By Matt Present. DAVIDSON, N.C. — In the first meeting since Feb. 2021 between two teams separated by less than 100 miles, App State dropped a road match to Davidson by a 4-1 final on Sunday at Alumni Stadium.
Sophomore midfielder Olivia Simon scored the Mountaineers’ (2-3-2) lone goal of the match. Trailing 1-0 in the 13th minute, App State put the clamps on the Davidson (4-1-1) defense with Izzi Wood poking the ball away from the Wildcats center back. Simon pounced on the loose ball and buried a right-footed shot into the bottom right corner of the net for her second goal of the season, tying the score at one apiece.
With the score still tied at 1-1 in the second half, the Wildcats jumped back in front. Davidson scored three unanswered goals to finish the match, helped by two assists from Savannah Pruitt. Maddie Moody scored the game-winning goal in the 54th minute, completing a brace, after opening the scoring with a seventh minute tally.
Despite coming up short on the scoreboard, the Mountaineers out-shot the Wildcats 11-10 for the match, including a 6-4 advantage in shots on target. Davidson recorded all five saves in the match and earned nine corner kicks on the afternoon.
The Mountaineers return to action on Sept. 12 in Ft. Myers, Fla., where they will take on Florida Gulf Coast at 7 p.m. to round out non-conference play.
By David Rogers. CLEMSON, S.C. — Plays to celebrate were few and far between for App State’s football team at Clemson on Sept. 7. Down 35-0 at the end of the first quarter and 56-13 at halftime, the Mountaineers fell victim to an historic offensive performance by the Tigers in losing by a final score of 66-20.
For Clemson, it was the most yards of total offense (525 yards) in the first half in the program’s history, 349 of them in the first quarter. The Tigers’ starting quarterback, Cade Klubnick, only played the first half but achieved career highs in passing yards, passing TDs, and rushing TDs. He finished with 378 passing yards, a whopping five passing TDs and, oh yeah, two rushing touchdowns.
Clemson wide receiver T J Moore was one of four Tigers with at least one receiving TD on Sept. 7 in a 66-20 win over visiting App State. Photographic image by Flaco Suarez-Robles for High Country Sports
On the third play from scrimmage, Klubnick connected with wide receiver Bryant Wesco, Jr. just past midfield and the much talked about freshman took it to the house for a 72-yard catch-and-sprint TD.
While the Clemson defense kept the Mountaineers’ offense off-balance and punting, Klubnick and Wesco combined for another 52-yard big gain to the 1-yard line, from which the nimble QB took the ball to the end zone all by himself (through a gaping hole made possible by his offensive line).
App State QB Joey Aguilar struggled early at Clemson, but settled down to pass for 214 yards and a TD. Photographic image by Flaco Suarez-Robles for High Country Sports
After more App State misadventures, Clemson running back Phil Mafah found nothing but daylight ahead of him and ran for an 82-yard score.
With the Tigers scoring three TDs on their first three possessions and the orange-and-white uniformed defensive unit all but putting a stranglehold on the Mountaineers’ Joey Aguilar-led offense, the hosts’ 21-0 lead with still 7:08 remaining in the first quarter had written on the proverbial wall how this contest was going to turn out.
To their credit, even though schooled by Clemson’s starters, App State played gamely until the final whistle blew. As the game wore on, Aguilar finally began to connect with receivers Christan Horn, Kaedin Robinson and others.
App State’s Kaedin Robinson is on the receiving end of a Joey Aguilar pass on Sept. 7 at Clemson. Photographic image by Flaco Suarez-Robles for High Country Sports
Among the most impressive Mountaineer performances from the start was that of running back Anderson Castle, who seemed to be able to move the football when hardly anyone else among the visitors could. The Watauga High School alum finished the night with seven rushes for 80 yards, an 11.4 average, with his longest a 21-yard run. On each occasion, he proved difficult for the Tigers to bring down. A highlight was his 4-yard power drive into the end zone for his first TD of the year. Of the Mountaineers’ eight rushing plays of 10 yards or more, Castle had five of them, for 11, 12, 17, 21, and 10 yards. To round out his “big play” night, the redshirt junior had one of the Mountaineers’ six pass plays of 15-plus yards, a 19-yard gain coming out of the backfield with under a minute to go in the first half.
