Texas State ready to close out final road trip of season strong

Texas State’s seniors aren’t looking too far ahead.

They know they aren’t quite where they want to be in the Sun Belt standings. They know there are only four games left remaining in the regular season. 

They also know they aren’t ready for it to be over.

“We’ve talked about it ending,” senior midfielder Jordan Kondikoff said. “But we don’t really think about it that much because right now, we know that we still have a lot of business to take care of. And so that’s kind of like the main focus, more than ’Oh it’s all wrapped up.’”

The Bobcats (7-5-2, 3-2-1 conference) are currently on a three-match win streak, outscoring their opponents 8-0 during the stretch. But they’re hungry for more. The team currently sits in a three-way tie for fifth place in the league with 10 points.

One of them will be Texas State’s matchup on Friday, as the team travels to Conway, South Carolina to take on Coastal Carolina (5-7-2, 3-3-1).

“I feel like, as a whole, we just have a very positive mentality,” senior goalkeeper Kathryn Budde said. “And we’re definitely going into a lot of these games, just — I mean, we’ve been doing this the whole season, but even more so now — we’re just all coming in as a team and we’ve got that mindset of ‘it’s all of us against everybody.’”

Head coach Kat Conner said the team has done a better job of being more creative with the ball in recent weeks. Seven of the Bobcats’ eight goals have been scored by five different players — the other being an own goal by Appalachian State.

It’s helped take pressure off the defense, leading to three consecutive shutouts.

“Getting other people to score, that’s been a really big confidence booster,” senior goalkeeper Heather Martin said. “I mean, when people are coming out in the midfield and scoring, like that’s dangerous. So that really has given us a lot of momentum.”

The seniors are hoping the momentum will carry them into the postseason.

“I think that we’ve all kind of looked past any individual goals and stuff that we had and more just focused on team goals,” Kondikoff said. “Like, the biggest thing is going in the tournament, taking names and going to the NCAAs. We all want to get there, for sure. So I think that that’s the main thing that we’re continuously fighting for every single day when we come out and practice. Like it’s a mentality of, ‘We’re gonna win the whole thing.’”

Texas State and Coastal Carolina square off Friday at 5 p.m. Conner said it’ll be important to fine tune themselves before the end of the year.

“In my head, it’s about really just getting these guys to play as a unit,” Conner said. “You know, when they find that synchronicity of each other, I think that’s where you’re yourself. And that’s what we found last year and that’s what we’re trying to plug for right now. It’s just to find that synchronicity with each other.

“I don’t think we’ve peaked yet, so that’s a good thing. I think it’s still coming. I don’t think they’re there yet. I think they’re still growing and coming, so I think that’s a good thing.”