The Mountaineers never trailed in their second MAC-SBC Challenge, and defeated Western Michigan 78-68 in their first ever matchup Saturday in Kalamazoo, Michigan.  

Four App State players scored double-digit points: junior guard Emily Carver, senior guard Faith Alston, junior guard Zada Porter and sophomore guard Chaé Harris.

Carver led with 16 points, shooting 4-11 from the field and 3-9 from beyond the arc. Alston put up 15 points on 5-8 shooting, along with four assists and three rebounds. 

Porter matched her season-high with 14 points, shooting 44% from the field and 100% from the charity stripe. Eleven of her 14 points came in the third quarter as the Mountaineers scored 28 points in the period. 

Harris shot a perfect 4-4 from the field to score 10 points in 12 minutes.

Sophomore forward Rylan Moffitt led the team in rebounds for the 15th time as she hauled in six rebounds to go along with eight points.

As a team, the Black and Gold shot 47.3% from the field and 42.9% from three.

Both teams struggled with turnovers as the Mountaineers finished with 24 and the Broncos had 23. This led to several stealing opportunities as fifth-year senior guard Taylor Lewis recorded four steals along with seven points, five rebounds and three assists. 

App State crashed the glass numerous times, bringing in 15 offensive rebounds, leading to 11 second-chance points.

Western Michigan was led by guard Kaitlyn Zarycki and forward De’Ahna Richardson as they combined for 41 of the Broncos 68 points. 

The Black and Gold limited Western Michigan to 25% from beyond the arc as the Broncos found scoring inside with 46 points in the paint. 

With Saturday’s victory, App State improves to 3-0 in February and 13-11 overall. 

The Mountaineers return to Boone for a four-game home stretch beginning Thursday at 12 p.m. against Marshall. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.