UNC Wilmington Athletics

BOONE, N.C. – The UNCW women's soccer team opened the 2026 season with a 3-0 victory over the Appalachian State Mountaineers on Thursday, receiving goals from Hailey Longwell, Ava Vaughan and Caigan Leonard.

"Really proud of this team in a tough atmosphere on the road," said UNCW head coach Chris Neal. "A difficult style of game was forced upon us, but we stood strong and executed well in moments of adversity. Eventually, we were able to control the game from a possession standpoint and see it out. We also played 20-plus players, so hopefully that'll help us for Sunday's recovery."

The Seahawks recorded a shutout in their season opener and improved to 1-0-0, while the Mountaineers fell to 0-1-0. The victory marked UNCW's first against App State in program history after the teams had met just twice previously, with the most recent matchup coming in 2017.

Longwell, a redshirt junior, opened the scoring in the 25th minute, heading home a free kick from Vaughan to give the Seahawks a 1-0 advantage.

Vaughan added to the lead in the 48th minute after drawing a penalty kick and converting from the spot to put UNCW ahead 2-0.

Leonard capped the scoring in the 68th minute, finishing a one-two combination from Kamrey Watkins and Longwell to give the Seahawks a three-goal advantage.

Freshman Kamrey Watkins also made an impact in her first collegiate debut and start, playing for a total of 79 minutes and drawing several fouls that led to free kicks for the Seahawks.  

Sophomore goalkeeper Zoë Anderson and junior goalkeeper Lili White combined for three saves to preserve the shutout. App State finished with eight shots, including three on goal.

UNCW remains on the road Sunday, Aug. 16, when the Seahawks travel to Western Carolina for a 1 p.m. match at the Catamount Athletic Complex. The Catamounts enter the match with a 1-0-0 record.