By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — There was a lot of passion and drama on and off the field on Sept. 2 for App State Football’s season-opener vs. in-state rival, Gardner-Webb. Here are a few captured moments, all photographic images by David Rogers for High Country Sports. Note: you can click on the first image and they will appear in a slide show format.

DANCE TEAM SECTION!

By Jacob Plecker for App State Sports. BOONE, N.C. — Deep into the fourth quarter with the scored deadlocked at 0-0, an insert by Florine Koopman into the circle found junior Jillian Orcutt, who saw an opportunity, took the pass and fired the ball past the Davidson goalkeeper to give App State (3-1) a lead that decidef today’s contest.

Orcutt scored the game’s lone goal with just eight minutes to play in the Sept. 3 contest. It was a tightly contested matchup, but Orcutt and the Mountaineers prevailed thanks to outstanding defense — and timely offense near the end.

Coach Dinsmore stressed ball control after Friday’s loss to Drexel and the Mountaineers proved they listened. App State controlled the ball for much of this game and generated several chances to score before finally netting the deciding goal late.

“Everyone wanted it really bad today,” Orcutt said. “We talk a lot in practice about framing the cage and we executed that very well today by being in the right positions. Everyone worked really hard to execute the game plan and I’m just grateful I was in the right spot.”

The Mountaineer defense was especially potent, posting the team’s first shutout of the year. Davidson managed only two corners and any momentum generated from possessing the ball for long periods was quickly thwarted by the pressure provided by App State.

“The defense was locked in today,” head coach Emily Dinsmore said. “They were a force to be reckoned with. They didn’t let Davidson generate much. Even when they did get shots, we contested the shots very well to where it made it an easier save for Addie. I’m really proud of the way we stood strong defensively today.”

How it Happened

1st Quarter

App State controlled the ball for much of the first quarter, generating several chances inside the attacking 25. The Mountaineers drew a corner early, giving them their first scoring chance of the day. Off the insert by Koopman, Sarah Perkins left the ball for Grace Ball who fired the game’s first shot but missed wide.

The Mountaineers drew a second corner opportunity with five minutes to play in the opening frame, but nothing came of it as the Davidson defense stood strong. After the first quarter of play, the game was scoreless with App State leading the shot tally 1-0.

2nd Quarter

Davidson responded well to App State’s strong opening quarter on offense, controlling the ball and generating multiple shots and corners.

The second quarter started with an App State corner just 43 seconds in. Off the insert, Charlotte Bosma fired her first of four shots on the day but had it blocked. The Mountaineers rattled off two more shots in the quarter, but neither were on target.

The Wildcats outshot the Mountaineers 4-3 in the second quarter and showed some good resolve to App State’s pressure to end the half. Fifth-year goalkeeper Addie Clark picked up two of her five saves in the second period off the four Davidson shots.

Although the two teams were playing with aggression, neither team found the back of the cage in the first half. Addie Clark has posted four shutout halves this season.

3rd: The third quarter saw the Mountaineers push right back at Davidson’s strong second quarter, getting the ball into the circle on multiple occasions and outshooting the Wildcats 3-2.

The period started with a flurry of shots by Charlotte Bosma off two corners. The junior attempted a season-high four shots in today’s contest.

Davidson found a few opportunities to score, attempting two shots in the period, but the Mountaineer defense stood firm and contested every shot the Wildcats had. Both Wildcat shots were blocked by the staunch App State defense.

It was a very close game throughout the first three quarters on Sunday, and although both teams had plenty of opportunities, the score was deadlocked at zero as we headed to the final 15 minutes.

4th: The fourth quarter started with App State controlling the ball for much of the period with nothing to come of it. Then, in the 51st minute of play, Florine Koopman advanced the ball into the circle and crossed it to Orcutt who slapped the ball past the defense, finally finding the back of the cage.

The goal for Orcutt was her first career goal in the Black & Gold. She is now the third Mountaineer this season to achieve that milestone, joining freshmen Florine Koopman and Sophia Baxter.

Davidson got much more aggressive as play progressed in the fourth. The Wildcats fired two consecutive shots on goalkeeper Addie Clark, but Clark showed why she’s great and saved both of them.

The fourth quarter was tightly contested, but App State was able to make Orcutt’s first career goal stand up and the Mountaineers posted their third win of the season and first home win on the new turf at Brandon & Erica M. Adcock Field.

