Both Clark and Mitchell record double-doubles in the loss

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Nov. 19, 2014) – Seniors Serena Clark (Stone Mountain, Ga.) and Destiny Mitchell (Bluffton, Ga.) each delivered double-doubles, but it was not enough on Wednesday evening as visiting Appalachian State knocked off ETSU, 76-70, inside Brooks Gym.

With the loss, ETSU drops to 2-1 on the young season while ASU evens up at 1-1.

Quickly out of the gate against the regional-rival Mountaineers, the Bucs made an effort to get their offense going in the paint. The Blue & Gold’s first three baskets of the opening period were in the painted area as it used its veteran post play to establish its offensive flow. ETSU then got some assistance on the perimeter with Shamauria Bridges (Miramar, Fla.) splashing home a three-pointer with 8:49 remaining in the half to increase its lead to a period-high seven points, 19-12. Over the next six minutes, App State battled back with a 17-10 run to pull even at 29 with 2:28 to go in the half. With the period winding down, the Blue & Gold got back-to-back buckets from freshman Malloree Schurr (Montgomery, Texas) behind the arc and from Mitchell in the paint to allow it to go into the break with a 34-29 advantage.

Through the early portion of the second half, the Mountaineers tried to claw back from their halftime deficit to tie or go ahead, but timely makes from the Bucs kept the lead in ETSU’s favor. The Blue & Gold was able to increase its lead to eight points off of a Chandler Christopher (Greeneville, Tenn.) three-pointer with 12:46 left to play as ETSU looked to be ready to take control of the game. App State had other plans, though, as it put together an 11-3 surge over the next four minutes to pull even with ETSU at 54. Once deadlocked, the game essentially turned into a glorified free-throw shooting contest with ASU taking advantage of its opportunities. With the flow of play brought to a halt due to the numerous stoppages of play, an 8-0 Mountaineer run allowed them to take a 67-59 lead with five minutes remaining. After ASU increased its lead to as many as 10 points, the Bucs showed some fight to get their deficit down to five, 72-67, with 41 seconds to play. Down the stretch, the App State converted on its opportunities from the free-throw stripe to hold on and down ETSU, 76-70. 

Clark posted a season-high and team-leading 18 points to go along with a season-best 10 rebounds, while Mitchell tallied 15 points and a game-best and season-high 13 rebounds. Meanwhile, App State’s Maryah Sydnor scored a game-high 25 points, while teammate Katie Mallow added 21 points.  

After shooting an efficient 8-of-10 from the free-throw line in the first half, the Bucs struggled to convert in the second with only 11-of-23 makes which ultimately proved costly. ETSU also shot below its season average from the field at 40 percent, but did make its presence known in the paint with 34 points. The Blue & Gold also held a sizeable advantage on the boards with a 45-34 advantage.

Conversely, App State was fairly-efficient from the charity stripe in the second half with 19-of-26 makes to finish the game with a 70 percent average. The Mountaineers also turned 16 offensive rebounds into 16 second-chance points and got 15 points from their bench. In addition, ASU totaled an identical to ETSU, 34 points, in the paint but struggled from behind the arc at 27 percent (3-of-11).

The Bucs will begin a six-game road swing on Friday with a visit to Loretto, Pa. to face St. Francis (Pa.) at 7 p.m.

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