High Country Sports

Category: College

  • App State WTEN rallies from No. 7 seed into Sun Belt tournament championship final

    By Ethan Bumgarner. ROME, Ga. – For the first time in school history, App State Tennis has advanced to the conference championship match after defeating Troy 4-1 in Saturday’s Sun Belt Conference tournament semifinals.

    The seventh-seeded Mountaineers (15-9) will face No. 1 seed Old Dominion on Sunday.

    “This team is incredible,” said Head Coach Hannah Fetters. “They have showed up with incredible energy, discipline and mental toughness which is why we have made it to the finals of the tournament. We aren’t done yet!”

    Maggie Pate elevated the Mountaineers to the championship match when she defeated Troy’s Valeriia Avdeeva in three sets, sweeping her opponent 6-0 in the third set to clinch the match against the third-seeded Trojans (15-6).

    After falling in the second set, the Floridian went up 5-0 in the third and broke a 15-all tie on court four, scoring three straight points and ending the match with a powerful backhand down the line. Pate accepted her teammates with open arms when they rushed her in pure excitement as they made program history.

    Savannah Dada-Mascoll won 6-0, 6-1 against Kristina Kukaras on court one, finishing first among the six singles matches and powering the Mountaineers to a 2-0 lead early into singles play. Olwyn Ryan-Bovey won on court three against Maria Guirguis in multiple tiebreakers, 7-6 [7-5], 7-5, just before Pate closed out the match.

    For the second straight day, Dada-Mascoll and Ellie Murphy clinched the doubles point for App State in a tiebreaker at 6-all. The Mountaineers’ duo gave up two points in the tiebreaker with Troy’s top pairing of Guirguis and Avdeeva. Dada-Mascoll secured match-point by placing the ball in the upper quadrant of the court out of reach of both Trojans to give App State its third straight doubles win in the tournament.

    Pate and Naledi Manyube finished first in doubles as the tandem swept Hagar Ramadan and Leena Metwally 6-0 for their second win together in the tournament.

    UP NEXT
    App State will face Old Dominion in its first-ever conference championship match. In their previous matchup last week, the Monarchs defeated the Mountaineers 6-1 on Senior Day in Boone.

    The championship match is set for a 1 p.m. start time and will be streamed on ESPN+. Live stats will be available on appstatesports.com along with the ESPN+ link.

    (7) App State 4, (3) Troy 1

    Doubles

    • Savannah Dada-Mascoll/Ellie Murphy (App) def. Maria Guirguis/Valeriia Avdeeva (Troy) 7-6 [7-2]
    • Kristina Kurkaras/Emilia Namyslo (Troy) def. Taya Powell/Olwyn Ryan-Bovey (App) 6-2
    • Naledi Manyube/Maggie Pate (App) def. Hager Ramadan/Leena Metwally (Troy) 6-0

    Singles

    • Savannah Dada-Mascoll (App) def. Kristina Kukaras (Troy) 6-0, 6-1
    • Taya Powell (App) vs. Hager Ramadan (Troy) 6-0, 5-7, 3-5 unfinished
    • Olwyn Ryan-Bovey (App) def. Maria Guirguis (Troy) 7-6 [7-5], 7-5
    • Maggie Pate (App) def. Valeriia Avdeeva (Troy) 6-3, 5-7, 6-0
    • Naledi Manyube (App) vs. Leena Metwally (Troy) 6-7 [7-9], 6-0, 4-4 unfinished
    • Gabrielle Leslie (Troy) def. Ellie Murphy (App) 6-0, 6-3

  • Mountaineer rally in 7th to edge Georgia State in Game 2, 6-5

    By David Rogers. ATLANTA, Ga. — Fueled by a pair of RBI doubles, App State used a 5-run 7th inning to rally past host Georgia State on April 27 at the GSU Baseball Complex, edging the Panthers, 6-5.

    GSU scored one run in each of the second and fourth innings, then surged on top with a 3-run 5th inning to take a 5-1 lead going into the second half of the game. What the Mountaineers have proven time and again in the 2024 campaign, however, is that few opponent leads are safe given their high-scoring potential.

