fraser said.
ULM led for nearly the entire first half. App State knotted things up early in the second half, setting up the late match dramatics.
The Warhawks took advantage of their first scoring opportunity of the match, coming in the fifth minute. Sophomore Madi Garza worked behind the Mountaineer defense and fed a pass to freshman Stopka at the top of the box. Stopka fired a shot that cruised past goalkeeper Kerry Eagleston to the low, right corner of the net for the quick 1-0 ULM lead.
"When you are trying to build a sustainable playing model, it takes time," Fraser said. "Look at the goal we scored today. We had worked on that this morning. It was beautiful and just shows the capacity we have here."
App State had a couple early shots miss high and wide before their first scoring chance in the 20th minute. Kirsten Seeley released a shot off a corner kick, but Warhawk junior goalkeeper Hailey Hillock was there for the save.
Neither team registered another shot on the goal in the half, as ULM led 1-0 at the break.
The Mountaineers wasted no time tying the match up in the second half. In the 47th minute, Izzi Wood scored off an assist by Mary Perkins to tie the match at 1.
ULM had a chance in the 58th minute, but Garza's shot was stopped by Eagleston.
Offensive chances picked up for both teams late in the match. In the 68th minute, ULM freshman Ashley Johnson's shot was stopped by Eagleston. In the 78th minute, each team had a chance with App's Olivia Cohen having her shot saved by Hillock and ULM's Johnson had another shot stopped by Eagleston. Cairney fired on frame in the 88th minute for App State, but Hillock came up with another save. Neither team could find the back of the net as the game went to overtime tied at 1.
In the first overtime, ULM failed to post any shots. App State had three chances at corner kicks but could not convert. App's best chance came in the 100th minute, when ULM junior Kathryn Yarbrough picked up a yellow card. However, Perkins' penalty kick was stopped by Hillock to keep the match going to a second overtime.
App State picked up the first two shots of the second overtime, with Wood's shot getting saved by Hillock. In the 107th minute, freshman Lena Göppel fired ULM's first shot in 22 minutes, but it sailed high. Just two minutes later, App State was awarded a corner kick, where Grigsby scored off Cairney's kick to give App the 2-1 win.
"We are disappointed to concede from the corner," Fraser said. "That's four times we've lost a game on a set play this year and that needs to be corrected. We know that, and with time, we will correct it. We cut out those set play errors and we're in a much different position."
App State outshot ULM 16-9, including 8-4 in shots on goal. Göppel had three shots to lead ULM, while Cohen and Grigsby had four each for App. Eagleston had three saves for App, while Hillock had six saves for ULM.
The Warhawks are scheduled to resume play with non-conference matches in the spring of 2021.