Robinson was targeted 10 times by Aguilar, eventually catching three passes for 58 yards. Christan Horn caught three of five targets for 47 yards, while Makai Jackson proved to be the most proficient Mountaineer on the night, catching six of 11 targets for 54 yards, including a touchdown on a twisting, 17-yard catch-and-tumble into the end zone, in the third quarter.
Mountaineer tight end Eli Wilson catches a pass to move the chains vs. Clemson on Sept. 7. Photographic image by Flaco Suarez-Robles for High Country Sports
After struggling in the first half, Aguilar seemed to get back in sync with his receivers in the second half, finishing the game with 18 completions in 41 attempts, including one TD and not interceptions.
Facing a powerful Clemson offensive line, the App State defense recorded no sacks and only three tackles for loss, one each by linebacker Derrell Farrar and defensive backs DJ Burks and Jordan Favors.
Underscoring Clemson’s offensive performance against the Mountaineers, the Tigers scored touchdowns on all eight of their first half possessions.
App State will look to rebound next week at East Carolina, a 20-14 winner over another Sun Belt Conference East Division member, Old Dominion. Although Clemson might wish they could play again soon to reinforce the winning momentum, the Tigers will have to wait for a Sept. 21 date vs. the North Carolina State Wolfpack, in Death Valley.
Anderson Castle (1) is lifted by his offensive line teammates on Sept. 7 after scoring the team’s first TD at Clemson. Photographic image by Flaco Suarez-Robles for High Country Sports
By Katherine Jamtgaard. BOONE, N.C. — The App State volleyball team swept Gardner-Webb, 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-22), in the Mountaineer Classic finale on Saturday, improving to 3-3 on the season.
“I’m proud of our team after three hard-fought matches,” said head coach Sarah Rumely Noble. “We got to see a lot of different combinations of players this weekend and I know we got better this week. This team wants to be good and is driven to that end when they step on the court.”
Junior Maya Winterhoff and sophomore Ava Leahy landed on the Mountaineer Classic All-Tournament Team for their efforts over the weekend. Both started all three matches and appeared in all 11 sets over the weekend. Winterhoff, who was also tabbed as a Preseason All-SBC selection and was named to the Bobcat Invitational All-Tournament, totaled 31 kills on the weekend for a hitting percentage of .429. She also made nine block assists, five digs, and served up one ace. Across the three matches, Winterhoff averaged 2.82 kills per set and 3.32 points per set. Leahy tallied 22 kills on the weekend and a hitting percentage of .378. She also made seven blocks (one solo, six assists) on the weekend. Leahy averaged two kills per set and 2.36 points per set.
Match Notes
Freshman Maddie Smith led the team with 14 kills, while sophomore Caroline Farthing made a team-high 13 digs. Freshman Julianna Horta made 19 assists and served up two aces, while redshirt-junior Addison Heidemann led the team in the aces category, with up three. She also made 13 assists and 11 digs. Winterhoff made a team-high three blocks against Gardner-Webb. App State outpaced Gardner-Webb in the points, kills, aces, assists, and digs categories and tallied 15 kills in each set.
In the first set, Gardner-Webb only held a lead for its first four points, before the Mountaineers took a 6-4 edge with back-to-back kills from freshman Maddie Smith and Winterhoff. The Bulldogs answered with a kill before App State distanced itself with a 9-2 run, building off kills from senior Lulu Ambrose, freshman Bella Hutchens, and Leahy, as well as a pair of Horta aces, and a solo block from Leahy, which pushed the Mountaineers to a 15-7 lead. A kill from Marchal, an ace from junior Kenady Roper, and a block from the duo of Marchal and Winterhoff put the Black and Gold up 19-10. The Bulldogs worked to close the deficit with a pair of 4-0 runs, cutting App State’s lead to two at 23-21. A kill from Leahy and a Bulldog error sealed the point for the Mountaineers, 25-21.