    In the critical 7th inning, Austin St. Laurent ripped the first pitch thrown to him to a deep infield singled, the GSU shortstop unable to make the play in time. Drew Holderbach immediately followed with a double down the left field line to score St. Laurent all the way from first base. After Banks Tolley walked to put runners on first and second, C J Boyd doubled to the gap in left, scoring Holderbach. Joseph Moronta joined the RBI parade with a single through the right side, scoring Tolley, then Adam Quintero launched a fly ball to deep right field for a sacrifice fly, Boyd tagging up at third and scoring.

    Moronta stole second to put himself in scoring position with two outs before Braxton Church walked. Then, Hunter Wilder capitalized with a single to centerfield, with Moronta beating the throw to the plate.

    With the win, App State’s record improved to 25-14-1 overall, 10-9-1 in the Sun Belt Conference.

    KEY PERFORMERS

    • APP – Austin St. Laurent: 2-4, 1 run scored, walk
    • APP – Adam Quintero: 3-4, 2 RBIs, 2B
    • APP – C J Boyd: 2-5, 2 runs scored, 1 RBI
    • APP – Xavier Moronta: 2-4, 1 run scored, 1 RBI. walk
    • APP – Drew Holderbach: 1-5, 1 run scored, 1 RBI, 2B
    • APP – Grey LaSpaluto: winning pitcher, 3 innings, no hits, no runs, 1 walk, 5 strikeouts

  • Tolley, Holderbach power App State to series opening win at Georgia State, 11-7

    By David Rogers. ATLANTA, Ga. — A home run by centerfielder Banks Tolley and five RBI doubles off the bats of four other Mountaineers fueled App State to an exciting, 11-7 win over Georgia State in Game 1 of the weekend series on April 26.

    Six members of the visiting Mountaineers tallied RBIs in the GSU Baseball Complex, including Tolley with his 19th home run of the season, a 2-RBI dinger to extend his school record-breaking campaign. Add in his subsequent RBI single and the senior transfer from Ole Miss has knocked in 55 runs during his debut season with App State.

    Other doubles on the night were recorded by first baseman Drew Holderbach (2 of them), as well as shortstop Adam Quintero, rightfielder Hunter Wilder, and second baseman Joseph Zamora.

    Relief pitcher Tyler Tuthill was credited with the win after giving up no runs on one hit while striking out three and walking none in his two innings of work. He inherited two runners in the 7th inning while relieving starting hurler Bradley Wilson, but the graduate student from Clayton, N.C. shut down the Panthers to end the rally.

    With the win, the Mountaineers season record improves to 24-14-1 overall, 9-9-1 in Sun Belt Conference play. Georgia State falls to 21-20 overall, 10-8 in the SBC.

    KEY PERFORMERS

    • APP – Banks Tolley: 3-4, 2 runs scored, 3 RBIs, HR, 1 walk
    • APP – Drew Holderbach: 3-6, 2 runs scored, 2 RBIs, 2B (2)
    • APP – Austin St. Laurent: 1-4, 3 runs scored, 1 RBI, hit by pitch, sacrifice hit
    • APP – Braxton Church: 1-5, 2 RBIs
    • APP – Adam Quintero: 2-5, 1 RBI, 2B
    • APP – Hunter Wilder: 1-3, 1 run scored, 2B, 2 walks
    • APP – CJ Boyd: 1-4, 1 RBI, hit by pitch
    • APP – Joseph Zamora: 1-3, 2 runs scored, 1 RBI, 2B

  • Tolley sets new HR season record as Mountaineers pound Georgia State, 11-7

    By Matt Present. ATLANTA, Ga. — Banks Tolley blasted his 18th home run of the season, establishing a new App State single-season home run record in the Mountaineers 11-7 victory over Georgia State, Friday at the GSU Baseball Complex.

    Tolley eclipsed the mark of 17 home runs in a season, set by Daniel Kassouf in 2012 and equaled by CJ Boyd last season.

    The milestone home run came as part of a four-run fourth inning. Joseph Zamora began the rally with a two-out double to right, and Austin St. Laurent followed with an RBI single. Drew Holderbach, who extended his on-base streak to 39 consecutive games, doubled to left field to plate St. Laurent, setting the stage for Tolley’s no-doubt blast over the left field fence to put the Mountaineers (24-14-1, 9-9-1) in front, 7-1.

