Category: College

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — With Halloween just a few days in the rearview mirror, Appalachian State buried a few 2023 football demons on Nov. 4 with a dominating, 31-9 win over the Thundering Herd of Marshall. The game was played in front of a sold-out crowd of 34,057 filling Kidd-Brewer Stadium in front of a national TV audience on the NFL Network.

After a scoreless first quarter, and a Marshall field goal early in the second period, quarterback Joey Aguilar led the Mountaineer offense on three consecutive TD-scoring drives to put the home team firmly ahead. They followed up with another TD midway through the third quarter to lead the Herd gridders, 28-3, all but putting the game away. Marshall scored its first and only TD with roughly three minutes remaining in the third quarter to tighten the deficit, but the Mountaineers took command and didn’t let up.

While Aguilar and his offensive mates rolled up 404 yards of total offense and controlled possession of the football for 33:45, including being successful on 3-of-3 opportunities inside the red zone, the Mountaineer defense may well have won the day for App State. Marshall was limited to just 243 yards of total offense, was intercepted by the Mountaineers three times, and held to just 3-of-9 conversions on third down, none on fourth down.

The win gives the Mountaineers five wins on the season vs. four losses. They need just one more win in their remaining three regular season games to become bowl eligible but the path is challenging. They travel to Georgia State (6-3 overall, 3-3 in Sun Belt) on Nov. 11, then to undefeated Sun Belt Conference leader James Madison (9-0, 6-0, ranked No.23/24) on Nov. 18. They return home to finish the regular season against longtime rival, Georgia Southern (6-3, 3-2) on Nov. 25.

SELECTED TEAM STATS

• Total Offense: APP 404, MU 243
• Net Yards Rushing: APP 178, MU 106
• Net Yards Passing: APP 226, MU 137
• 3rd Down Conversions: APP 5/11, MU 3/9
• 4th down Conversions: APP 2/3, MU 0/1
• Penalties: APP 4-52, MU 7-61
• Points off Turnovers: APP 10, MU 0
• Time of Possession: APP 33:45, MU 20:55

SELECTED INDIVIDUAL STATS

Passing

• • APP – Joey Aguilar, 19-26, 226 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs
  • MU – Cam Fancher, 13-24, 137 yards, 1 TD, 3 INTs

Rushing

• • MU – Rasheen Ali, 11 carries, 68 yards
  • APP – Nate Noel, 11 carries, 51 yards
  • APP – Joey Aguilar, 10 carries, 44 yards
  • APP – Maquel Haywood, 5 carries, 42 yards
  • MU – Cam Fancher, 7 carries, 39 yards
  • APP – Kanye Roberts, 6 carries, 23 yards
  • APP – Ahmani Marshall, 2 carries, 11 yards
  • APP – Anderson Castle, 3 carries, 7 yards
  •  APP – Milan Tucker, 1 carry, 3 yards, 1 TD

Receiving

• • APP – Kaedin Robinson, 4 catches, 55 yards, 1 TD
  • APP – Michael Hetzel, 4 catches, 46 yards, 1 TD
  • APP – Miller Gibbs, 2 catches, 37 yards
  • APP – Makai Jackson, 1 catch, 29 yards, 1 TD
  • MU – Caleb McMillan, 3 catches, 28 yards
  • MU – Sean Callis, 2 catches, 19 yards, 1 TD

SUN BELT CONFERENCE SCORES, NOV. 4

• @Arkansas State 37, Louisiana 17
• James Madison 42, @Georgia State 14
• Coastal Carolina 28, @Old Dominion 24
• @Southern Miss 24, ULM 7
• @Texas State 45. Georgia Southern 24
• @App State 31, Marshall 9
• @Troy 28, South Alabama 10

SUN BELT STANDINGS – EAST DIVISION

• James Madison (9-0 overall, 6-0 SBC)
• Coastal Carolina (6-3, 4-2)
• Georgia Southern (6-3, 3-2)
• App State (5-4, 3-2)
• Georgia State (6-3, 3-3)
• Old Dominion (4-5, 3-3)
• Marshall (4-5, 1-4)

SUN BELT STANDINGS – WEST DIVISION

• Troy (7-2, 4-1)
• Texas State (6-3, 3-2)
  • Arkansas State (5-4, 3-2)
  • Louisiana (5-4, 2-3)
  • South Alabama (4-5, 2-3)
  • Southern Miss (2-7, 1-5)
  • ULM (2-7, 0-6)

 

OXFORD, Ohio – In a back-and-forth contest on Friday at the Miami Field Hockey Complex, the App State Mountaineers (14-5, 6-1 MAC) fell 3-2 on a sudden death goal by Emma Rolston in overtime against the Kent State Golden Flashes (8-10, 5-2 MAC). After fighting to tie the score in the 52nd minute, the Mountaineers’ historic season came to a heartbreaking end on Friday.

