By Zach Smith. BOONE, N.C. — Education Day in Boone didn’t go as planned for App State. With just over 1,000 elementary school students from around the High Country in attendance for the Feb. 15 matchup, the Mountaineers fell to Marshall, 87-78.
App State was led by a career-high 24-point performance from sophomore guard Alexis Black. Guards Emily Carver (19) and Faith Alston (13) joined Black as Mountaineers to reach double-figures. Sophomore forward Rylan Moffitt grabbed a team-best 14 rebounds, swatting away three shots in the process.
Marshall guard Abby Beeman led the way for the Herd with 21 points and nine rebounds. Beeman and senior guard Breanna Campbell each dished out a team-high six assists.
The first quarter looked more like a three-point shootout than a college basketball game. Following a 90 second period of back-and-forth scores in the paint, App State senior guard Taylor Lewis opened the floodgates with the game’s first shot from beyond the arc. Each of the Mountaineers’ next four makes from the field were from deep, leading the home side to a 20-10 lead at the first media break. Out of the break, Marshall turned things around in their favor, cashing in on four consecutive deep-balls in a row while holding App State scoreless. The Thundering Herd held a two-point advantage at the first quarter buzzer.
Marshall continued their impressive scoring run early in the second frame, scoring each of the first five points to extend their streak to 17 consecutive points. App State then went on an 11-2 run before the Herd scored another 10 points in a row. The Mountaineers clawed their way back, scoring nine of the final 10 tallies of the half. Both sides went into the locker room with 40 points each.
The third period continued the game of back-and-forth runs. Rylan Moffitt opened the half with a layup while Marshall’s Sydni Scott followed with another three-pointer. App State then scored the next seven points before Tamia Layhorne drained back-to-back shots from beyond the arc for the Thundering Herd. A period of back-and-forth scoring led to a three-point Mountaineer lead before Meredith Maier hit a trey at the buzzer, tying the game entering the final quarter.
App State seemed to run out of steam in the final ten minutes. Marshall’s Sun Belt-best offense took over, extending The Herd’s lead to as many as 17 points. The Mountaineers held the visitors without a made shot from the field over the final two minutes, but the damage was done. Marshall retained their top spot in the conference, defeating App State on the road.
App State head coach Angel Elderkin shared her thoughts on the matchup postgame.
“Marshall is a really good basketball team, their style presents a lot of challenges,” Elderkin said. “The experience at their place I thought gave us the gameplan to be ready to execute at home. For the most part, you know, from an effort standpoint, I thought our kids left everything they had on the court and for that, I’m proud.”
Elderkin went on to explain what she thought could’ve been better for the Mountaineers.
“There’s two areas that we continue to talk about with our group in order for us to go from being a good team to a great team,” Elderkin said. “It’s taking care of the basketball, you saw us today with 26 turnovers, and then it’s rebounding. You know, I thought their effort on the boards was better than ours. We won the rebounding, but to [allow] 13 offensive rebounds for 18 second-chance points was not part of the plan.”
Referring to Alexis Black’s career-best 24 points in the game, Elderkin provided an insight on Black’s improvement over her two seasons as a Mountaineer.
“When we first started, she was trying to find that consistency, and she’s given that,” Elderkin said. “She’s continuing to get better, she’s getting in the gym, she’s providing another threat for us. And so I thought [her performance] was big.”
App State began one of the toughest portions of their schedule in the loss to Marshall. Including Thursday’s loss, the Mountaineers play consecutive games against each of the top five teams in the Sun Belt standings. Elderkin spoke on what it will take for her squad to bounce back and be prepared for their next test against Georgia State.
“The Sun Belt presents several women’s teams in the top of the country,” Elderkin said. “And so, it’s a completely different game on Saturday (Feb. 17). So, like I’ve been all season, you know, I can’t hem and haw over this Marshall game, because Georgia State’s not Marshall. You know, they’re a different version of Georgia State, which is a very, very good basketball team.”
Despite the loss, App State continued to shoot at a high mark. Their 44 percent mark from the field bested Marshall’s 39 percent clip. The Mountaineers outrebounded the Thundering Herd, 43-34, but Marshall’s 13 offensive boards topped App State’s 11 second-chance opportunities. App State turned the ball over 26 times leading to 29 Marshall points.
With the win, Marshall holds their position at the top of the Sun Belt standings. The next test on the Herd’s four-game road trip is a matchup with Old Dominion Feb. 17. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m., and the game can be streamed on ESPN+.
App State falls to 6-7 in conference play with their loss to Marshall. The Mountaineers kicked off a four-game homestand, with their next battle against Georgia State coming Feb. 17. The game will be the first part of an App State basketball doubleheader with the men’s team. The Mountaineers’ and Panthers’ battle is slated for 2 p.m. and can be streamed on ESPN+.