    App State opened the scoring with a three-run third inning. St. Laurent reached on an error allowing Zamora to score and Holderbach capitalized with an RBI double down the line in left. Later in the inning, Braxton Church plated a run with an RBI groundout.

    Bradley Wilson (win, 2-3) matched a career-high with six innings in his start for the Mountaineers. The right-hander struck out four and allowed just three runs on the night, posting a quality start, and earning his first victory since opening night.

    Tyler Tuthill followed with an impressive two scoreless innings out of the bullpen in which he struck out three.

    App State added on with a three-run sixth inning. Hunter Wilder led off the frame with a walk and two batters later St. Laurent was hit by a pitch. With two outs, the Mountaineers notched three-consecutive RBI singles, as Tolley, Boyd and Church all pushed runs across.

    The Mountaineers finished the game going 8-for-16 (.500) with two outs. App State tallied 13 hits overall on the night, with Holderbach and Tolley each posting a three-hit effort.

    App State will go for the series win on Saturday, with first pitch set for 3 p.m.

  • Wainscott improves on his facility record in hammer throw for App State Open’s Day 1

    By Katherine Jamtgaard. BOONE, N.C. — The App State men’s and women’s track and field teams kicked off competition at the App State Open on Friday with a new facility record and seven top-five finishes. Competition resumes on Saturday with track events at 9 a.m. and field events at 10 a.m.

    ZAP Endurance team member Anne Marie Tuxbury served as the ‘rabbit’ or pacesetter in the women’s 10K on April 26, for the App State Open. Following close behind and the eventual winner is Chloe Wellings of Radford University. Photographic image by David Rogers

    Senior Chris Wainscott recorded a new facility record in the men’s hammer throw with a personal best of 58.57m (192′ 2″). He set the previous record of 56.36m (184′ 11″) at last year’s inaugural App State Open and his 2024 personal best moves him to fifth in the App State all-time list. Freshman Nick Lane rounded out the top-five with a personal best of his own with a toss of 45.05m (147′ 10″). In the women’s hammer throw, junior Daiyanna Cooper clinched first with a toss of 52.11m (171′ 0″).

    On the track, senior Jasmine Donohue stopped the clock at 4:54.55 for a personal best and second-place finish in the MJ Harrelson Women’s Mile. Fellow senior Elizabeth Fuller rounded out the top-five with a personal best of 5:03.52. In the men’s invitational mile, sophomore Ethan Lipham placed third with a personal best of 4:03.91. Senior Ben Datte also registered a third-place finish in the invitational section of the men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 9:43.97.

  • Boyd fuels Mountaineers’ walk-off win, 12-11

    By Matt Present. BOONE, N.C. – With two on and one out in the bottom of the ninth inning and the score deadlocked at 11, CJ Boyd chopped a base hit over the drawn-in infield to give App State a 12-11 walk-off win over ETSU, Tuesday night at Smith Stadium.

    The game-winning single marked the Mountaineers third walk-off win of the season, and came almost exactly a year after Boyd blasted a walk-off home run to beat JMU.

    App State (23-14-1, 8-9-1) opened the ballgame in impressive fashion. Trey Tujetsch retired the first eight Buccaneers’ batters of the ballgame and nine of the ten he faced overall. The offense gave the right-hander some early run support, scoring three runs in the first inning, highlighted by an RBI single from Adam Quintero.

    Photo by Flaco Suarez-Robles for High Country Sports

    The Mountaineers plated two more in the third. Drew Holderbach, who reached base four times in the ballgame, led off with a single, extending his on-base streak to 38 consecutive games. After a double from Banks Tolley, Boyd chopped an RBI single, and Quintero added his second RBI hit in as many innings later in the frame to get the Black and Gold out to a 5-0 head start. Tolley extended his hitting streak to ten straight games with a 4-for-5 effort.

    After ETSU (24-14, 6-6) got on the board for the first time with a three-run fourth inning, App State responded by batting around in the home half of the frame. Boyd, who finished with three RBIs, plated a run with a sac fly and Xavier Moronta added an RBI single through the right side. With two outs in the inning, Hunter Wilder came through with a two-run single to push the lead to 9-3.