Coach’s Thoughts
“It’s really good for our team to bounce back after Friday’s loss with a grinded-out win against a good team,” Dinsmore said. “The team did whatever they could to win the game and laid their hearts on the line to make sure we got this victory.”

Up Next
App State will have a couple days off before starting a three-game road trip in Harrisonburg, Va., where they will take on future MAC foe James Madison on Friday. First touch from the JMU Field Hockey Complex is scheduled for 5 p.m.

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Toward the end of what had been a moribund first half, App State head coach Shawn Clark needed a spark. It would be an understatement to say that he didn’t get it.

Instead, backup quarterback Joey Aguilar delivered a firestorm, powering the Mountaineers to a convincing, 45-24 season-opening win over the Gardner-Webb Bulldogs. There was drama aplenty to sate the gridiron appetites of 36,075 fans filling the grandstands and grassy knolls of Kidd Brewer Stadium.

With 2:13 on the first half clock, Aguilar made his entrance. Whether starting quarterback Ryan Burger’s injured finger or Clark’s professed need for a “spark” held greater sway in the decision to bring in the backup QB is debatable, of course, but one play and seven seconds later the Mountaineers took the lead, 14-10, when Aguilar hit wide receiver Kaedin Robinson for a 32-yard TD reception.

The last time a quarterback debuted for App State with a completion on his first career pass attempt in such a dramatic setting was Peyton Derrick, at Penn State in 2018, when then QB Zac Thomas left for one play with a presumed injury. Derrick promptly connected with wide receiver Dominique Heath for a 22-yard completion to keep the Mountaineer drive alive in Happy Valley — and the near-victory in overtime.

This time, Aguilar’s first pass — for a TD, no less — was just the beginning of his debut performance. Taking the reins in the second half, Aguilar finished the game completing 11 of 13 passes for 174 yards, including four touchdowns and no interceptions. It was a performance good enough to collect a near-perfect 298.6 passer rating, according to StatBroadcast.

Aguilar’s execution was sharp, confident, and decisive. In the decisive third quarter, he marched the App State offense down the field for three TDs and a field goal. The longest drive took just 3:17 off the clock, covering 65 yards in eight plays and finished with a 26-yard pass down the middle to WR Deshaun Davis. The Mountaineers’ next drive was just four plays covering 64 yards, culminating with Aguilar finding Dalton Stroman down the right side for a 43-yard TD pass.

While the Mountaineer defense seemed to have mostly figured out the Bulldogs’ up-tempo, short passing offense by the middle of the third quarter and turned back all GW drives for the rest of the game, the Aguilar-directed offense wasn’t done. App State recorded two more touchdowns and a field goal to put the finishing touches on the scoring.

Including Burger’s first quarter TD pass of 12 yards to tight end Eli Wilson for the game’s first scoring, the two App State QBs combined for five touchdowns passes to five different receivers, including Robinson, Davis, Wilson, Stroman and Christan Horn. Through the air, the QBs completed 18-of-24 passes for 244 yards, five TDs and no interceptions.

In one sense, the pass-heavy attack was uncharacteristic of the Mountaineers’ run-first approach. That said, lead running back Nate Noel averaged almost five yards (4.9) per carry, toting the ball 24 times for 117 yards and a rushing TD near the beginning of the fourth quarter. A junior transfer from Navy, running back Maquel Haywood added 46 yards on 11 carries (a 4.2 avg.).

Even during App State’s second half resurgence, the Bulldogs were not idle. In fact, they took their last lead of the game late in the third quarter when quarterback Matthew Caldwell tossed a pass to running back Jayden Brown that he took to the house for a 41-yard TD scamper. With just over five minutes remaining in the third quarter, Brown’s catch-and-run put the Bulldogs ahead for the last time, 24-21.

Call it a momentum changer if you will, but Watauga High School alum Jackson Greene’s interception of a Caldwell pass with less than 20 seconds left in the third quarter, including a 25-yard return, all but put a stop to GW’s upset aspirations. Now a fifth-year redshirt junior according to COVID-19 eligibility math, Greene displayed the kind of athleticism and fleet-of-foot speed that he showcased throughout a decorated high school career as a Pioneer. And perhaps it was just what the Mountaineers needed to inspire the defense for the remainder of the game.

Credit the upset-minded Bulldogs for a sparkling performance through the first three quarters of this game. The team’s up-tempo, short passing attack mixed in with some well-designed runs by Brown (9 carries, 45 yards and 2 TDs) and Narii Gaither (10 carries, 54 yards) nearly won the day, facilitated by a well-disciplined offensive line that at times owned the line of scrimmage.

