CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Austin Peay State University's soccer team hosts Kennesaw to begin its final regular-season homestand of the season with a 6 p.m., Thursday Atlantic Sun Conference match at Morgan Bros. Soccer Field.
Austin Peay (5-9-2, 3-4-1 ASUN) played to a scoreless draw in its last match against Stetson during its final of two-straight games in Florida. The Governors currently sit at seventh in the ASUN standings, two points above Kennesaw State (3-7-5, 2-4-2 ASUN) who is ninth, and one point below Queens – who they face, Sunday – and North Alabama.
Aniyah Mack leads APSU with five goals this season and looks to end a five-match scoreless streak against the Owls. Mack's five goals are tied for sixth in the league and are the most by a Gov since Claire Larose had seven during the 2018 season.
Katie Bahn has been the Govs' starting goalkeeper throughout the season, logging 1,382 minutes between the pipes, while making 79 saves and garnering a 0.745 save percentage.
Kennesaw State is unbeaten through its last three matches with a 2-0-1 mark. It has surrendered just one goal in the last 319 minutes of play dating back to a Sept. 3-1 loss at Florida Gulf Coast, Sept. 28.
Seven of the Owls' eight goals this season have come from different players, with senior forward Tianna Rivera being the only player to have netted multiple scores this season.
The Kennesaw State Scout
Their Gaffer: Benji Walton is in his eighth season as the Kennesaw State head coach where he has accumulated a 68-60-18 record. Previously, Walton was the head coach at Division III Birmingham Southern where he went 69-37-6 in six seasons. He began his head coaching career at DII Limestone where he went 28-41-5 in four seasons.
2023 Record: 3-7-5 (2-4-2 ASUN)
Their 2023 Season So Far: The Owls finished nonconference 1-3-3, with a win against Presbyterian and draws coming against East Tennessee, Georgia State, and Florida. After going winless through their first five ASUN matches of 2023, the Owls have been unbeaten in three-straight with victories against Stetson and Jacksonville, and a 1-1 draw against North Florida in their most recent outing.
2022 Record: 7-9-3 (5-3-2 ASUN)
2022 Season Result: Kennesaw State entered the 2022 ASUN Conference Tournament as the No. 4 seed, but had their season come to an end following a 1-0 loss to Eastern Kentucky in the tournament's first round.
All-Time Series: 1-1 | 1-0 APSU in Clarksville
Last Meeting: Three different Govs found the back of the net during a 3-1 win, Sept. 18, 2015 at Morgan Bros. Soccer Field. The Govs jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first 22:05 of the match, before McKenzie Dixon scored the final goal of the match off a free kick from 30 yards out in the 88th minute.
Self Scout
Our Gaffer: Kim McGowan is in her second season as the Govs' gaffer. She has gone 8-17-8 at the helm of the program and owns an all-time record of 42-49-13 between Olivet (2015-17), Thomas More (2017-18), and Austin Peay (2022-24)
2023 Record: 5-9-2 (3-4-1 ASUN)
Their 2023 Season So Far: After finishing nonconference play 2-5-1, the Govs split their six matches of ASUN play with wins against Bellarmine, Jacksonville, and North Alabama. After falling to FGCU in the first game of last week's matches, the Govs played to a scoreless draw in their most recent match, with Katie Bahn highlight the performance with a career-best 11 saves.
2022 Record: 3-9-6 (1-6-3 ASUN)
Pacing the Offense: Aniyah Mack leads the Govs with five goals this season, which leads all ASUN freshmen and ranks sixth in the league. She has scored in five of the Govs' last 10 matches.
Our Keeper: Katie Bahn has started all 16 matches in the net this season with 1386 minutes played. She has tallied 79 saves and owns a save percentage of .745.
