MBB: Mountaineers Gut Out Win in Monroe to Finish Road Trip 3-1
January 27, 2025Husky Sports Schedule for Week of 1-27-25
January 27, 2025WBB: Mountaineers Ground Eagles in 60-56 Victory
Jan. 25, 2025
Contact: Katherine Jamtgaard (ja*********@ap******.edu)
Box Score: Attached
BOONE, N.C. – The App State women’s basketball team posted a 60-56 victory over Georgia Southern on Saturday in the Holmes Center. The Mountaineers, who have won three consecutive games, rise to 11-8 on the season and 7-2 in Sun Belt play. It is the first time App State has started 7-2 or better in conference play since the 2011-12 season and first time ever in Sun Belt action. The Black and Gold also improve to 7-2 at the Holmes Center.
“I’m really proud of our team for finding a way to win,” said head coach Alaura Sharp. “I thought our defense in the first half was really solid. And you’re looking at yourself in the second half going ‘did we over-coach something at halftime,’ because I just thought we kind of got away from our scheme a little bit and allowed them to get in rhythm. I think for us, when we took care of the ball we shot the ball so well, it’s just, unfortunately, we had 26 turnovers. I think that has a lot to do with the length and athleticism of Georgia Southern. They do have a lot of length, and they play really big. We were trying to go back and forth between our man and our zone and I’m just so proud of our kids.”
Four Mountaineers scored double-figures, led by junior Emily Hege, who netted a season-high 14 points. Senior Zada Porter netted 12 points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds. She also dished out four assists and made a block against the Eagles. Junior Elena Pericic netted 11 points and combined with Hege for six of App State’s nine treys, as both drained 3-of-4 from the arc. Pericic and Hege also combined for 10 rebounds, each grabbing five. Junior Rylan Moffitt netted 10 points, grabbed four rebounds, and made two of App State’s three blocks. Senior Eleyana Tafisi dished out a team-high six assists. Tafisi, Porter, and Moffitt combined for six of App State’s 10 free throws. App State held Georgia Southern to four treys while draining nine from the arc. The Mountaineers and Eagles knotted the score on three occasions and swapped the lead five times.
Hege and Moffitt led the Mountaineers in the first quarter, accounting for all 10 of App State’s points. Hege knocked down a pair of treys early to give the Mountaineers a 6-5 edge over the Eagles. Georgia Southern took an 8-6 lead, but Moffitt answered with a jumper to tie things up at eight all. A layup in the paint from Moffitt pushed the Mountaineers ahead, 10-8, but Georgia Southern managed to tie things up at 10-10 at the close of the period.
The Mountaineers found their stride in the second quarter, breaking the 10-10 tie with an early 10-0 run that included a jumper from Porter, 3-point buckets from Pericic and Tafisi, and a layup in the paint from Porter. The Eagles chipped away at the deficit with a 5-0 run, cutting App State’s lead to 20-15. Layups from Moffitt and Hege kept App State ahead, 24-15. Porter landed a jumper to extend the Black and Gold’s lead to 26-16. She drained 3-of-3 from the field over the course of the quarter. Senior Asjah Inniss drained a jumper with an assist from freshman Hekla Nökkvadóttir as App State entered halftime with a 28-20 lead.
Porter and Pericic opened the third quarter with layups to put App State up 32-25. Pericic netted eight of her 11 points during the period. Hege and Carver drained back-to-back treys to extend the Mountaineers’ lead to 40-27. As the Eagles chipped away at the deficit, Pericic drained a pair of treys to keep the Black and Gold ahead, 46-34. Tafisi also beat the shot clock with a last-second 3-point bucket, tallying the Mountaineers’ fifth 3-point bucket of the quarter.
App State entered the fourth quarter with a 49-38 lead. Georgia Southern opened the quarter with a 5-0 run to cut the deficit to 49-43. Layups from Hege and Moffitt kept the Mountaineers ahead, 53-45. Hege drained a free throw to keep the Mountaineers ahead, 54-47. As the Eagles narrowed the Mountaineers’ lead late in the fourth quarter, Porter, Tafisi, and Moffitt sank 6-of-6 from the charity stripe to secure App State’s 60-56 victory.
Up Next
The Mountaineers will remain at the Holmes Center next week as they host Louisiana on Jan. 30 and Georgia State on Feb. 1.
On Thursday, App State will host Louisiana at 6:30 p.m. for Youth Day. The Mountaineers will celebrate their Junior Mountaineer Kids Club (JMKC) members and student season ticket holders. There will be free admission for all kids eighth grade and younger as well as an autograph session with the team following the game.
On Saturday, the Mountaineers will host Georgia State for the men’s 1 p.m. Coaches vs. Cancer game as well as the women’s 3:30 p.m. Pink Day game. Fans are encouraged to wear pink, show up early for the men’s game and stay late for the women’s game. One ticket will get fans into both games and the Chuck-A-Duck contest is scheduled for halftime of the women’s game.
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App State Athletics Strategic Communications
425 Jack Branch Drive
Boone, NC, 28608
www.appstatesports.com
