App State Hosts Clemson, Winthrop, Wofford for Black & Gold Invitational

BOONE, N.C. - The App State volleyball team is set to host its second home tournament of the season, the Black and Gold Invitational, on Sept. 12-14. The Mountaineers will clash with Clemson at 7 p.m. on Thursday. On Friday, App State will take on Winthrop at 6 p.m.. The Mountaineers will close the tournament on Saturday at 4 p.m. against Wofford.
 
Thursday's 7 p.m. match against Clemson is Student Appreciation Day, where there will be a free t-shirt giveaway for the first 150 students. The bounce house will also make its return to the fan zone for the Thursday match. Free pizza for all fans will highlight Friday's 6 p.m. match against Winthrop. Saturday's 4 p.m. match against Wofford is JMKC Bring a Friend Day. All JMKC members can bring one friend (eighth grade or younger) for free. Following Saturday's match will be an autograph session with the team.  
 
Last Time Out
Junior Maya Winterhoff and sophomore Ava Leahy earned spots on the Mountaineer Classic All-Tournament Team for their efforts on the court last weekend. Winterhoff, who was also named to the Bobcat Invitational All-Tournament Team, totaled 31 kills on the weekend for a hitting percentage of .429. Across three matches, Winterhoff averaged 2.82 kills per set and 3.32 points per set. Leahy tallied 22 kills for a hitting percentage of .378 on the weekend. Additionally, Leahy made seven blocks (one solo, six assists) and averaged two kills per set and 2.36 points per set. The duo appeared in all 11 sets across the Mountaineer Classic's three matches. 
 
The Mountaineers opened the Mountaineer Classic with a 3-2 (16-25, 25-20, 25-27, 25-15, 15-13) victory over ETSU for Education Day. Winterhoff and freshman Maddie Smith led the team with 15 kills apiece. Winterhoff also recorded a hitting percentage of .464 and led the team with four blocks. Freshman Julianna Horta and redshirt junior Addison Heidemann each made double-figure assists, with Horta making 27 and Heidemann making 20. Junior Kenady Roper made a team-high 10 digs on the morning. App State outpaced ETSU in kills (57-52), assists (55-43), and digs (45-38). 
 
In Friday's nightcap, the Black and Gold fell short to Kennesaw State in three hard-fought sets (27-29, 20-25, 20-25). Smith led the team in kills and digs, with eight kills and 13 digs on the night. Horta tallied a team-high 16 assists, while Heidemann made 12 assists. 
 
App State closed out its first home tournament of the season with a 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-22) sweep of Gardner-Webb. Smith led the charge with 14 kills, followed by Leahy, who slammed down 10 kills for a hitting percentage of .667. Horta led the team with 19 assists and was a mere two digs away from a double-double with eight. Heidemann registered her second double-double of the season with 13 assists and 11 digs, and led the team in the aces category, serving up three against the Bulldogs. Sophomore Caroline Farthing led the team in the digs category with 13 on the afternoon. App State outpaced the Bulldogs in kills (45-31), aces (7-2), assists (37-28), and digs (55-48). 
 
Ranked Mountaineers
Winterhoff continues to lead the Sun Belt with a hitting percentage of .453 and ranks 23rd in the NCAA. She also ranks fourth in the league in the points (92) and total blocks (23) categories in the league. Roper rounds out the top-10 in the league in the total digs category. App State ranks third in the league for team assists (266) and fourth for team kills (286). 
 
Scouting the Tournament Field 
App State vs. Clemson | Thursday | 7 p.m. | ESPN+ 
App State and Clemson have met on 14 occasions, with Clemson leading the series 12-2. The Mountaineers and Tigers last met on Sept. 10, 2019, where the Tigers walked away with a 3-0 sweep. App State last beat Clemson on Aug. 29, 2015 with a 3-0 sweep. 
 
Mia McGrath and Aźyah Dailey lead the Tigers in the kills category with 58 kills and 55 kills, respectively. Dailey averages 3.44 kills per set, while McGrath averages 3.05 kills per set. In the assists category, Katherine Sandt leads the team with 171, averaging nine assists per set. Sandt rounds out the top-five in the ACC in the total assists and assists per set categories. Devan Taylor leads the team with 79 digs (4.16 per set) and ranks fifth in the ACC for digs per set and sixth for total digs. Indigo Young leads the team with 17 total blocks on the season, while Joki Neea-Maria leads the team with seven aces. 
 
