CHATTANOOGA, TENN. - Appalachian State University women's basketball outlasted a tough Davidson team Friday morning and was able to earn a 73-63 win over the Wildcats in the quarterfinals of the 2011 Southern Conference Tournament. The victory is Appalachian's (24-5) first-ever quarterfinal win over Davidson (14-17) and marks the second straight year that the Apps advance to the semifinals of the conference tournament.

After Appalachian headed into the half up 10 points, it was Davidson that came out on fire in the second period, outscoring the Black and Gold 18-9 in the opening nine and a half minutes of second half action.

Davidson gave the Mountaineers all they could handle, and ASU tried to withstand the Wildcats' charge, as DC pulled within one point, twice, with the Black and Gold holding tightly to their 44-43 advantage.

Fortunately for the Apps however, Anna Freeman came alive and was too much for Davidson to handle. The sophomore provided Appalachian with a much-needed spark, as she helped the Apps go on a 12-4 scoring streak and jump on top 56-47.

Freeman scored eight points during the run, while Ashlen Dewart posted the other four.

Freeman closed out the contest with a game-best 21 points, scoring 19 of them in the second half. She also had six rebounds, four steals and three assists.

Despite Davidson coming as close as six points off a Kristen Johnsen layup and a Laura Murray bucket with a little over two minutes left to play, final free throws down the stretch by Sam Ramirez and Anna Freeman enabled ASU to secure its 10-point victory.

Johnsen was Davidson's leading scorer, as she tallied 20 points on 9-16 shooting.

Getting out of the gates a little sluggish, the Mountaineers were finally able to find their rhythm and ignite their offense, as ASU went on a 12-2 run midway through the first period, to take a commanding 28-13 lead.

Appalachian's offense was evenly distributed as Courtney Freeman contributed six points during the spurt, and Canesha Edwards, Kelsey Sharkey and Ramirez all got on the scoreboard as well.

Sharkey provided a huge boost for the Apps, as she totaled eight points in the game, a game-high eight rebounds and tied a career-high, dishing out six assists.

Despite Davidson pulling within eight with just mere seconds left until halftime, Sharkey converted a jumper and the Apps were able to maintain their double-digit lead, heading into the break up 35-25.

The Apps closed out the first half shooting a stout 51.7 percent from the floor and ended the contest shooting 54.4 percent from the field, marking it the ninth time this season ASU has shot 50 percent or better.

Second-half action was a battle and the Wildcats made it interesting, but Appalachian came up big when it counted and went on to grab the win.

The No.1 seeded Apps will play the winner of the No.4/No.5 game between Elon and Furman in the semifinals of SoCon Tournament. ASU will battle its opponent Sunday, March 6 at Noon, with the contest being televised on SportSouth.

Notes: The 24 overall wins tied the most wins in school history … the win is Appalachian's second straight in the quarterfinal round of the tournament … ASU now advances to the semifinals for the second time under head coach Darcie Vincent and for the 14th time in school history … ASU has now beaten Davidson six straight times.