A kill from Elise Marchal put the Mountaineers on the board early in the second set. A Smith kill, followed by a block from Smith and Winterhoff, and an ace from Heidemann, established a 4-1 lead. After a trio of 3-0 runs, the Mountaineers pulled ahead, 15-6. Late in the set, App State took a 22-10 lead after a 4-0 run that included a block from Winterhoff and Horta and kills from Leahy and Ambrose. The Bulldogs answered with a 7-1 run, but Leahy made back-to-back kills as the Mountaineers took the set, 25-17. The Mountaineers held the Bulldogs to eight kills in the second set.
The Mountaineers and Bulldogs fought point-for-point in the third and final set. Gardner-Webb took a 12-8 lead with a 4-0 run, but the Black and Gold fought back with a 6-1 run of its own, building off kills from Leahy, Winterhoff, Smith, and a Heidemann ace to take a 14-13 edge. The Bulldogs pulled ahead, 16-14, but the Mountaineers were quick to answer with kills from Winterhoff and an ace from Farthing to regain an 18-16 edge. App State held the lead for the remainder of the match as Leahy made two kills and Smith tallied three more kills to bring App State to set and match point. App State won the set and the match after a final kill from Winterhoff.
All-Tournament Selections
Maya Winterhoff – App State
Ava Leahy – App State
Amanda Lowe – ETSU
Whitley Rammel – ETSU
Manu Johnsen – Kennesaw State
Olivia Burrage – Kennesaw State
Molly Littlefield – Gardner-Webb
By David Rogers. KERNERSVILLE, N.C. — When 3,455 cross country runners compete at one venue… well, there are a lot of flying arms and legs churning through the air — and a lot of fun had by all.
But that’s how many student athletes competed on Sept. 6 in the Friday Night Lights Festival hosted in Kernersville, at the Ivey Redmon Sports Complex. The Pioneers (high school) and Wolverines (middle school) had teams in eight of the 12 races run during the nighttime competition on the (mostly) flat-surfaced course.
Boys Championship
Watauga had 10 runners in the Boys Championship field comprises of 302 athletes from 34 teams. Four of the Pioneers finished in the top half of the field, led by Will Bradbury crossing the line at No.4. Pioneers finishing in the top half of the field in the 5,000 Meter Run (No. 1 finisher was Kavi Gibson of Cary Academy in 15:19.30):
No. 4 – Will Bradbury (15:31.00)
No. 100 – Calvin Zwetsloot (17:14.90)
No. 132 – Grady Gates (17:34.50)
No. 143 – Samuel Rex (17:44.40)
Other Watauga student athletes competing in the Boys Championship included Zeke Walker, Jonah Norris, Haines Heistand, James Bostrom, Levi Anderson, and Elliott Taft.
As a team, with the top five Pioneer runners scoring, Watauga finished 16th in the 34-team field.
Girls Championship
Kasey Dingman, a Lake Norman junior, won the Girls Championship in 17:46.50. Watauga had nine runners in the 5,000-Meter Run event, with the top five runners scoring a 14th place for the team among 33 schools entered.
The Pioneers were led by freshman Cali Townsend, who completed the course in 18:52.50, good enough for 18th place. Other Pioneers finishing in the top half of the field comprised of 290 runners:
No. 18 – Cali Townsend (18:52.50)
No. 43 – Annabelle Stewart (19:26.50)
No. 45 – Janie Beach-Verhay (19:27.10)
No. 146 – Lainey Johnston (21:25.30)
Other Pioneers included Lily Kimbrough, Josephine Walker, Carrie Bradbury, Susanna Goff, Anna Norris and Sophie Parker.