    The Mountaineers added two more in the fifth, highlighted by Austin St. Laurent’s 11th home run of the season – a 421-foot blast to left – to go ahead 11-4.

    The Buccaneers flipped the script thereafter. After batting around in a three-run sixth inning, Ryan McCarthy blasted a three-run homer in the seventh, to bring the visitors to within one at 11-10.

    Then with the Mountaineers just four outs from victory, Blake Jacklin lifted a game-tying home run to left.

    After Zach Lewis (win, 2-0) fired a 1-2-3 top of the ninth inning, the Mountaineers wasted no time jump-starting the rally in the bottom half of the frame. St. Laurent led off with a single through the right side for his third hit of the game, and two batters later Tolley singled back up the middle, putting runners at the corners for Boyd who delivered the final blow.

    App State has now scored 56 runs over its last four games, tallying 60 hits over that span.

    The team will return to conference play this weekend as the Mountaineers head to Atlanta for a three-game set with Georgia State.

  • Two doubles, two triples and an HR don’t add up for App State in 13-5 loss to Troy

    By Matt Present. BOONE, N.C. – App State built up an early lead but was unable to hold it down the stretch, falling 13-5 to Troy in the series finale at Smith Stadium on Sunday.

    After Troy (25-12, 9-6) took a 1-0 lead on three singles in the top of the first, App State (20-13, 6-9) delivered a big counter punch in the home half of the inning. CJ Boyd led off with a single to left field, and Austin St. Laurent followed with an opposite field two-run home run, his ninth of the season, to jump start the App State offense. The Mountaineers have now hit 60 home runs on the season.

    It was a dog day afternoon on April 14 at Smith Stadiium. Unfortunately, it was the Troy Trojans howling in celebration after an 11-5 victory to claim the weekend series, 2-1. Photo by Sam Baechli, courtesy of App State Athletics

    Banks Tolley continued the first-inning rally with an infield single, and Braxton Church rifled an RBI triple into the right field corner to make it 3-1. Drew Holderbach plated Church with an RBI groundout.

    Hunter Wilder walked to begin the second inning, and with two outs, St. Laurent came through again with an RBI double to right field to increase the advantage to 5-1.

    The Mountaineers, however, were unable to muster much offensively following the second. The Black and Gold were held to just three hits over the final seven innings, and finished the day going just 1-for-14 with runners in scoring position, stranding 11 men on base on the afternoon.

    Braxton Church slides into third with a triple on April 14 vs. Troy in Game 3 of the weekend series. Photo by Talylor Newton, courtesy of App State Athletics

    The Trojans chipped away, scoring two in the third and one in the fifth to trim the deficit to just a run. Then in the sixth, Troy jumped ahead with back-to-back-to-back home runs, going in front 7-5.

    After 1.2 scoreless innings in relief from Cody Little, the Trojans pulled away with a five-run eighth inning and another run in the ninth. The Trojans finished with 18 hits in the ballgame.

    Logan Ross picked up the win for Troy, striking out six in four scoreless innings in relief.

    Holderbach finished with a two-hit game for the Mountaineers, extending his on-base streak to 33 consecutive games.

    App State will return to action on Tuesday, as the team travels to Western Carolina for a mid-week contest. First pitch is set for 5 p.m. on ESPN+.

    New women’s basketball head coach Alaura Sharp does the honors in throwing out the first pitch on April 14, in Game 3 of the weekend series with Troy. Photo by Taylor Newton, courtesy of App State Athletics

  • Mountaineers, Trojans split Saturday doubleheader

    By Matt Present. BOONE, N.C. – After falling, 17-2, in Game 1 of its doubleheader on Saturday, April 13, App State turned the page in a big way in Game 2, as Jackson Steensma set a career-high in strikeouts while the offense clubbed five home runs in an 11-1 win to earn the split at Smith Stadium.

    Game 1

    The Mountaineers (20-12, 6-8) fell victim to a trio of big innings in the opening game of the twin-bill as Troy batted around in the third, fifth and eighth innings, scoring four, five and seven runs respectively in those frames.

