BOONE, N.C. - Frances Hernandez scored a career-high 26 points and Catherine Williams tied a school record with seven blocked shots to help Appalachian State University women's basketball to its first win of the year, 65-52, against Alabama A&M on Monday.
The Mountaineers (1-3) shook off the early struggles from last Friday to score the first 11 points of the game over eight minutes. During the stretch, AAMU missed its first 10 shots. Over the span, Brittany Mixon scored six points while Sam Ramirez dished out three assists.
Mixon fouled out of the game with a season-high 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting to go along with five rebounds in 21 minutes. Ramirez pitched in seven points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals in the victory.
The Bulldogs (2-2) pulled within 21-20 late in the half, but a pair of three-pointers and paint buckets from Williams, the Apps finished the half on a 7-2 run over the final four to take a 28-22 advantage to the locker room.
Williams pulled down eight rebounds in the first half and finished the game with 14 boards to go along with seven points, seven blocks and two steals. Her block total matched Valorie Whiteside's mark, set against Furman in 1985. The team's nine blocks were just one shy of the record, set in 2005 against Western Carolina.
The Apps shot 40 percent in the opening period compared to just 24 percent for the visitors. ASU converted 3-of-8 treys while AAMU missed all six deep attempts. The Apps shot 41.8 percent for the game, sinking 23-of-55 shots. The Bulldogs hit just 28 percent of their attempts on the night.
Appalachian started the second half in the same manner, with a 9-2 run spanning just more than three minutes. Alabama A&M closed the gap with a 9-0 run of its own over the next four minutes. The Bulldogs then tied the score at 41-41 with seven minutes to play before Haley Hackett scored four-straight points to spark an 8-0 run over the next two minutes.
Hackett finished the game with four points and three rebounds over 11 minutes, as she battled foul trouble with four fouls. Sad? Means added a team-high five assists to go along with two points and five boards in the game.
The Mountaineers finished the game on a 24-11 run after the tie, including 13 from Hernandez, who scored half of her points in the final six minutes of the game. She shot 10-for-17 from the floor and 4-of-7 from beyond the arc in 34 minutes. She added three rebounds, three steals and two assists.
Her 26 points were the most since Whitney Tossie dropped 27 against Georgia Southern last March.
ASU recorded a season-low seven offensive rebounds and were out-boarded 47-41 in the game. It was a night of firsts for the Mountaineers, as head coach Darcie Vincent picked up her first win with the Black and Gold. Vincent is 265-104 overall in her 13th season as a coach. Center Karina Mill swatted her first career block in the game to go along with two rebounds, Charmene Means scored her first career point with a second-half free throw.
The Mountaineers play their final pre-conference game of the season on Wednesday at East Tennessee State. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. in Johnson City.