Boys JV (Freshmen and Sophomores)
Aiden Butler, a sophomore from Holly Springs, finished No. 1 in the Boys freshmen and sophomore JV 5,000-Meter race, in 17:30.10. Watauga had seven student athletes in the race comprised of 454 runners representing 43 schools. The Pioneers finishing in the top half of the field included:
No. 36 – Brian Newmark (18:57.80)
No. 39 – Andres Roman (19:02.20)
No. 53 – Isaac James (19:19.90)
No. 181 – Tallon Abrams (20:55.20)
Other Pioneers in the race included Ike Mance, Cole Gray, and Cormac Walker. The Watauga team, comprised of the top five athletes, finished 15th.
Boys JV (Juniors and Seniors)
The Boys JV 5,000-Meter Run featuring juniors and seniors had 266 runners from 22 schools. Elliott Johnston of Hoggard crossed the line No. 1, in 17:18.80. Pioneer student athletes finishing in the top half of the field included:
No. 49 – Santino Wood (19:16.20)
No. 58 – Doyle Casey (19:26.00)
No. 72 – Holden Womak (19:51.80)
No. 104 – A J McAulay (20:26.90)
No. 106 – Charles Langley (20:28.40)
Other Pioneers competing included Mike Menchu-Yax, Mitch Jasper, Sam Nystrom, Bryan Chen and Alaska Whitehead. The Watauga team finished 12th.
Girls JV
In the Girls JV race, Cuthbertson freshman Kacey Neenan topped the field of the 5,000-Meter race in 21:01.80. With 456 participants from 43 schools, it was the largest field of the night.
Watauga was represented by 21 student athletes, led by No. 27 Carrie Bradbury. As a team, the Pioneers JV squad finished No. 7 out of the 43 schools represented. The Watauga student athletes finishing in the top half of the large field included:
No. 27 – Carrie Bradbury (22:49.00)
No. 43 – Noelle Bollman (23:14.10)
No. 45 – Mia Grace Libre (23:17.80)
No. 46 – Bailey Collins (23:19.60)
No. 49 – Riley Benson (23:25.60)
No. 85 – Sydney Townsend (24:03.00)
No. 103 – Julia Benson (24:18.80)
No. 159 – Kara Schneider (25:13.50)
Other Pioneers participating in the event included Julian Martin, Ava Langley, Hadley Carpenter, Gianna Casco, Iyla Freed, Cora Smith, Xitlali Luna, Laurel Mortenson, Gracyn Blanton, Maja Leyendecker, Sydney Moretz, Samantha Perry, and Ursa Tzotschew.
Boys Middle School
Trevor Christensen of Cuthbertson MS took top honors in the 2-mile race that saw 271 runners from 22 schools. Watauga had 17 runners in the event, with Jonah Pearson (No. 10) and Sean Rea (No. 11) finishing among the leaders. The Watauga runners in the top half of the field included:
No. 10 – Jonah Pearson (11:35.90)
No. 11 – Sean Rea (11:38.80)
No. 86 – Yates Hodges (13:45.10)
No. 94 – Caleb Duvall (13:56.30)
No. 121 – Kailu Rodli-Bost (14:42.60)
No. 135 – John Braxton (14:51.10)
As a team, Watauga finished No. 7 among the 22 school teams comprised of 6th, 7th and 8th graders.
Other Watauga runners competing included Reed Springer, Sam Twigg, Olin Coley, Miles Pearson, Luke Wilmer, Owen Parker, Charlie Huggins, Collin Troisi, Tye Friedheim, Greene Mayhew, and Max Friedheim.
Girls Middle School
Union Academy 7th grader Athena Pluchos captured the No. 1 spot (12:18.50) in the Girls Middle School race, also a 2-Mile Run. Watauga finished a respectable 5th out of the 21 school teams competing, including a total of 215 runners.