    At the plate the Mountaineers offense came from CJ Boyd, who belted his 12th home run of the season in the third, and plated Joseph Zamora, who reached on a double, with a sac fly in the sixth.

    Troy (24-12, 8-6) took advantage of 17 walks in the ballgame, which were the most issued by App State pitching in program history.

    App State finished with just six hits in the ballgame, as Luke Lyon tossed an eight-inning complete game for Troy.

    Banks Tolley celebrates a home run on April 13 vs. Troy in Game 2 of a doubleheader. Photo by Taylor Newton, courtesy of App State Athletics

    Game 2

    Jackson Steensma was dialed in from the get-go, retiring the first seven batters he faced in the ballgame, including four strikeouts over his first two innings of work.

    Steensma (win, 4-1) fanned two more in the third, and two more in the fifth on his way to setting a career-high with ten strikeouts, while allowing just one run on three hits in six innings of work.

    The lone run Steensma allowed was on a solo home run in the fourth inning, but he bounced back to strand a pair of runners in the frame. Steensma allowed just five base runners to reach in the ballgame and issued only one walk.

    The offense provided the sophomore right-hander with plenty of support. Banks Tolley gave the Mountaineers the early lead in the first inning with a solo home run to left field.

    Jackson Steensma had all the right stuff in Game 2 of App State’s Saturday doubleheader vs. Troy on April 13. Photo by David Katzenmeier, courtesy of App State Athletics

    Boyd blasted a no-doubt home run in the third inning to push the lead to 2-0. The long ball was the 30th of Boyd’s career, tying Wes Hobson (2007-10) for fourth most in program history.

    Leading 2-1 in the fifth, the Mountaineers blew the game open, batting around in the frame. After infield singles from Boyd and Austin St. Laurent, Tolley clocked a three-run home run for his second blast of the game to push the lead to 6-1. Tolley has now hit 14 home runs this season, bringing him within three of the program record with at least 19 games to play.

    After a Trojan pitching change, Braxton Church continued the rally, lifting an opposite field shot to left for his fifth home run of the season.

    App State added a pair of runs in the eighth on back-to-back doubles from Hunter Wider and Zamora, who came into score on a wild pitch.

    Leading 9-1 in the bottom of the seventh, Adam Quintero reached on a two-out single. Following another Troy pitching change, Graham Smiley smoked a walk-off home run to left field, giving the Mountaineers an 11-1, run-rule victory.

    Saturday marked the second time this season, and just the fourth in program history that the Mountaineers have hit five home runs in a game.

    The doubleheader split sets up a rubber game of the series on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Smith Stadium.

  • App State can’t quite rally back after JMU’s five first inning HRs in 13-9 loss

    By David Rogers. HARRISONBURG, Va. — Take away the first inning and App State won the baseball game on April 5 at James Madison. But when the Dukes opened the game with three consecutive home runs off the bats of Fenwick Trimble, Mike Mancini, and Coleman Calabrese, and then added two more solo shots at the bottom of the batting order (Jason Schiavone and Wyatt Peifer) as JMU batted around in the bottom of the first for a 7-0 start… well, it just proved to much of a deficit for the Mountaineers to overcome in losing, 13-9 on a chilly, cloudy day at Eagle Field in front of announced attendance of 434.

    After the first inning long ball explosion, James Madison primarily played small ball to manufacture another run in the second inning and three more in the third frame while starting pitcher Jaden Kinsler kept the App State bats all but silenced. The 6-4, 210 lb. sophomore hurler from Glen Allen, Va. retired the side, three up-three down, in each of the first three innings as the Dukes built an 11-0 early lead.

    Mountaineer fans know, however, that the 2024 edition of App State baseball is a dangerous bunch, offensively, and they began to cut into the 11-run deficit in the top of the fourth. Austin St. Laurent drove a single to left, then Banks Tolley drew a 4-pitch walk. Kinsler appeared to be in some discomfort on the mound, favoring his left throwing shoulder. And after he hit two consecutive batters — Braxton Church to load the bases and Drew Holderbach to force in the Mountaineers’ first run — JMU head coach Marlin Ikenberry and an entourage believed to have included pitching coach Travis Ferrick and athletic trainer Jonathan Leonard hurried out to the mound to talk with Kinsler, eventually pulling him.

