App State women’s basketball won Sunday over the Wofford College Terriers with a score of 77-50.
Wofford got on the board with the first possession of the game, but App State answered immediately with a 3-pointer by sophomore guard Jayden McBride. The Black and Gold started 2-2 from beyond the arc after senior guard Emily Hege connected on a 3-pointer as well.
App State fell behind 13-2 in the previous game against Davidson College, but began this game much stronger, up 8-4.
“They were bummed with how they played on Wednesday,” head coach Alaura Sharp said in the postgame press conference. “I think that they were disappointed. You’ve got to come in as a head coach and not make a mountain out of a molehill.”
The Mountaineers’ offense rolled late in the first quarter, producing a 16-0 run capped off by a free throw from sophomore forward Feryal Defne Atli. The run carried until the end of the opening quarter with App State leading 24-8.
Hege hit another 3-pointer to extend the run to 21-0 before Wofford finally ended it with an and-1 layup. The Terriers got in on the fun with an 11-0 run of their own.
Wofford cut the lead to 7, and Sharp called a timeout. At the end of the first half, App State led 35-28 with Hege leading the way with 8 points.
Similar to the first half, McBride got the scoring started in the second half, this time on a mid-range jumper. She finished with 15 points, the most for the Mountaineers in the game.
“I just came in with confidence like I usually do,” McBride said. “Coach Sharp has been on me about getting confidence because she knows I’m a great player.”
Hege continued to have the hot hand for the Mountaineers, splashing a 3-pointer for her third triple of the afternoon. App State’s scoring run reached double digits for the second time in the game after an Atli basket.
The end of the third quarter went out with a bang as senior guard Emma Smith drained a 3-pointer from beyond half-court, making the score 59-36.
A few minutes into the fourth quarter, the Black and Gold had five different players in double figures, highlighting an efficient offensive performance.“We’d love to have six or seven kids in 8 to 10 points,” Sharp said. “We feel like we have seven to eight players that are capable of double figures on any given night.”
Smith finished the game with a double-double, scoring 14 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. She came just shy of recording a triple-double, dishing out 7 assists.
“It’s pretty easy for myself in positions like that when I have teammates that play super hard,” Smith said. “I think from a point guard perspective, it’s pretty important to bring the energy and be the person that’s kinda like the coach.”
App State dribbled out the clock, taking the contest 77-50. At the end of the game, the Black and Gold shot 53% from the field while Wofford shot 29%.
The Mountaineers hit the road after four consecutive home games and travel to Morgantown, West Virginia to take on the West Virginia University Mountaineers on Nov. 20. The game will tip off at 10:15 a.m. and will be streamed live on ESPN+.