The Mountaineers trailed at the halftime break by two goals, then fought all the way back, scoring twice in the second half to tie things up and send the game to overtime for the second time this season against Kent State. Charlotte Bosma netted the equalizer with eight minutes to play in the fourth quarter, her seventh goal of the season.

The Mountaineers saw their nine-game winning streak come to an end but it was a historic streak, nonetheless. The nine wins in a row is the third-longest streak in program history. The 14 wins on the season was tied for the most wins in program history with Emily Dinsmore breaking Dr. Jan Watson’s record for wins by an App State first-year head coach.

By Bret Strelow. BOONE, N.C. — With seven App State wrestlers making either a first career start or first dual start at his current weight, the 26th-ranked Mountaineers opened the 2023-24 season against an opponent that JohnMark Bentley said was potentially the best team he’s faced in 15 years as a head coach.

No. 3 NC State won 40-3 on Friday night in front of 1,000 fans in a packed Varsity Gym, with App State’s Ethan Oakley claiming a 4-2 decision at 133 pounds against three-time NCAA qualifier Jarrett Trombley.

With N.C. State’s roster having a higher-ranked wrestler at all 10 weight classes — the Wolfpack has six wrestlers with top-10 national rankings and three returning All-Americans — consecutive close matches at 165 and 174 pounds also had fans from both sides on their feet on a night when wrestling began at 149 pounds.

“I think (tonight) kind of showed us where we’re at, the things we need to fix and the things we need to work on,” Bentley said. “We just never really got going tonight, and there wasn’t a lot of positive momentum in our direction, but we had some guys battle hard. I don’t want to totally downplay that that’s a really, really good team. I’m going to give them credit. They’re ranked third, and they may be the second-best team in the country, especially in a dual meet. They just don’t have any weaknesses.”

tonight kind of showed us where we’re at, the things we need to fix and the things we need to work on.

The rosters for NC State and App State each have two 133-pound wrestlers with NCAA Championships experience, and Trombley got the nod Friday for NC State instead of fifth-ranked Kai Orine, who had lost in overtime to App State’s Sean Carter last year before ending the season as an All-American. Oakley stepped into a starting role following a season-ending injury to Carter last year, went unbeaten in SoCon duals, won a match at the NCAA Championships and opened this season with an impressive result.

Oakley recorded a three-point takedown 40 seconds into Friday’s match, took a 4-2 lead on an escape with 1:20 remaining in the third period and fought off an attack from Trombley in the closing seconds.

“I just tried to get whatever points were there,” Oakley said. “I train in a lot of those positions and try to stay in the positions I’m comfortable in. It’s really good to get a test against a tough opponent. I get excited for every opportunity I can to wrestle the best.”

Ranked No. 33 at 165, NC State’s AJ Kovacs overcame a first-period takedown from Will Miller and didn’t allow an escape after a final-minute takedown to win 5-4 against App State’s returning NCAA qualifier. The next match at 174 went to overtime before 22nd-ranked Alex Faison produced a takedown to win 6-3 against App State’s Luke Uliano.

Miller is wrestling at 165 after competing at 174 last season, and Uliano has moved to 174 after wrestling at 184 last season. They made their first career dual starts at those weights, as did Cody Bond at 149, and four other Mountaineers made the first dual starts of their careers at any weight: Chad Bellis (125), redshirt freshman Kaden Keiser (141), true freshman Tomas Brooker (184) and redshirt freshman Hunter Adams (197).

Miller delivered a three-point takedown midway through the first period and moved ahead 4-2 with an escape 12 seconds into the third period. Kovacs took a 5-4 lead on a takedown with 48 seconds remaining and stayed on top for the remainder of the match.

