App State women’s basketball began a long road trip Monday, as they defeated Gardner-Webb University 63-53 behind 16 points from senior guard Emily Hege. A towering performance in the post by sophomore forward Feryal Defne Atli, who had 13 points and 7 rebounds, went along with Hege’s big night.
Sophomore guard Jayden McBride and senior forward Elena Pericic also scored double figures with 12 and 13, respectively. The two players also made up 7 of the Black and Gold’s 10 makes from beyond the arc.
The Mountaineers kept the lead from the opening to the closing buzzer as Gardner-Webb seemed outmatched for the majority of the night. The Bulldogs lost the rebounding battle by 7 and received no help in the scoring department from their bench players.
Most of the hustle plays were attributed to junior guard Daisia Mitchell, who, even though she wasn’t able to score any points individually, tallied 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals and 1 block that stuffed her stat sheet.
Heading into the second half with a 20-point lead after a 42-point first half, the Black and Gold came out flat. Sloppy passes led to easy baskets for the Bulldogs and concerned glances and hanging heads for the Mountaineers in the stands. App State had as many turnovers as they did points in the third quarter with 7.
Poor Mountaineer offense continued in the final quarter as Gardner-Webb started to shine. The Bulldogs’ leading scorer had 13 of her 22 points in the fourth quarter, and it seemed that App State couldn’t answer. But, Hege’s ability to get to the free-throw line helped the Mountaineers put Gardner-Webb away as she shot 3-4 in the final 10 minutes of play.
The win moves App State to 6-2 in the season before heading to Clemson, South Carolina to face the Clemson University Tigers Sunday. The matchup is scheduled for 2 p.m., and it can be streamed on ACC Network X.