Clemson is 3-2 (0-0 ACC) so far this season and was picked 14th in the ACC Preseason Coaches Poll. The Tigers opened the 2024 campaign with a 3-0 sweep of Loyola Chicago before falling to Loyola Marymount in four sets. Clemson picked up a pair of 3-1 victories over Western Michigan and Maryland Eastern Shore. The Tigers come to Boone after a 3-1 loss to Georgia Southern. Around the ACC, Clemson ranks second in the league in digs per set. 
 
App State vs. Winthrop | Friday | 6 p.m. | ESPN+
App State holds a 19-7 lead in its series with Winthrop, which includes a 13-match win-streak from 1989 to 1997. The Mountaineers and Eagles last met on Sept. 20, 2019, where the Eagles managed a 3-1 victory in Rock Hill, S.C. 
 
Preseason All-Big South selection Avery Jolley leads the Eagles in the kills category with 49 on the season, averaging 3.5 kills per set. She also ranks fourth in the Big South in the kills per set category. Isabella Murrary, who was also a preseason all-conference selection, leads the team in the assists category with 138 (9.86 per set) and aces category with seven. Murray leads the Big South in assists per set and ranks third in the league for aces per set. Rachel McCollum leads the Eagles in the digs category with 42 (three per set) and ties with Lexie Vick for the lead in the blocks category, each totaling eight on the year. 
 
The Eagles enter the Black and Gold Invitational with a 2-2 (0-0 Big South) record. Opening the season with a set of home-and-home matches against Virginia Tech, Winthrop fell to the Hokies in five sets on Aug. 30 in Rock Hill, S.C., before sweeping the Hokies on Sept. 1 in Blacksburg, Va. At the VCU invitational, Winthrop swept Lafayette before falling to VCU in three sets. In the SoCon standings, Winthrop ranks second in hitting percentage and third in kills per set and assists per set. 
 
App State vs. Wofford  | Saturday | 4 p.m. | ESPN+ 
App State holds a 21-7 lead in its series with Wofford and defeated the Terriers, 3-2, on Sept. 2, 2022 at Wofford's home tournament. 
 
Laney Klika leads the team, SoCon, and NCAA in digs per set, averaging 6.06. She also ranks third in the SoCon for total digs (109). Sarah MacLean leads the team in the kills category, totaling 68 and averaging 3.24 per set for a hitting percentage of .345. In the assists category, Taylor Pecht leads the Terriers with 146 assists (6.64 per set), while Maddy Frazier follows close behind with 103 assists (4.68 per set). The Terriers' top blockers are Annemarie Rakoski (17 blocks) and Bradley Brown (15 blocks). Brown earned SoCon Offensive Player of the Week honors for her efforts at the Wofford Invitational last week, marking the Terriers' first offensive player of the week honor since 2022.
 
Wofford is 4-2 (0-0 SoCon) on the season thus far and enters the tournament on a three-match win-streak after sweeping Queens, Campbell, and Presbyterian at the Wofford Invitational (Sept. 6 and 7). At Auburn's War Eagle Invitational on Aug. 30 and 31, the Terriers registered a 3-2 victory over North Alabama, but fell to Georgia Southern (3-1) and Auburn (3-1). Wofford leads the SoCon in assists per set, digs per set and kills per set. Additionally, Wofford stands second in the NCAA in the digs per set category and eighth in the kills per set category.
 
Looking Ahead
The Mountaineers will head to Winston-Salem, N.C. to close out non-conference play at the Wake Forest Invitational on Sept. 20-21. App State will clash with Wake Forest at 7 p.m. on Sept. 20 before facing Davidson at 4 p.m. on Sept. 21 at 4 p.m. Friday's match will be available to stream on ACCNX.  
 
Full Black & Gold Invitational Schedule
Thursday, Sept. 12
4:30 p.m. - Wofford vs. Winthrop | Live Stats | ESPN+
7 p.m. - App State vs. Clemson | Live Stats | ESPN+ | Tickets
 
Friday, Sept. 13
3:30 p.m. - Clemson vs. Wofford | Live Stats | ESPN+
6 p.m. - App State vs. Winthrop | Live Stats | ESPN+ | Tickets
 
Saturday, Sept. 14
1 p.m. - Winthrop vs. Clemson | Live Stats | ESPN+
4 p.m. - App State vs. Wofford | Live Stats | ESPN+ | Tickets