After a scoreless first period, Uliano rode out the second period and officially took a 1-0 lead (with two minutes of riding time on his side) as Faison conceded an escape to open the third. Uliano was essentially tied at 3-all by following Faison’s takedown with 53 seconds with an escape five seconds later. A scramble late in regulation netted no points, and Faison’s takedown 45 seconds into the first overtime period produced a 6-3 victory.

#3 NC State 40, #26 App State 3
149: #7 Jackson Arrington (NCSU) def. #25 Cody Bond (APP), 19-3 tech fall
157: #5 Ed Scott (NCSU) def. #20 Tommy Askey (APP), 13-6 dec.
165: #33 AJ Kovacs (NCSU) def. Will Miller (APP), 5-4 dec.
174: #22 Alex Faison (NCSU) def. Luke Uliano (APP), 6-3 dec. (SV-1)
184: #29 Dylan Fishback (NCSU) def. Tomas Brooker (APP), fall (1:30)
197: #5 Trent Hidlay (NCSU) def. Hunter Adams (APP), 19-4 tech fall
HWT: #8 Owen Trephan (NCSU) def. Jacob Sartorio (APP), fall (2:08)
125: #12 Jakob Camacho (NCSU) def. Chad Bellis (APP), 19-3 tech fall
133: Ethan Oakley (APP) def. Jarrett Trombley (NCSU), 4-2 dec.
141: #9 Ryan Jack (NCSU) def. Kaden Keiser (APP), 20-6 maj. dec.
Attendance: 1,000

Special Report from App State Sports. BOONE, N.C. — Home basketball games for App State’s men and women will again be streamed on ESPN+ during the 2023-24 season — with the exception of the nationally televised Dec. 3 men’s game against Auburn on ESPN2 — while the wrestling schedule begins Friday with App State’s home dual against No. 3 NC State being available on Facebook, YouTube and Twitch.

Free of charge, fans will be able to watch the Mountaineers face the Wolfpack live at 7 p.m. on the App State Wrestling Facebook page, the App State Athletics YouTube page or the Twitch.TV channel for App State Athletics. Future streaming options for wrestling are subject to change.

in addition to Auburn’s nationally televised visit to boone, men’s basketball has 15 scheduled home games at holmes convocation center.

Season tickets and single-event tickets remain available for wrestling, men’s basketball and women’s basketball. A single-event ticket to the NC State match, one of three premium duals on wrestling’s home schedule, costs $20.

Season tickets for wrestling’s 10 regular-season competitions (with two doubleheaders and two tournaments) are available for $60 (adults), or at $85 for a premium season ticket with a chairback seat on the floor, close to the mat. Additionally, there’s a $70 mini-pack for matside tickets to the three dates with No. 3 NC State, No. 25 North Carolina and No. 7 Cornell (as part of a doubleheader) visiting Boone.

Aside from Auburn’s nationally televised visit to Boone, men’s basketball has 15 home games scheduled for the Holmes Convocation Center, plus the Hickory Hoops Classic against UNC Asheville on Dec. 21. The first Boone appearance will be Tuesday’s Nov. 7 home opener against Oakland City at 6:30 p.m.

Women’s basketball has 13 home games on its 2023-24 schedule, including Monday’s Nov. 6 opener against UNCG at 6:30 p.m.

BOONE, N.C. — App State team captain Jackson Greene, a safety and special teams standout, is one of 73 nominees for the Burlsworth Trophy that goes to the outstanding FBS player who began his career as a walk-on and has shown outstanding performance on the field.

A fifth-year redshirt junior playing for his hometown school, Greene has appeared in 43 career games for the Mountaineers. He made a career-high eight tackles Saturday in the win against Southern Miss, came up with a key interception in the second half of the season-opening win against Gardner-Webb and is a staple on all four App State special teams units (kick return, punt return, kickoff coverage, punt coverage).

Greene has accumulated more than 560 special teams plays in his career since arriving as a walk-on from nearby Watauga High School, and he has made three tackles on special teams already this season.

The Burlsworth Trophy is named in honor of Brandon Burlsworth, a former Arkansas walk-on and All-America offensive lineman whose life is the subject of the movie “Greater.” Without a single Division I scholarship offer, Burlsworth became a three-year starter at Arkansas and was eventually named an All-American in 1998.