For his part, the Bulldog QB, Matthew Caldwell was impressive in directing the Bulldog offense. He completed 30-of-46 passes for 231 yards and a TD, offset by two INTs. In addition to Greene’s interception, the Mountaineers’ Jack Scroggs followed up with his own first career INT early in the fourth quarter, putting a stiff-arm to any hopes GW had of completing the upset.

In his post-game press conference, Clark was quick to credit Gardner-Webb while acknowledging that it was great to start 1-0, but there was plenty of work to do to get ready for next week’s tilt at North Carolina.

Of the decision to bring in Aguilar, Clark said, “It was my call. It came in a situation where Ryan (Burger) had jammed his finger a little bit and I felt we needed a spark to get us going. Joey came in and his first at App State was completed for a touchdown. That gave us the spark we needed.”

Clark added that Burger will be evaluated by team doctors and the coaching staff will know more about his availability at that time.

Clark reiterated and reinforced his opening statement, too.

“Gardner-Webb is a good football team,” he said. “That quarterback (Caldwell) is a good player. That running back (Brown) could play anywhere in the Sun Belt. They gave us a lot of challenges by formation, by motion and different types of screens.”

Clark also reminded the media that one of the coaching staff’s priorities in the offseason was to strengthen the defensive side’s roster depth, including through the transfer portal.

“We produced three turnovers. You look at Jack Scroggs (transfer from Wofford), Jackson Greene and Montez Kelley (transfer from Tiffin University), those are guys who aren’t starters but when their number was called, they made a play,” said Clark.

In speaking about his performance as the mid-game replacement QB who provided Clark’s needed spark, the soft-spoken Aguilar said, “Honestly, it comes from our training in practice. Whether you are first, second, or third, it is always ‘next man up.’ You always have to be prepared. It is part of the job.”

For a young man who grew up in California wanting to be a linebacker or tight end, Aguilar’s transition to quarterback as he got older also allowed him to be appreciative of the Kidd Brewer Stadium environment.

“It was unbelievable,” said Aguilar. “I have never played in a stadium this big, this sold out and with this many people before, so it was awesome. To throw my first touchdown pass and hear everyone cheer, it was awesome. My biggest crowd (in junior college) might have filled one side of bleachers. It was nothing like this.”

Whether Burger returns to his starting role in next week in Chapel Hill or the coaches decide to roll with Aguilar will be the pressing question of the week, perhaps. Either way, the Mountaineers learned a lot about themselves in this season-opening tilt vs. Gardner-Webb.

SELECTED TEAM STATS

• Total Offense: GW 360, APP 394
• Rushing Yards: GW 129, APP 140
• Passing Yards: GW 231, APP 244
• First Downs: GW 19, APP 24
• Total Plays: GW 75, APP 67
• Rushing vs. Passing Plays: GW 29-46, APP 43-24
• Time of Possession: GW 28:18, APP 31:42
• Penalties: GW 5-50, APP 2-20
• Turnovers
  • Fumbles-Lost: GW 1-1, APP 2-0
  • Interceptions by: GW 0, APP 2
• 3rd Down Conversions: GW 7-17, APP 4-13
• 4th Down Conversions: GW 2-3, APP 3-3

SELECTED INDIVIDUAL STATS

Passing

• • GW – Matthew Caldwell, 30-46, 231 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs
  • APP – Ryan Burger, 7-11, 70 yars, 1 TD, 0 INTs
  • APP – Joey Aguilar, 11-13, 174 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs

Rushing

• • APP – Nate Noel, 24 carries, 117 yards, 1 TD
  • APP – Maquel Haywood, 11 carries, 46 yards
  • GW – Narii Gaither, 10 carries, 54 yards
  • GW – Jaylen Brown, 9 carries, 45 yards, 2 TDs

Receiving

• • APP – Kaedin Robinson, 4 catches, 64 yards, 1 TD
  • APP – Christan Horn, 4 catches, 50 yards, 1 TD
  • APP – Dalton Stroman, 2 catches, 49 yards, 1 TD
  • APP – Deshaun Davis, 2 catches, 26 yards, 1 TD
  • APP – Eli Wilson, 2 catches, 15 yards, 1 TD
  • GW – Narii Gaither, 7 catches, 22 yards
  • GW – Brennen McGuire, 5 catches, 32 yards
  • GW – Jonathan Burns, 4 catches, 51 yards
  • GW – Karim Page, 4 catches, 28 yards
  • GW – Ephraim Floyd, 4 catches, 18 yards
  • GW – Jayden Brown, 3 catches, 67 yards, 1 TD

By Katherine Jamtgaard for App State Sports. GREENVILLE, N.C. – The App State volleyball team closed out competition at the ECU Tournament with a thrilling, five-set victory over East Carolina, 3-2 (25-23, 18-25, 19-25, 27-25, 15-13).

