Appalachian got on the board early in the match at the 13th minute mark. A quick offensive push led to a throw in for the Mountaineers to the left of the Buccaneer defense. The ball was played into the box and swiftly played to Matthew Melton on the touch. Melton found a cutting David Dodge who buried the ball into the back of the net. The play was drawn up and executed perfectly. For the remainder of the first half, Appalachian maintained possession and kept the ball in the middle third of the field.

The second half was all about the Mountaineer defense. Appalachian (1-0) had a couple of runs early in the second, but mainly packed the defense in for the final thirty minutes. East Tennessee State (0-1) could only get off eight shots for the game, with none of the shots getting on frame. The win was the first for the Mountaineers in their home opener and gives them their first of what will most likely be many clean sheets on the season. The next home match for the Mountaineers is Sunday, September 2nd at 3pm against UNC-Wilmington.