He was selected with the 63rd overall pick by the Indianapolis Colts in the 1999 NFL draft but was tragically killed in a car accident 11 days later. The Burlsworth Foundation was created in his memory and supports the physical and spiritual needs of children, in particular those children who have limited opportunities.

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — App State’s defense finally figured out how to stop Southern Miss running back Frank Gore, Jr. and put together two key defensive stops in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, the Joey Aguilar-led Mountaineer offense scored 20 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to seal a Homecoming win on Oct. 28, 38-28, in front of 32,601 at Kidd Brewer Stadium.

After trading opening TDs, the Mountaineers trailed the Eagles by 10 points at three different points leading up to the last 14 minutes of the game. They trailed 14-24 late in the second quarter, 21-31 early in the third period, and 28-38 early in Q4.

It will probably surprise no one watching this game that App State’s fortunes began to turn in the fourth quarter when they apparently learned how to stop the Eagles’ featured running back, Frank Gore, Jr. The man was a Halloween monster in the eyes of App Nation through three quarters, with gains of 42 yards and 75 yards for TDs in the second and third quarters, respectively. But he also had big gains of 10 and 43 yards, respectively, that set up other Southern Miss scoring opportunities.

Gore’s impact on this game was reminiscent of North Carolina sophomore Omarion Hampton in Chapel Hill on Sept. 9, except the Mountaineers could find no answers for Hampton in the overtime loss, 40-34. Hampton rolled up 234 yards rushing and 3 TDs in his breakout game for North Carolina. Gore, more of a known commodity with a father’s NFL pedigree to match, tore through the App State defense for 247 yards rushing and 2 TDs and setting up others.

Southern Miss got its last touchdown at the 14:01 mark of the 4th quarter when running back Jakarius Caston swept around the left side for an 11-yard TD, also giving the Eagles their last 10-point advantage.

App State was not done on offense, however.

On the next possession, after Aguilar kept the ball and bowled through defenders for a 20-yard gain up the middle, advancing the Mountaineers to near midfield, three plays later he found wide receiver Christan Horn open in the left flat. The junior out of Columbia, S.C. strong-armed his way around one defender, then sprinted down the sideline and into the end zone to bring App State back to within a field goal with a successful Michael Hughes PAT kick, 35-38.

Wiles and the Southern Miss offense were able to get one first down early in their next offensive opportunity but, on 3rd-and-10, Wiles and receiver Tiaquelin Mim came up short with only a six-yard gain and the Eagles were forced to punt. App State safety E J. Jackson, a senior transfer from Marshall was credited with the stop.

After another App State defensive effort forced the Eagles to punt, redshirt freshman running back Kanye Roberts negotiated his way through the left side of the line of scrimmage, broke into the clear and sprinted down the sideline. It was a 61-yard dash to paydirt that gave App State its first lead of the day, 42-38 (with Hughes’ PAT), with a little more than six and a half minutes remaining.

Southern Miss was again frustrated by a stingy Mountaineer defense, the Eagles’ 10-play drive getting no further than the APP30 before turning the ball over on downs. With 2:44 left on the game clock, App State seemed in control but needed at least one, perhaps two first downs to effectively run out the clock — but they got more than that from Aguilar, Roberts, Horn et al.

After Roberts romped for 25 yards on the second play of the drive, with eight seconds remaining Aguilar found Horn running down the right sideline, finding him in the end zone for the night’s final points.

POSTGAME NOTES from App State Sports

• App State snapped a two-game losing streak to win its fourth game of the year and move to 2-2 in Sun Belt Conference play.
• The Mountaineers are 3-1 at The Rock this year. Their 51-10 record (.836 pct) in home games since making the transition to FBS in 2014 is seventh-best among all FBS teams (behind Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, Georgia, Oklahoma and Oregon).
• App State won on Homecoming for the ninth straight year and improved its all-time Homecoming record to 48-13-2.
• Attendance at Kidd Brewer Stadium was 32,601, the ninth-largest crowd in stadium history.
• App State defeated Southern Miss for the first time after taking losses in 1937 and 2014, both in the state of Mississippi.
• This was the fifth straight game – and the sixth in the last seven – to be decided in the closing seconds. The Mountaineers’ fourth-down touchdown with 8 seconds remaining sealed a two-score victory after a Mountaineer fumble with 14 seconds left bounced around before being recovered by the home team.
• Earning his first career start was cornerback Trenton Alan Yowe.