    The Dukes brought in junior righthander Todd Mozoki to face the Mountaineers. He promptly walked App State shortstop Adam Quintero, forcing Tolley home for a second run. Then, with runners in scoring position at second and third, APP rightfielder Hunter Wilder laced a single through the right side. Church and Holderbach both scored on the play. Although Mozoki got the final two outs to end the Mountaineer rally, the top of the fourth had breathed new life into the App State lineup.

    APP scored three more runs in the top of the fifth inning. C J Boyd singled up the middle, Tolley doubled down the left field line with Boyd beating a wild,relay throw home by the shortstop with Tolley advancing to third on the throwing error. Church followed with an RBI ground-out, scoring Tolley. Holderbach kept the inning alive with a single to left, setting up an RBI double by Quintero down the left field line that died in the outfield corner (Holderbach scoring).

    Meanwhile, the Mountaineers were getting some strong pitching help from reliever Grey LaSpaluto, blanking the Dukes in the 4th, 5th and 6th innings. The senior righthander struck out five while walking five of the dozen batters he faced, with one wild pitch, but allowing no runs on no hits in the 2.2 innings on the rubber.

    The Dukes did score their final two runs in the bottom of the 7th inning, but App State countered with their final two runs in the top of the 8th.

    With the loss, the Mountaineers fall to 18-9 overall, 5-5 in Sun Belt Conference play. James Madison’s record improves to 17-12 overall, 4-6 in SBC play.

    The teams look to complete the 3-game weekend series on April 6 (first pitch at 4 p.m.) and April 7 (1 p.m.).

    TOP PERFORMERS

    • JMU – Fenwick Trimble: 3-4, 3 runs scored, 2 RBIs, HR, walk, stolen base
    • JMU – Mike Mancini: 2-4, 2 runs scored, 3 RBIs, HR, sacrifice fly, stolen base
    • JMU – Kyle Langley: 1-3, 1 run scored, 2 RBIs, HR, walk
    • JMU – Jason Schiavone: 1-2, 2 runs scored, 1 RBI, HR, 2 walks, stolen base
    • JMU – Wyatt Peifer: 1-2, 3 runs scored, 1 RBI, HR, walk, hit by pitch
    • APP – Austin St. Laurent: 2-5, 1 run scored, 2 RBIs, 2B
    • APP – Banks Tolley: 1-4, 2 runs scored, 1 RBI, 2B, walk
    • APP – C J Boyd: 2-5, 1 run scored
    • APP – Braxton Church: 0-3, 1 run scored, 1 RBI, hit by pitch
    • APP – Drew Holderbach: 1-4, 2 runs scored, 1 RBI, hit by pitch
    • APP – Adam Quintero: 1-4, 2 RBIs, 2B, walk
    • APP – Hunter Wilder: 1-4, 2 RBIs
    • APP – Grey LaSpaluto: pitched 2.2 scoreless innings in relief, 5 strikeouts, 5 walks
    • APP – Max Tramontana: pitched 1.2 scoreless innings in relief, 3 strikeouts, one wild pitch, 16 of 20 total pitches were strikes

  • Kerns awarded contract extension through 2029-30 as App State MBB head coach

    By Jacob Plecker. BOONE, N.C. – On the heels of a record-breaking season, App State head men’s basketball Dustin Kerns has signed a contract extension that runs through the 2029-30 season, Director of Athletics Doug Gillin announced Friday. The extension was approved by Chancellor Sheri Everts and the Appalachian State University Board of Trustees.

    “Dustin and his staff have turned App State Men’s Basketball into a perennial contender for conference titles and postseason berths, and we are excited to see the program’s continued upward trajectory under his leadership,” Gillin said. “With 27 wins, the first regular-season Sun Belt title, historic home crowds and national television appearances, Dustin’s team showed App State can compete among the best in college basketball, and we look forward to continued success for the program and our student-athletes both on and off the court.”

    Sun Belt Coach of the Year Dustin Kerns speaks to the press following the Mountaineers’ thrilling OT victory over Georgia Southern March 9. Photo courtesy of Sun Belt Sports.

