Trojans Look to Extend Four-Match Winning Streak at Arkansas State Friday

TROY, Ala. -- The Troy Trojans soccer program will look to extend its season-best four-match winning streak Friday afternoon when they travel to Arkansas State for a 3 p.m. matchup with the Red Wolves.

Troy (9-2-3, 4-1-1 Sun Belt) currently sits in a first-place tie with rival South Alabama. The Trojans have the tiebreaker over the Jaguars (9-3-2, 4-1-1 Sun Belt) by virtue of last Friday's 2-0 victory at Troy Soccer Complex.

In the victory, senior Haleigh Mercer recorded six saves, recording her fifth clean sheet of the season. Midfielder Alisa Detlefsen scored her second goal of the season, while Nathali DaSilva doubled the Trojans lead in the 58^th minute.

Mercer and the Trojans defense held the dangerous South Alabama attack to just one first-half shot and eight total shots. The victory was Troy's second consecutive victory over South.

Sunday, the Trojans celebrated the programs eight seniors before a 4-1 victory over Georgia Southern. Senior Maddie Brune scored twice, with Da Silva and Kiersten Edlund picking up the other two goals. In addition to her penalty kick strike, Edlund added a pair of assists.

Troy returns to action next Thursday for the final home matchup against Little Rock. Kickoff from Troy Soccer complex is scheduled for 7 p.m.

HOW TO FOLLOW: Troy (9-2-3, 4-1-1 Sun Belt) vs. Arkansas State (7-4-1, 3-1-1 Sun Belt)
Date: October 10, 2019
Kickoff: 3 p.m.
Watch: Watch Live
Live Stats: TroyStats.com
Twitter: @TroyTrojansWSOC

MERCER EARNS SUN BELT ACCLAIM:
Senior goalkeeper Haleigh Mercer earned Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Week the conference announced Tuesday. Mercer allowed just one goal and made eight saves in Troy's perfect weekend against South Alabama and Georgia Southern. The Florida native has made 62 saves on the year and has held opponents to just 13 goals in 14 games.

RED-HOT TROJANS:
The Trojans have won four consecutive matches for the first time this season. Troy will look to extend the streak to five on Friday, which would be the programs first five-match winning streak since 2015 (Oct. 2-16). That season the Trojans finished second in the Sun Belt for the second consecutive season.

EDLUND'S RACKING UP THE ASSISTS:
Senior Kiersten Edlund has recorded 10 assists so far this season, which is currently the second-best mark in the NCAA. Edlund needs just one more assist to break Alissa Jones' single-season Troy record (10) set back in 2014. If the Florida native can record two more assists, she would also hold the all-time assist mark (17) also set by Jones.

OFFENSE AND LOTS OF IT:
After scoring less than one goal per game a season ago, the Troy attack has been on fire this season. Troy has scored 35 goals this season (2.5 per game) and have scored at least three goals six different times this season. The Trojans have scored on an impressive 21 percent of the shots they've recorded this season and have landed over 50 percent of their shots on goal. Troy's 35 total goals are the most in the Sun Belt and the fifth most nationally. Troy's 102 points also lead the Sun Belt and puts the Trojans sixth nationally.

HOWLING TO THE WIND:
The Arkansas State Red Wolves enter this weekend's matchup with an overall record of 7-4-1, 3-1-1 in the Sun Belt. The Red Wolves entered last Sunday's showdown with South Alabama unbeaten at 3-0-1, but fell with just 31-seconds remaining in double overtime. Nine of Arkansas State's 18 goals have come from Sarah Sodoma (five goals, five assists) and Sophia Restrepo (four goals). Keeper Megan McClure has allowed just seven goals in 11 starts, making 36 saves in the process. Prior to last Sunday's defeat at South, the Red Wolves had been unbeaten in their previous five matches.

GED TALKS:
"We have a four-game season left. We've got to get all the way to Arkansas which is a long trip for us. Hopefully the weather will be a little bit cooler now that we're into the middle of October. That should help, but we know it's a difficult place to play anytime of the year. They have a good team and a good coaching staff so it's going to be a challenging weekend. We think that the way we matchup against them we can walk away with three points. Our kids have done very, very well considering this is a position that none of our kids have been in before. As we get closer to the end of the season each game becomes a little bit more serious. The girls understand what's expected because we're a quality team that has high standards and high expectations for each kid in each training session. Now we need to go out on the field and apply the teachings from training."

On the performance of Haleigh Mercer:
"Haleigh has done amazingly well up to this point. Despite being a senior and a four-year player for us this is the first season she's been the out-and-out starter for us. Her performances, leadership and preparation have been on-point. Her goals-against-average is below one per game which is a testament to her professionalism and preparation. She's got great players ahead of her but she's in the most important position on the field. Hopefully she can keep this going for the next six, seven or eight games potentially."

Trojans Look to Extend Four-Match Winning Streak at Arkansas State Friday

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Players Mentioned

Maddie Brune

Nathali DaSilva

Alisa Detlefsen

Kiersten Edlund

Haleigh Mercer

Troy University Athletics