OFFENSE

• The Mountaineers’ offense put up a season-high 48 points and a season-high 571 total yards, including 34 points and 301 yards in the second half alone.
• Christan Horn caught a career-high eight passes for a career-high 165 yards and two touchdowns. His scores were an integral part of the final 12 minutes of the fourth quarter during which App State turned a 10-point deficit into a 10-point victorious margin.
• Bouncing back from a pair of first-half turnovers, Joey Aguilar finished the game with a career-high 391 passing yards and matched his career high with four passing touchdowns, while completing 23 of 33 passes.
• Aguilar has thrown multiple passing TDs in all but one game this season and leads the Sun Belt with 20.
• Running back Kanye Roberts rushed 13 times for 109 yards and a touchdown, one week after he went for 109 in his first career start at Old Dominion. Of his 109 yards against Southern Miss, 92 came in the fourth quarter, including 86 on back-to-back runs. His 61-yard touchdown with 6:37 left in the game gave the Mountaineers their first lead at 42-38.
• Running back Maquel Haywood scored his first touchdown as a Mountaineer.
• Other touchdowns came from wide receiver Dashaun Davis (third of the season), tight end Eli Wilson (third of the season) and running back Ahmani Marshall (second of the season).

DEFENSE

• Linebacker Andrew Parker Jr. led all players with a career-high 13 tackles.
• In his most extensive action of the season, Marshall transfer safety EJ Jackson produced a season-high 11 tackles and two pass breakups.
• Cornerback Ethan Johnson notched a career-high four passes broken up to lead the Mountaineer defense that broke up a season-high 10 passes.
• Linebacker Caden Sullivan, who finished with seven tackles, a sack and a forced fumble, made one of the game’s biggest plays with a sack that knocked the ball out of Southern Miss QB Wiles’ grasp and was recovered by Michael Fletcher at USM’s 1-yard line.
• Defensive tackle Santana Hopper made his presence known with a career-high five tackles, a TFL and two QB hurries after posting 1.5 sacks a week earlier.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Gore was not the only Southern Miss offensive threat, of course. In fact, it could be argued that Gore’s success began in the second quarter after Southern Miss QB

 

 

By Jacob Plecker. LOUISVILLE, Ky. – In the final road game of the 2023 season, the App State Mountaineers (12-4, 5-1 MAC) flew the flag over the No. 8 Louisville Cardinals (12-5, 2-3 ACC) in shootout fashion on Oct. 22. The win marks the highest ranked win in program history, the first win ever against a top-10 opponent and the first win over an ACC opponent since 1999.

With the shootout period tied at two goals apiece heading into App State’s final attempt, freshman Florine Koopman calmly addressed the ball and made her way into the circle where she slapped the ball past the Cardinal keeper and sent the App State faithful into a frenzy. Koopman’s game-winning goal in the shootout gave App State its second consecutive shootout win.

It was an incredible defensive display put on by the Mountaineer defensive unit at Trager Stadium on Sunday, limiting Louisville to just one goal in regulation and stopping all 15 Cardinal corner chances. Fifth-year goalkeeper Addie Clark saved an impressive 12 shots in the game and held Louisville to just two goals in the shootout.

“Beating Louisville on their home turf on their senior day is a crazy feeling,” senior defender Grace Ball said. “We knew we had to come in and give it our all. We needed to slow them down and play together and that’s what we did. It’s a great feeling to come out on top.”

Having already clinched a spot in the MAC Tournament with their win on Friday against Ball State, the Mountaineers and head coach Emily Dinsmore now have 12 wins on the year. The 12 wins for Dinsmore in her first season at the helm ties Mountaineer legend Jan Watson’s record for wins by an App State first-year head coach. Dinsmore’s first chance to break that record will come on Friday at home against the Ohio Bobcats.

“All the credit goes to the girls for this win,” Dinsmore said. “They fought to the very end and withstood corner after corner. I knew that if we could get to shootouts we would win this game. It’s so exciting and I’m so happy for the group.”

By Bret Strelow. NORFOLK, Va. — App State had plenty of fourth-down magic, but Old Dominion’s late fourth-down conversion set up a go-ahead touchdown in the final minute of a 28-21 Sun Belt Conference victory against the visiting Mountaineers.