    The Mountaineers set several program records in the 2023-24 season in Kerns’ fifth year at the helm, tallying a program-best 27 wins, an undefeated record at home for the first time in the Division I era, a Sun Belt Conference regular-season championship and an NIT appearance for the first time since the 2006-07 season. App State also set the Holmes Center attendance record, hosted the first two sellouts at the Holmes Center in over a decade and welcomed four of the six largest crowds in the building’s history.

    Fans can support the program by putting down a deposit on 2024-25 season tickets today.

    App State is one of just 23 Division I teams with at least 27 wins and one of only 12 teams with at least 16 conference wins this season. Additionally, the Mountaineers tied the 1988-89 team for the most nonconference wins in program history with 10 while defeating a Power Five opponent in back-to-back years for the first time since the 2006 and 2007 seasons.

    App State head coach Dustin Kerns in App State’s Feb. 15 win over Marshall. Photographic image by Michael Mann Jr, Courtesy of App State Athletics.

    Adding to the team success, the Mountaineers posted three wins against teams that made the NCAA Tournament this season and were the only team in the country to be undefeated in both Quad 1 and Quad 2 games. App State was the only team in the nation to post three winning streaks of at least eight games this season.

    “We are so thankful to our Board of Trustees, Chancellor Everts and Doug Gillin for the confidence to keep our program moving forward,” Kerns said. “Thank you to our student-athletes and our coaching staff who are the reason we do this. We are thrilled at the direction and investment that has been shown to make App State Basketball one of the best programs out there.”

    “Our students and fan base have made the Holmes Center one of the best game day atmospheres in the Sun Belt. Myself, Brittany, Emory and Riggs love being Mountaineers and we are so excited to continue to be a part of this incredible Boone community.”

    Kerns has not posted a losing season in his five years at App State, making him the first Mountaineer head coach to secure five consecutive winning seasons since Tom Apke did so from 1987-1992. His 97 wins across his tenure are the most wins by a Mountaineer head coach over a five-year stretch in the Division I era.

    Because of the Mountaineers’ success, Kerns was named the Sun Belt Coach of the Year, marking App State’s first conference coach of the year since Houston Fancher took home the award in 2003. Kerns was also named the NABC All-District 23 Coach of the Year and was a finalist for both the Jim Phelan and Hugh Durham Coach of the Year.

    Dustin Kerns was pacing the floor on Feb. 28, but needn’t have worried with a 20+ point lead most of the game vs. Old Dominion.Photographic image by David Rogers

    A program-record four players received Sun Belt honors this past season under Kerns’ tutelage, which included two first team all-conference selections for the first time since 1999-00. App State has seen six players garner All-Sun Belt honors in Kerns’ tenure and four first-team selections.

    The 2023-24 Mountaineers featured one of the most efficient offenses and defenses in the Sun Belt as they led the league in scoring defense while also boasting the fourth-best scoring offense, leading to the second-best scoring margin in the Sun Belt at 11.2. The Mountaineers have led the league in scoring defense each of the past three seasons and have finished in the top two every year under Kerns.

    Bryant Greene, seated, is congratulated by App State men’s basketball head coach Dustin Kerns for his play on Dec. 5 against Central Penn, and his contributions toward a 111-35 win over the Knights. Photographic image by David Rogers

    Statistically, the Mountaineers ranked in the top 10 in the country in blocks (first), blocks per game (first), field-goal percentage defense (fourth), fouls per game (third) and rebounds per game (fifth). App State’s 230 blocks in 2023-24 set a program record.

    Capping off the historic season, the Mountaineers’ NIT appearance marked the third time in the Kerns era that the Mountaineers have made the postseason. App State made the NCAA Tournament after claiming the Sun Belt Tournament crown in 2020-21 while also participating in the Basketball Classic in the 2021-22 season. Before Kerns, the Mountaineers hadn’t made a postseason appearance since 2009-10.

    Off the floor, Mountaineer student-athletes have experienced success under Kerns as three student-athletes made the 2023 fall semester Dean’s List. The Mountaineers have achieved at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA each of the past two semesters.