BOONE, N.C. – Appalachian State Softball announced its 2019 schedule on Wednesday. With 53 total games, 34 will be played in the Carolinas, including 20 home games.
"I am excited about our second season on the mountain with this team," head coach
Shelly Hoerner said. "Our culture and work ethic have changed quite a bit since last year which I feel will only enhance the success of our program."
The Mountaineers will open their season with a tournament at Elon University Feb. 8-10. First pitch is set for 3 p.m. on Feb. 8 against Elon. In Burlington, App State will also face Longwood and Eastern Kentucky.
The Apps' home opener will be a doubleheader against in-state opponent N.C. A&T on Feb. 16 beginning at 1 p.m. App State will hit the road for the College of Charleston Classic Feb. 22-24 before heading to Nashville, Tenn., for a tournament at Lipscomb University the weekend of March 1-3.
The first midweek competition will be a doubleheader on March 5 at Tennessee State. Other midweek opponents include Gardner-Webb (March 13), ETSU (March 27), N.C. Central (April 3), UNCG (April 10), Presbyterian (April 16) and Western Carolina (April 23).
Sun Belt play will begin in Boone with a series against Georgia Southern (March 8-10). The Mountaineers will travel to ULM March 15-17 and to Georgia State (March 22-24) before returning home for a series against South Alabama (March 29-31).
"As a team, we are all very aware of the level of competition that we will be playing," said
Jenny Dodd, a senior catcher. "The Sun Belt is one of the best conferences in the country, and we are preparing to be a top-tier program. The coaching staff has done a great job of making the expectations clear and giving us a ton of resources to prepare ourselves. We are all bough in and excited for this season."
App State will be at home for two weekends in April: April 12-14 against Louisiana and April 26-28 against UT Arlington. The Apps will travel to Texas State (April 5-7) and Troy (April 19-20) the other two April weekends.
The regular season wraps up in Conway, S.C., May 2-4 with a Sun Belt series against Coastal Carolina.
The Sun Belt Conference Tournament will be held in San Marcos, Texas, May 8-11. The 2019 season would be the first appearance in Sun Belt post-season play for App State.
"Every day we look for little improvements," Hoerner stated. "That's the key to our process here in this program. We do the little things right, and the big things will follow. As always, we want to win more. Who doesn't? We are looking to improve our overall win/loss percentage and make the Sun Belt Tournament this year, something that has not happened since App State has been in the Sun Belt. I am very encouraged with this team. They bring energy, passion and the will to win every day."
Hoerner and staff return for their second season at App State. In her first season as head coach, Hoerner lead the Mountaineers to a 17-35 record, the most wins since the 2014 season. She also boosted the team to double the amount of Sun Belt wins in any single season since joining the Sun Belt in 2014.