Each of App State’s last four games and five of the last six have been decided in the closing seconds.

After a fourth-and-10 completion of 19 yards from the App State 40 set up ODU’s go-ahead, 16-yard touchdown run with 48 seconds left, the Mountaineers (3-4, 1-2 Sun Belt) moved from their own 21 to the Monarchs’ 23 thanks to Joey Aguilar’s completions of 13 yards to Eli Wilson, 20 yards to Kaedin Robinson (to the ODU 44, with a 15-yard flag for defensive targeting reversed) and 21 yards to a sliding Christan Horn.

A spike with 11 seconds remaining from the 23-yard line gave App State two shots at a touchdown — the Monarchs (4-3, 2-1) had turned a 21-20 deficit into a seven-point lead with their touchdown and successful two-point conversion. ODU defensive back Khian’Dre Harris was credited with consecutive breakups on high, deep passes directed toward 6-foot-4 receiver Dalton Stroman in the end zone.

“Heartbreaking loss,” App State head coach Shawn Clark said. “I hurt for our players and hurt for our team. The kids played their hearts out tonight, and we came up one play short.”

Aguilar (22 of 31 passing for 252 yards) had a hand in three fourth-down touchdowns on a night in which App State went 4-for-4 on fourth down, with one touchdown run on a QB keeper preceding TD passes to tight end David Larkins and wide receiver Kaedin Robinson, who finished with 103 yards on seven catches. Starting in place of injured back Nate Noel, one of the nation’s top rushers before he suffered an injury in the previous game, Kanye Roberts posted the first 100-yard game of his career with 109 yards on 26 carries.

Nate Johnson led the defense by recording a season-high two sacks, increasing his season total to five with a pair of first-half takedowns, while Santana Hopper added 1.5 sacks, including a big one in the final six minutes to help force a punting situation in a one-point game. Hopper also teamed up with Derrell Farrar on a first-half sack.

Leading 21-20, App State regained possession at its own 34 with 4:50 left and faced a second-and-1 scenario before a fumble that the Mountaineers recovered for a loss preceded a third-down incompletion. ODU took over from its 31 with 3:46 remaining and moved to the App State 33 for a third-and-3 play. An offensive holding penalty negated a long run, and a short QB keeper on third down set up a fourth-and-10 play from the App State 40 with 1:08 remaining.

Grant Wilson scrambled and completed a 19-yard pass to Javon Harvey to get the Monarchs into short field-goal range, and Keshawn Wicks rushed for a 16-yard touchdown that at least gave the Mountaineers time to respond with 48 seconds showing on the clock.

All three App State touchdowns resulted from fourth-down execution, as Aguilar scored on a fourth-and-goal keeper around right end from the 1 in the first quarter and threw a 5-yard scoring pass to Larkins in a fourth-and-2 with 4:14 remaining before halftime.

Trailing 14-7, with a 12-play, 87-yard drive producing its first touchdown, ODU had runs of 19, 36 and 20 yards (a touchdown from Wicks) to march 92 yards on five plays to tie the game. The Monarchs then forced a quick three-and-out punt and followed a late 16-yard run to the App State 30 with a 47-yard field goal as the half ended.

ODU added a 46-yard field goal to open the third quarter, but App State had a pair of fourth-down conversions late in a go-ahead touchdown drive on the next possession. Aguilar gained 2 yards on a fourth-and-2 keeper from the ODU 25, then threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Robinson in the back of the end zone on a fourth-and-5 delivery.

App State returns to action next Saturday with a homecoming game against Southern Miss. The game is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at Kidd Brewer Stadium.

By Katherine Jamtgaard. HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — The App State volleyball team fell short to Marshall in five sets on Oct. 21, 3-2 (25-20, 25-23, 20-25, 19-25, 15-10).

Marshall 3, App State 2

Sophomore Maya Winterhoff, along with freshmen Ava Leahy and Delanie Grevengoed posted double-digit kills on the afternoon with Winterhoff recording 16, Leahy recording 12, and Grevengoed recording 11. Redshirt freshman Katie Cruise and senior Sophie Cain both recorded double-doubles, as Cruise posted 29 assists and 12 digs and Cain tallied 21 assists and 20 digs. Five Mountaineers tallied double-digit digs, led by sophomore Kenady Roper, who had 30. Fifth year senior McCall Denny and Winterhoff served up two aces apiece. Winterhoff also totaled eight blocks on the afternoon. App State recorded five aces compared to Marshall’s one, as well as 13 blocks to Marshall’s 11.