Watauga’a 18 entries was led by 7th grader Kate James Moore and 8th grader Sophia Stull, finishing at No. 14 and No. 15, respectively. All Watauga runners finishing in the top half of the field included:
No. 14 – Kate James Moore (13:15.70)
No. 15 – Sophia Stull (13:18.60)
No. 60 – Eva Hannon (14:48.20)
No. 81 – Addie Greer (15:25.20)
No. 96 – Hannah Reule (15:55.50)
No. 98 – Liliana Resendiz (15:56.40)
No. 100 – Eden Gates (15:58.10)
Other Watauga runners included Mia Kelley, Vivian Hans, Caitlyn Taylor, Estalee Davenport, Bianca Casco, Anna Brooks Heistand, Lillian Olson, Riley Morgan, Zoey Wells, Reagan Russell, and Ellie Cobb.
Mixed
Although Alex Lutz, a junior representing First Flight was the top finisher (11:55.0) in the Mixed 2-Mile race that included both boys and girls, Watauga freshman Grace Scantlin (14:19.50) was the top finisher among the girls competing in the race.
Other Watauga athletes competing in the Mixed race and their place by gender included:
No. 1 – Grace Scantlin (14:19.50)
No. 27 – Julia Mckinney (16:24.3)
No. 28 – Darla Bachman (16:25.3)
No. 39 – Claire Nance (16:45.0)
No. 71 – Leah Gaydon (17:44.7)
No. 94 – Myla Morgan (18:06.1)
No. 103 – Madalyn Taylor (18:12.4)
No. 107 – Sylvia Afanador (18:15.8)
No. 130 – Maya Price (18:50.2)
Other Watauga competitors included Cecelia Afanador, Nora Shepherd Powell, Presley Ware, Jasmine Tripp, and Annie Willis.
By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Nary a cloud in the sky but lightning struck Jack Groce Field on Watauga’s first play from scrimmage on Sept. 6. Junior running back Everett Gryder ripped through a tiny gap in visiting Maiden’s defensive line, broke into the secondary and outsprinted the remaining Blue Devils’ defenders for a 66-yard touchdown, setting the tone for an eventual, 24-13 Pioneer win.
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The play at least temporarily gave the host Pioneers some momentum as they struggled after that, but the win improves Watauga’s early season record to 3-0.
Everett Gryder (44) sprints downfield on a 66-yard TD run for the Pioneers’ first play from scrimmage in the Sept. 6 home opener. Photographic image by Jared Everett for High Country Sports
In one sense, Maiden flipped the script on Watauga, the Blue Devils controlling possession for almost two-thirds of the game with a grinding, ball control offense — historically, Pioneer-style. Maiden’s offense just couldn’t seem to overcome errors when they needed to most, including penalties on what otherwise might have been scoring plays.
We are not a very good football team right now.
Watauga leveraged the Maiden miscures for some quick scores, but the overall performance of the Pioneers did not sit well with head coach Ryan Habich.
“We made a lot of mistakes across the board and we made those mistakes on both sides of the ball. It just isn’t Watauga football,” declared Habich after the last whistle had blown. “We’re a mixture between JV and varsity right now. We are not a very good football team right now and it is all my fault. It falls on the head coach. I have to do a better job with the discipline. Right now, I am not very happy the way we are playing football, on both sides of the ball.”
Habich did have high praise for the special teams units.
“One area that I am proud of is special teams,” he said. “They didn’t give up a big play, they tackled well, and they made a difficult field goal. Jack Wilson did a heckuva job making that field goal (24 yards, to put Watauga up by two scores, 24-13).”
Sporting brand new, all-black uniforms with white numerals for their first home game of the season in front of packed grandstands, the Pioneers may have been a little too “hyped up” at the beginning, Habich admitted in speaking with reporters.
Those new black uniforms… that is lunch pail black… we have to have that ‘blue collar’ mindset.
