ETSU aims to move to 3-0 for first time since 1994

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Nov. 18, 2014) – The ETSU women’s basketball team will look to continue the early-season momentum when it welcomes regional rival Appalachian State to Brooks Gym on Wednesday evening at 7 p.m.

The Bucs hope to move to 3-0 to begin a season for the first time since 1994. The 1994-95 squad that began 3-0 went on to win its first five games of the season before falling to North Carolina on Dec. 21, 1994 at the Coastal Carolina Invitational in Conway, S.C.

ETSU (2-0) and ASU (0-1) will square-off Wednesday in the 73^rd all-time meeting between the two schools; a series in which ASU holds a 39-33 advantage. In the most recent meeting last season, the Blue & Gold ventured over to Boone, N.C. to knock off App State – 81-72 – inside the Holmes Center behind 17 points from both Cara Bowling (Elizabethton, Tenn.) and Chandler Christopher (Greeneville, Tenn.).

The Bucs enter the contest after improving to 2-0 with an 84-76 win against High Point on Monday inside Brooks Gym.  The Blue & Gold seized control in the first half and took a 50-36 lead into halftime. The Bucs held a 73-60 advantage with 5:24 left to play, but the Panthers quickly mounted a comeback. A pair of free throws from HPU’s Stacia Robertson with 1:28 left to play brought the game to the closest it had been since the 15 minute mark of the first half; 76-72.  A huge three from Shamauria Bridges (Miramar, Fla.) off of a Christopher assist allowed ETSU to pull ahead by seven with 1:11 left to play. A couple of late free throws and a clutch bucket from Serena Clark (Stone Mountain, Ga.) allowed the Blue & Gold to hold on for an 84-76 win.

In the recent victory, the Blue & Gold featured four players in double-figures; led by a career-high 22 points from Bridges. This performance, and a previous showing in an 81-68 season-opening win at UNC Asheville, allowed Bridges to be selected as Southern Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Week earlier today.

As a team, ETSU boasts the highest scoring offense in the SoCon with 82.5 points per game. In its first two games of the season, the Blue & Gold featured five players in double-figures and four players in double-figures, respectively, and is shooting a stellar 49 percent from field.

Offensive firepower will be needed against an ASU squad that has the ability to light up the scoreboard as well. The Mountaineers return 11 letterwinners and all five starters from a team that recorded a 13-16 record last season and a fourth-place league standing in their last year in the SoCon. The now-Sun Belt member institution is led by senior forward Maryah Sydnor who was a first team all-conference honoree last season with 19.4 points per game, was selected as a member of the preseason All-Sun Belt First Team this season, and scored 33 points in a 111-74 loss at Kentucky this past Friday. A new face on the sidelines for the Mountaineers this season is also apparent as Angel Elderkin begins her first season as head coach at App State. Elderkin previously served on the women’s basketball coaching staff at ETSU from 1999-2001 where she also earned a master’s degree in physical education.

For more information on ETSU women’s basketball, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the women’s hoops link. Season tickets can be purchased here. Follow along with the Bucs on social media with Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

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