In the first set, Marshall built off a pair of 4-0 runs to take a 14-7 lead. App State chipped away at Marshall’s lead, going on a late 3-0 run that included kills from Grevengoed and Denny, but Marshall capped the set, 25-20.

App State and Marshall fought point-for-point in the second set, until Marshall broke a 17 all tie with a 4-0 run to take a 20-17 lead. Kills from Winterhoff and Grevengoed, as well as an ace from Winterhoff brought App State within two of Marshall’s 22-20 lead. A kill from Denny brought the Mountaineers within one (24-23), but Marshall took the set, 25-23.

In the third set, App State kept pace with Marshall early. Back-to-back kills from Winterhoff gave App State a 10-9 edge. The Mountaineers found momentum with a 4-0 run that included a pair of blocks from Denny/junior Lauren Pledger and Pledger kill (15-11). With another 4-0 run, the Black and Gold took a 20-13 lead. The run included a pair of kills from Leahy. Despite a run from Marshall, App State secured the third set, 25-20, after a Denny kill.

App State took an early 5-2 lead in the fourth set after a block from Leahy/Pledger and ace from Denny. A kill from Pledger and ace from Cain extended App State’s lead to 12-8. As Marshall chipped away at App State’s lead, the Mountaineers answered with a 4-0 run that included kills from junior Lulu Ambrose and Winterhoff, as well as a pair of block from Ambrose/Winterhoff (17-11). Back-to-back kills from Pledger and Winterhoff closed out the set for App State, 25-19.

Grevengoed opened the fifth and final set with a kill and tied things up at 2-2 with a second kill. Marshall took a 6-3 lead that the Mountaineers chipped away at with an Ambrose kill and Marshall error. Marshall jumped ahead, 11-5, after a 5-0 run. Despite kills from Ambrose and Grevengoed, Marshall took the set, 15-10, and match, 3-2.

UP NEXT
App State will host Old Dominion on. Oct. 26 and 27 for its last two home matches of the season. Both matches are scheduled for 6 p.m. and will be available to stream on ESPN+.

By Matt Present. BOONE, N.C. — App State soccer defeated Southern Miss 1-0 in their home finale, capping an undefeated home season at The Valley, and extending their home unbeaten streak to a program-record ten consecutive games.

“It’s huge for our program, it’s huge for these girls who give their all for App every day on this field, and I think a lot of the pride and hard work that they put in on this field goes into those unbeaten games,” said head coach Aimee Haywood.

“The student presence tonight was awesome, we’re super grateful for that, and hope to have more of that next season and in the spring. We’re really proud of our team and how far they’ve come, and we’re excited about the future of soccer at The Valley, it just keeps getting better.”

It was the Mountaineers’ seventh shutout of the season, tying a program record.

App State (7-5-3, 4-2-2) wasted no time taking the lead in front of a lively Thursday night crowd in Boone. Just over two minutes into the contest, Izzi Wood dribbled the ball towards the end line and fired a pass towards the middle that deflected off of the Southern Miss goalkeeper and right to Olivia Simon who headed in the finish for her fourth goal of the season.

The Mountaineer defense was strong throughout the match, making the lone goal hold up. Kerry Eagleston recorded four saves and collected her 24th career clean sheet, tying Breland Meany (’01-’04) for the Mountaineer shutout record.

The defense was good in front of Eagleston, limiting the quality of the Golden Eagles (6-8-1, 3-4-1) chances, on their way to their seventh shutout of the season, tying the program record which has been accomplished four times prior.

App State and Southern Miss finished the match with 13 shots apiece, but the Mountaineers held the advantage 7-4 in shots on target. Wood, Simon, and Summer Bowman each tallied a trio of shots for the Black and Gold.

App State will conclude regular season play with a pair of road trips, beginning with a match at Arkansas State on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET, and continuing with a Thursday night showdown with Georgia State at 6 p.m. Both games will be broadcast on ESPN+.