2019 Schedule
| Feb. 8 |
3 p.m. |
Elon |
Elon, N.C. |
| Feb. 9 |
10 a.m. |
Longwood |
Elon, N.C. |
| Feb. 9 |
4:45 p.m. |
Eastern Kentucky |
Elon, N.C. |
| Feb. 10 |
12:15 p.m. |
Elon |
Elon, N.C. |
| Feb. 16 |
1 p.m. |
N.C. A&T |
Boone, N.C. |
| Feb. 16 |
3 p.m. |
N.C. A&T |
Boone, N.C. |
| Feb. 22 |
2 p.m. |
Dartmouth |
Charleston, S.C. |
| Feb. 22 |
7 p.m. |
College of Charleston |
Charleston, S.C. |
| Feb. 23 |
1:15 p.m. |
Radford |
Charleston, S.C. |
| Feb. 23 |
5:45 p.m. |
Iowa State |
Charleston, S.C. |
| Feb. 24 |
1:30 p.m. |
Marshall |
Charleston, S.C. |
| Mar. 1 |
4 p.m. |
Lipscomb |
Nashville, Tenn. |
| Mar. 2 |
11 a.m. |
Eastern Illinois |
Nashville, Tenn. |
| Mar. 2 |
6:30 p.m. |
Miami (Ohio) |
Nashville, Tenn. |
| Mar. 3 |
1:30 p.m. |
Miami (Ohio) |
Nashville, Tenn. |
| Mar. 5 |
2 p.m. |
Tennessee State |
Nashville, Tenn. |
| Mar. 5 |
4:30 p.m. |
Tennessee State |
Nashville, Tenn. |
| Mar. 8 |
2 p.m. |
Georgia Southern |
Boone, N.C. |
| Mar. 9 |
1 p.m. |
Georgia Southern |
Boone, N.C. |
| Mar. 10 |
1 p.m. |
Georgia Southern |
Boone, N.C. |
| Mar. 13 |
3 p.m. |
Gardner-Webb |
Boone, N.C. |
| Mar. 13 |
5 p.m. |
Gardner-Webb |
Boone, N.C. |
| Mar. 15 |
7 p.m. |
ULM |
Monroe, La. |
| Mar. 16 |
3 p.m. |
ULM |
Monroe, La. |
| Mar. 17 |
1 p.m. |
ULM |
Monroe, La. |
| Mar. 22 |
5 p.m. |
Georgia State |
Panthersville, Ga. |
| Mar. 23 |
1 p.m. |
Georgia State |
Panthersville, Ga. |
| Mar. 24 |
1 p.m. |
Georgia State |
Panthersville, Ga. |
| Mar. 27 |
4 p.m. |
ETSU |
Johnson City, Tenn. |
| Mar. 29 |
5 p.m. |
South Alabama |
Boone, N.C. |
| Mar. 30 |
2 p.m. |
South Alabama |
Boone, N.C. |
| Mar. 31 |
12 p.m. |
South Alabama |
Boone, N.C. |
| Apr. 3 |
4 p.m. |
NCCU |
Boone, N.C. |
| Apr. 3 |
6 p.m. |
NCCU |
Boone, N.C. |
| Apr. 5 |
6:30 p.m. |
Texas State |
San Marcos, Texas |
| Apr. 6 |
3 p.m. |
Texas State |
San Marcos, Texas |
| Apr. 7 |
1 p.m. |
Texas State |
San Marcos, Texas |
| Apr. 10 |
4 p.m. |
UNCG |
Boone, N.C. |
| Apr. 10 |
6 p.m. |
UNCG |
Boone, N.C. |
| Apr. 12 |
6 p.m. |
Louisiana |
Boone, N.C. |
| Apr. 13 |
2 p.m. |
Louisiana |
Boone, N.C. |
| Apr. 14 |
12 p.m. |
Louisiana |
Boone, N.C. |
| Apr. 16 |
2 p.m. |
Presbyterian |
Clinton, S.C. |
| Apr. 16 |
4 p.m. |
Presbyterian |
Clinton, S.C. |
| Apr. 19 |
6 p.m. |
Troy |
Troy, Ala. |
| Apr. 19 |
8 p.m. |
Troy |
Troy, Ala. |
| Apr. 20 |
2 p.m. |
Troy |
Troy, Ala. |
| Apr. 23 |
2 p.m. |
Western Carolina |
Cullowhee, N.C. |
| Apr. 23 |
4 p.m. |
Western Carolina |
Cullowhee, N.C. |
| Apr. 26 |
5 p.m. |
UT Arlington |
Boone, N.C. |
| Apr. 27 |
2 p.m. |
UT Arlington |
Boone, N.C. |
| Apr. 28 |
12 p.m. |
UT Arlington |
Boone, N.C. |
| May 2 |
4 p.m. |
Coastal Carolina |
Conway, S.C. |
| May 3 |
4 p.m. |
Coastal Carolina |
Conway, S.C. |
| May 4 |
1 p.m. |
Coastal Carolina |
Conway, S.C. |
| May 8-11 |
TBA |
Sun Belt Tournament |
San Marcos, Texas |
All game times are EST.
