FOLEY, Ala. – The Texas State soccer team opens the Sun Belt Conference Championship tournament on Wednesday at 1 p.m. against eighth seeded Troy. All matches of the tournament will be played at the Foley Sports Complex and be streamed on ESPN+.
Entering the tournament, the Bobcats are 10-5-2 overall and won the Sun Belt regular season title with an 8-0-2 record. The Trojans sport a 5-13-1 record and posted a 4-6-0 mark in conference play.
Last Time Out
TXST concluded the regular season with a 1-1 draw against Georgia State before downing Coastal Carolina 1-0 to claim the regular season championship for the first time since joining the Sun Belt.
Kaylee Davis netted both goals during the weekend to extend her goal scoring streak to four matches and give her 16 on the season, tied for the second most in a season by a Bobcat.
Heather Martin made a combined 13 stops to earn Defensive Player of the Week honors for the third time this season and for the second straight year.
Davis, the conference's Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year, leads the league in goals and is # in the nation. Knocking in two goals this season has been
Kayla Geren,
Jordan Kondikoff (All-Sun Belt Second Team) and
Genesis Turman (All-Sun Belt First Team).
Leading Texas State with a career-high five assists is Kondikoff.
Mackenzie Smith, a second team all-conference pick, and Turman are both second and tied for sixth in the Sun Belt with four assists.
Renny Moore comes in with three assists and five others have two on the season.
Martin, the Sun Belt's Defensive Player of the Year, has recorded a 0.49 goals against average, 77 saves and a .917 save percentage in 16 appearances. She has recorded seven shutouts and has not allowed more than a goal in any match this season.
Helping
Kathryn Budde and Martin combine for eight shutouts on the year and surrender a conference-low 13 goals was a backline led by First Team All-Sun Belt selection
Jamie Brown and All-Sun Belt Second Team pick
Sarah Everett.
Scouting Troy
Troy ended the regular season with back-to-back shutouts over ULM (2-0) and rival South Alabama (1-0). When playing away from home, the Trojans are 4-7-1 with a 0-1-0 mark at a neutral site. They won three of their conference matches on the road with a 2-1 victory at Georgia Southern and the final two matches of the regular season.
Natalie Melillo leads Troy in goals (4), assists (6), points (14), yellow cards (4) and corner kicks (66). She is second on the team with 24 shots and 17 shots on goal. Kendra Cashion has taken a team leading 29 shots and placed 21 on goal. She has also added three goals and two assists.
Also finding the back of the net multiple times has been Ally Bayer with two goals. Lauren Aldrich has assisted on three goals and Kiertsen Edlund comes into the match with two assists.
Starting 14 matches in goal has been Acelya Aydogmus. She sports a 2.27 GAA and .670 save percentage with 63 saves. The freshman has been between the posts in all five of the team's shutouts.
Haleigh Mercer has made six appearances with five starts in goal. Her final appearance so far this season was the regular season meeting against Texas State. She has a 2.54 GAA, 18 saves and a .562 save percentage.
Series vs. Trojans
Texas State leads the all-time series 5-3-0 over Troy. The Bobcats have won two straight including this year's regular season meeting 3-0 on the road. Geren netted the opening goal in the 15
th minute. Davis added two goals in a minute and a half span late in the second half to put the match away.
Once before the teams have met a neutral site, that being the 2014 Sun Belt Tournament that was held in Mobile, Alabama. Troy was victorious that day 1-0 after scoring the lone goal 2:10 into the contest.
Links for the live stats and ESPN+ video feed can be found on the schedule page.
For the latest information on the Texas State soccer team, visit the official website of Texas State Athletics at
www.txstatebobcats.com, like on Facebook at Texas State Soccer and follow on Instagram and Twitter at @TxStateSoccer.