“We have some returning guys, but I don’t think they realize that the mistakes they make in practice are being carried over into games,” said Habich. “And when you play upper echelon competition like we will face next week (against A C Reynolds)… well, if we play this way, it is going to be a short game here at Jack Groce. It will be a running clock (against us). So we have to do a lot better. We have some great kids here at Watauga, with high academics, but we can’t be complacent here. We have had a lot of success here these last several years but we aren’t going to just walk out there and beat people. We have to execute and we have to get that mindset.
“Those new black uniforms… that is lunch pail black,” added Habich. “We have to have that blue collar mentality that brings that lunch pail to every game. Today, we were too undisciplined with false starts and other pre-snap penalties. That just is not Watauga football.”
Maiden featured a powerful rushing attack to open the game, but was unable to convert it into points. Photographic image by Jared Everett for High Country Sports
Bright Spots
The coach’s critique aside, there were some bright spots offensively and defensively, even though Watauga only had possession of the football for 11:22 vs. Maiden’s 29:45.
Many will argue that Gryder’s opening 66-yard TD run was the best offensive play of the game. The second and third best offensive plays arguably came a couple of series later, with 3:05 left in the first half — and the circumstances proved fortuitous.
The series was set up when Watauga faced a 4th-and-short on their own 27-yard line, but an illegal procedure penalty against the left side of the offensive line pushed the ball back, forcing the Pioneers to abandon going for a 4th down conversion.
Maiden wide receiver Hampton Reed makes an acrobatic catch in the second half to extend an offensive possession. Photographic image by Jared Everett for High Country Sports
Quarterback Maddox Greene’s punt was fielded at the Maiden 35-yard line, but the Blue Devils return man on the play, Hampton Reed, lost control of the ball as he started forward and the fumble was recovered by the Pioneers’ Landon Smith and Thomas Dieters.
So the fourth down punt moved the ball forward about 40 yards from where the Pioneer drive had stalled. As many football coaches like to do after that kind of dramatic turnover, especially in the opponent’s half of the field, it was time for what Habich calls “a shot play,” with a little razzle dazzle mixed in.
“We used the play last year against Mallard Creek, in the playoffs,” Habich recalled. “It was just a different combination of players.”
From his quarterback position, Greene handed the ball off to wide receiver Evan Burrough in motion, crossing to the left. Burroughs flipped the ball back to Gryder on a reverse, then Gryder passed the ball back to Greene on the right side. All the movement behind the line of scrimmage sucked up the Maiden secondary, leaving wide receiver Landon Smith deep downfield to catch Greene’s 40-yard pass at the goal line for a second Pioneer TD.
“Landon made a good play there,” said Habich. “On that play, everybody executed and the offensive line gave Maddox excellent protection.”
Photographic image by Jared Everett for High Country Sports
Defensive Gems, Too
In the second half, even though Maiden was moving the football with short runs and short to medium passes, Watauga’s defense stiffened at two critical points. Faced with 4th-and-short on two different occasions, Maiden was unable to convert.
Case in point: with 8:02 remaining in the third quarter and trailing by just one touchdown, 14-7, Maiden had successfully moved the ball to the Watauga 25-yard line and was looking at 3rd-and-2, poised to convert and keep the drive going. But Pioneer senior linebacker Trathan Gragg stopped two consecutive rush attempts by two different Maiden players. First, he drove quarterback Grant Lawing for no gain on a QB keeper, then he stopped running back Cohen Jenkins for just a 1-yard gain, Maiden turning the ball over on downs.
Led by Greene, it only took the Pioneers three plays to find the end zone after taking over at their own 24-yard line. On a keeper through the middle of the line, Greene sliced through the Blue Devils’ big guys upfront, wrestled free from a would-be tackler, and was finally collared after a 26-yard run, to midfield. The only thing that stopped him from breaking free and running the distance was, literally, a horse collar tackle that did not get flagged, apparently unseen by the officials.
