BOONE, N.C.  – Sophomore Bentlee Critcher drilled a 39-yard field goal with 29 seconds to go to lift Appalachian State University football to a thrilling 31-29 come-from-behind win over UL Monroe on Saturday afternoon at Kidd Brewer Stadium.

After falling behind 29-28 with 1:42 left in the ballgame, Appalachian State (4-5, 3-2 Sun Belt) drove 53 yards in 1:13 to set up Critcher's game-winning kick.

Freshman quarterback Taylor Lamb engineered the go-ahead drive, completing seven-, 12- and eight-yard passes to Simms McElfresh, Montez McGuire and Marcus Cox, respectively, to move the Mountaineers from their own 25 yard line to the ULM 22 in just 73 seconds. Malachi Jones, Appalachian State's leading receiver on the afternoon with seven catches for 82 yards, also drew two key pass-interference penalties on the drive.

After Critcher split the uprights from the left hash to give the Mountaineers the two-point lead, Appalachian State was called for consecutive penalties on the ensuing kickoff and UL Monroe (3-6, 2-3 Sun Belt) took over on its own 40 yard line with 22 seconds left on the clock. However, App State forced a pair of incomplete passes to seal the victory.

Appalachian State, which fell behind 20-7 early in the second quarter, scored two touchdowns in the final 2:04 of the first half to take a 21-20 halftime advantage.

However, the Mountaineers' lead was short-lived, as ULM regained a 23-21 advantage early in the third quarter on Justin Manton's third field goal of the game.

The score remained 23-21 until late in the final period when Cox capped a 12-play, 89-yard drive with a seven-yard touchdown run that gave the Mountaineers a 28-23 lead with 6:10 left in the ballgame.

ULM responded with a 14-play drive, converting two fourth downs along the way, including a spectacular touchdown catch by Ajalen Holley on fourth-and-goal from the three yard line that gave the Warhawks a 29-28 lead with 1:42 left on the clock. ULM's two-point conversion try was no good, setting up the Mountaineers' game-winning drive.

Appalachian State totaled 380 yards of offense against ULM, 30 more than the Sun Belt's top-ranked defense had surrendered per game coming in and 137 more than it allowed in last Saturday's 21-16 loss at Texas A&M.

Lamb led the way, completing 25-of-35 passes for 276 yards and two touchdowns. Cox accounted for 150 all-purpose yards (94 rushing and 56 receiving) and McGuire added 59 yards on three receptions. Most impressively, the Mountaineers' offensive line did not surrender a sack against the Warhawks, which came in to the game with a conference-best 29 sacks on the season.

Defensively, Appalachian limited ULM to just 299 yards, marking the third-straight game and fifth time in nine games this season that it held its opponent to less than 350 yards.

The stout defensive effort was led by a relentless pass rush that recorded a season-high six sacks, including one-and-a-half apiece by first-time starter Nathaniel Norwood and senior Deuce Robinson.

Appalachian also tallied seven quarterback hurries (including two by Robinson) and six pass breakups.

True freshman Eric Boggs led all players with 11 tackles.

Riding its first three-game winning streak since winning the final three games of the 2012 regular season, Appalachian State begins a grueling two-game road stint next Saturday at Arkansas State (6-3, 4-1 Sun Belt). Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. ET at Centennial Bank Stadium in Jonesboro, Ark.

NOTES: Appalachian State won when trailing after three quarters for the first time since it overcame a 28-24 deficit to defeat Georgia Southern, 31-28, on Nov. 3, 2012 … Appalachian won for the first time in nine all-time games versus opponents from the state of Louisiana … UL Monroe lost for the first time in three all-time games in the state of North Carolina … the Mountaineers moved to 21-1 in their last 22 home games played in the month of November … true freshman Shaedon Meadors made one of the most spectacular catches of the year in college football when he hauled in a diving one-handed grab on a terrific throw from Lamb with 18 seconds left in the first half … Meadors' 31-yard catch was originally ruled a touchdown but after video review, it was determined that he was down on the one yard line … Appalachian scored one play later on a one-yard touchdown pass from Lamb to Barrett Burns (Woodstock, Ga./Etowah) to take the 21-20 halftime lead … junior Tacoi Sumler (Miami, Fla./Christopher Columbus) scored the first touchdown of his career on an eight-yard slant from Lamb in the second quarter … App State's top six tacklers included four true freshman (Boggs, Devan Stringer – 7, A.J. Howard – 6 and Latrell Gibbs – 5) and two sophomores (Kennan Gilchrist – 7 and Norwood – 6).