The Mountaineers are now 6-0 on the season following competition at the Mountaineer Classic (Aug. 25-26) and the  ECU Tournament (Sept. 1-2).

“I am so proud of the grit, confidence, and hunger we played with,” said head coach Sarah Rumely Noble. “Winning with two, 5-setters this weekend was huge development as a team. We executed when it mattered and fought hard. I love coaching this team.”

Junior Lulu Ambrose, sophomore Maya Winterhoff, and fifth-year senior McCall Denny earned spots on the ECU All-Tournament team for their efforts on the court over the weekend. Ambrose recorded 35 kills and five blocks to go along with six digs. Winterhoff recorded a hitting percentage of .490 over the three matches and totaled 28 kills, 17 blocks (one solo, 16 assists), seven digs, and one ace. Denny made 38 kills and 38 digs, recording two double-doubles on the weekend. She also made eight blocks and served up three aces.

App State 3, East Carolina 2
Ambrose led the team in kills with 13, including the match-winning kill. Denny notched 12 kills and matched her career high 19 digs for her second double-double of the season. Denny split the team high digs with sophomore Kenady Roper. Sophomores Alyssa McBean and Roper each had two aces on the afternoon while senior Sophie Cain and redshirt freshman both recorded double-digit assists with 26 and 25, respectively.

App State and East Carolina shared a tight team comparison, with App State holding an edge in the kills (58-57), assists (54-50), and digs (85-83) categories. The teams each served up six aces over the duration of the match.

App State jumped to an 8-5 lead in the first set with a 5-0 scoring run that included kills from Winterhoff, freshman Ava Leahy, Ambrose, and an ace from Winterhoff. As ECU struggled to keep up, App State extended their lead to 23-15 after kills from Denny and freshman Delanie Grevengoed. The Pirates caught up to the Mountaineers at 24-23, but a kill from Winterhoff secured the set for App State, 25-23.

The Mountaineers started off the second set strong with an 8-4 lead, but ECU managed to make up ground, meeting the Mountaineers at 8-8 all. Matching point-for-point, the Pirates managed to break away with a 4-0 run and a 5-0 run to lead 24-17. Junior Lauren Pledger managed a last kill before ECU took the set, 25-18.

App State and East Carolina fought through a tight third set, not allowing more than a four-point lead for either team early. Leahy slammed down a kill to put App State ahead 11-8, but ECU posted seven consecutive points for a 15-12 lead. The Black and Gold steadily chipped away at the lead until ECU took the set 25-19.

With ECU leading the match two sets to one, App State came out determined in the fourth, building a 5-2 lead off kills from Winterhoff and Ambrose, in addition to an ace from McBean. The Mountaineers jumped ahead 15-10, but ECU was quick to close the deficit. An ECU attack error brought App State to set point, but ECU mustered two points to tie the score at 24 all. A kill from Ambrose gave App State a 25-24 edge before the Pirates matched the score at 25 all. With a kill, Denny clinched the fourth set for the Mountaineers, 27-25.

In the fifth and final set, App State jumped ahead 8-5 early. ECU went on a 4-0 scoring run to take a 9-8 lead, but the Mountaineers battled point-for-point to regain an 11-10 edge. Kills from Leahy and Ambrose brought App State to set and match point. ECU managed two more points to cut the Mountaineers’ lead to 14-13, but a kill from Ambrose sealed the set (15-13) and the match (3-2) for the Black & Gold’s sixth-straight win of the season.

Up Next
App State will host the Black & Gold Invitational on Sept. 7-9. The Mountaineers will kick things off with a 6 p.m. match against North Carolina A&T on Sept. 7. App State will take on USC-Upstate at 11 a.m. on Sept. 8 for Education Day, before returning to the court for the tournament finale against UNC Greensboro at 2 p.m. on Sept. 9.

All-Tournament Team

• • Lulu Ambrose, App State
  • McCall Denny, App State
  • Maya Winterhoff, App State
  • Angeles Alderete, East Carolina
  • Carlia Northcross, East Carolina
  • Aley Clent, Campbell
  • Malina Spencer, Bethune-Cookman