Watauga’s Trathan Gragg (6), greets a Maiden ball carrier at the line of scrimmage for no gain. Photographic image by Jared Everett for High Country Sports
Gryder rushed for three yards, but then it was Greene’s show again. On another keeper, he patiently waited for a gap to open, sprinted through it and into the secondary, swerved toward the right sideline around anyone with hopes of stopping him. After Greene’s 47-yard scamper to paydirt, Wilson’s third PAT of the evening put the Pioneers ahead by two scores, 21-7.
Another bright spot for the Pioneer defense came early in the 4th quarter, with Watauga leading 21-7. Maiden closed out the third frame with an 8-play, grinding drive that moved the ball from their own 15 to Watauga’s 42-yard line. When the Blue Devils’ Grant Lawing dropped back to pass and looked to the right flat, he apparently didn’t see Watauga senior defensive back Dillon Zaragoza, who turned around just in time to see the ball coming directly to him for easy pickings. He caught the ball for the game’s only pass interception, then said “thank you” with a 21-yard INT return.
Occurring early in the fourth quarter at the 11:11 mark, Zaragoza’s defensive gem all but put the game away when Watauga drove to the 5-yard line, setting up the 24-yard field goal by Wilson from the right hash mark.
Even with the good stuff that happened, Habich was far from satisfied, repeating his cautionary counsel that if his offense and defense played the same way next week, against A C Reynolds, the outcome would not be a positive result.
“We just can’t make those mistakes,” said Habich.
SELECTED TEAM STATS (kept by Jonathan Watson)
First Down: MAI 18, WAT 11
Total Offense: MAI 303, WAT 312
Rushing Offense: MAI 35 carries, 133 yards, WAT 29 carries, 272 yards
Passing Offense: MAI 17-28-172, 1 INT; WAT 1-4-40, 1 TD, no INTs
Penalties: MAI 4-25, WAT 8-60
3rd Down Conversions: MAI 6-13 (46%), WAT 3-7 (43%)
4th Down Conversions: MAI 3-6 (50%), WAT 0-0
Sacks By: MAI 0. WAT 2
Turnovers
Fumbles Lost: MAI 1, WAT 0
Interceptions Thrown: MAI 1, WAT 0
Time of Possession: MAI 29:45, WAT 11:22
SELECTED INDIVIDUAL STATS (kept by Jonathan Watson)
By Layne McNary. RICHMOND, Va. — The App State Field Hockey team faced their first setback against Richmond on Friday. Despite leading the shot count 18-6, a late fourth period goal by the Spiders (2-1) resulted in a 2-1 setback for the Mountaineers.
How it Happened
1st: The first period began tight for both teams, with the Mountaineers pressing the attack throughout the period. Henriette Stegen scored her second goal of the season nearly halfway through the second, giving the Mountaineers an early lead. App State ended the period with five shots to Richmond’s two.
2nd: The Mountaineers turned up the intensity in the second, forcing four corners in the period. App State got seven shots up in this period, many being good looks, but could not find the back of the cage. App State went into halftime with a 1-0 lead, while leading the shot count 12-2.
3rd: It was back and forth between both teams in the third period, ending with a shot count of 4-3. Richmond midfielder Madelyn Curtis found the back of the net at the end of the third, tying the game going into the fourth period. Curtis’ goal was the first goal scored on the Mountaineers this season.
4th: The game continued to be tight, leading to a shot count of 2-1 favoring the Mountaineers to finish the period. Richmond forward Valen Luna Paratore scored with 2:12 left on the game clock, giving the Spiders the final 2-1 lead late the game.
By David Rogers. WATAUGA COUNTY — With six sweeps and a single split, Watauga’s 2024 school specific volleyball season got under way on Sept. 5 with a pair of tri-matches and a single encounter. As usual, the schools with the largest enrollment, Hardin Park and Parkway, dominated play. Only the Blowing Rock vs. Mabel match was extended to three sets.
By Matt Present. BOONE, N.C. — Izzi Wood scored two first half goals, both assisted by Ellie Garrison, but Radford scored three unanswered goals in the second half to defeat the Mountaineers, 4-2, snapping App State’s 13-match home unbeaten streak.
The Mountaineers (2-2-2) opened the scoring on a set piece in the 13th minute of play. With a free kick from the defensive side of midfield, Aleesia Ambrosio served the ball forward. Garrison lept in the air, flicking a header forward to Wood, who was able to finish with a strike into the bottom right corner of the net to give the Mountaineer a 1-0 lead.
After Radford (5-1) tied the score on a Paige Olson goal in the 32nd minute, the Mountaineers were quick to respond. In the 35th minute of play. Garrison fed Wood on a give-and-go at the top of the box, and Wood drilled a shot into the top-left corner of the cage for her second goal of the match.
For Wood, the goal was her third of the season and 18th of her App State career, moving her into a tie with Allison Osborne (1995-98) for seventh place on the career scoring list.
The graduate student had a chance for a hat-trick just eight minutes into the second half. Wood drew a foul in the Radford box but her penalty kick was saved by the Radford goalkeeper, Jordan Phillips.
Not long after, the match turned south for App State. Just three minutes later, Jashyra Johnson scored the equalizer for the Highlanders and then less than three minutes later, Johnson netted the go-ahead goal to give Radford its first lead of the match.
In the 66th minute, Helena Wilson was fouled in the App State box and converted the penalty kick to push the deficit to 4-2.
Garrison nearly got on the scoreboard for the third time in as many games in the 60th minute, but her shot went ringing off the crossbar. Garrison finished the match with nine shots, equaling Wood for the game high.
The Mountaineers out-shot the highlanders 25-11, but Radford held the advantage 8-7 in shots on target.
Gracie Giacoletto led the Mountaineers’ bench with 55 minutes of playing time. She made a spectacular defensive play in the 39th minute, making a back post save on a Radford corner kick to keep App State in front 2-1 going into halftime.
The four goals allowed were the most by the Mountaineers at home since conceding four goals to Pittsburgh in 2020.
The Mountaineers will look to rebound on Sunday when they face Davidson on the road at 1 p.m. The match will be televised on ESPN+.
By David Rogers. LENOIR, N.C. — With a blistering time of 16:18 over the 5,000-Meter course at the Lenoir Aquatic and Fitness Center on Sept. 4, Watauga senior Will Bradbury finished over a minute and a half ahead of No. 2 runner Bryce Corpening of South Caldwell (18:00). Close behind were two more Pioneers, junior Calvin Zwetsloot (No. 3, 18:08) and sophomore James Bostrom (No. 4, 18:33) in the Men’s Division of the Northwestern Conference Pre-Conference Season Opener.
Watauga senior Jonah Norris (No. 7, 19:17) and sophomore Grady Gates (No. 8, 19:18) completed Watauga’s top 5 finishers for calculating the team results, which were dominated by the Pioneers among the five competing schools and their 66 student athletes in the men’s division.
In the larger, 86-runner field of the Women’s Division, Watauga freshman Cali Townsend led a 1-2-3-4-5-6 team sweep, crossing the finish line of the 5,000-Meters course No. 1 (20:25), followed by fellow Pioneers Annabelle Stewart (No. 2, 20:28, senior), Janie Beach-Verhay (No. 3, 21:08, junior), Josephine Walker (No. 4, 22:35, sophomore), Lainey Johnston (No. 5, 22:37, sophomore) and Lily Kimbrough (No. 6, 22:38). With the top 5 finishers, Watauga recorded a perfect team score of 15 points.
By David Rogers. ALEXANDER COUNTY — A hard-fought, physical battle between two strong middle school football teams on Sept.3 didn’t end with the “W” the Wolverines of Watauga were looking for, but the action was fast and furious. West Alexander prevailed at the end, 14-6.
SELECTED GAME PHOTOS (click any image for Slide Show mode)
All photographic images by Jared Everett for High Country Sports
