BOONE, N.C. - The App State women's basketball team will head out for a pair of road games this week, starting with a stop in Norfolk, Va., to take on Old Dominion on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. before trekking to Huntington, W. Va., to take on Marshall at 1 p.m. on Saturday. Both games will be available to stream on ESPN+.
Last Time Out
App State clinched a 63-60 victory over Coastal Carolina on Jan. 11 to rise to 8-7 on the season and 4-1 in Sun Belt play. Junior
Rylan Moffitt netted a season- and team-high 15 points against the Chanticleers, shooting a perfect 7-of-7 from the field and 1-of-1 from the arc. Moffitt was one point away from her career high of 16 points, which she set last season. For a fourth game this season, junior
Elena Pericic led the Mountaineers in the rebounds category, pulling down seven. She also combined with senior
Mara Neira for six of App State's 10 treys. Neira matched her career high of five steals, which she originally set on Nov. 24 against Richmond. Senior
Eleyana Tafisi dished out a team-high five assists.
Saturday's game marked the Mountaineers' fifth game this season where they drained 10 or more treys. It was also the third game that the Mountaineers recorded a season-high four blocked shots. App State tallied 20 assists against the Chants, which was four short of their season high of 24, set on Nov. 20 against Clinton College. The Chanticleers, who had received votes in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Women's Top-25, were held to seven second-chance points, nine assists and a 3-point percentage of 28.0%.
Around the Mountain
App State's top scorers are seniors
Emily Carver and
Zada Porter, who average 9.9 and 9.5 points per game, respectively. Additionally, Porter leads the team in the assists category, averaging 3.1 per game. Pericic leads the Mountaineers in rebounds, averaging 4.9 per contest, followed by Moffitt, who averages 4.4 rebounds per game. Moffitt and Percic also lead the team in blocks, both swatting away eight shots this season. In the steals category, Neira averages a team-high two steals a game in addition to her 8.7 points per game.
In conference-only play, Pericic leads the league in 3-point percentage (58.3%) and stands second in 3-pointers per game (2.8). Tafisi ranks second in assists (5.8) and Neira ranks fourth in steals (2.8). App State leads the league in assists, averaging 17.4 per conference contest. The Mountaineers stand second in made 3-pointers a game (8.6) and third in team field-goal percentage (43.1%). The Black and Gold also rank among the top-five in steals (8.6), team defensive rebounds (28.2), combined team rebounds (41.0), team 3-point percentage (36.4%), and scoring offense (73.2).
App State leads the league and is ranked No. 12 in the NCAA in bench points per game (29.5). The Mountaineers also lead the Sun Belt in field-goal percentage (43.0%) and assists per game (16.0) on the season. The Black and Gold stands third in the league in defensive rebounds per game (27.3) and 3-point percentage (33.9%). Individually, Neira ranks fourth in the Sun Belt in 3-point percentage (36.8%) as well as seventh in steals per game (2.0) and 3-pointers per game (2.13).
Series History vs. Old Dominion
In the series history between App State and Old Dominion, the Monarchs lead the series, 5-1. The Mountaineers and Monarchs last met on Feb. 22, 2024, in Boone. App State fell short, 81-62. Carver led the team, netting 14 points. She accounted for three of App State's six 3-point buckets.
Mariah Frazier and Moffitt combined for 16 rebounds, each grabbing eight.
Scouting Old Dominion
Old Dominion is 12-5 (4-1 SBC) and enters Wednesday's contest off a split weekend between Coastal Carolina and Marshall. The Monarchs suffered their first conference loss on Jan. 8 against Coastal Carolina, 80-77, and flipped the script against Marshall, defeating the Thundering Herd, 80-75, on Jan. 11. The Monarchs have recorded a pair of five-game win streaks from Nov. 9 to Nov. 26 and Dec. 17 to Jan. 4.
En'Dya Buford is the Monarchs' top scorer, averaging 12.2 points per game. Buford also leads the team in the assists category, dishing out an average of 3.7 per game. Simone Cunningham and Buford lead ODU in rebounds, averaging 6.2 and 6.1 rebounds per contest, respectively.
In conference-only action, Old Dominion leads the league in team offensive rebounds, averaging 17.2 per conference clash. Additionally, ODU stands second in scoring offense (75.2), team 3-point percentage (37.4), and combined team rebounds (44.8). Cunningham ranks second in blocked shots (1.8), while Buford checks in at second in steals (2.8), third in free-throw percentage (91.7%) and fourth in assists (4.8).
The Monarchs were ranked 24th in last week's CollegeInsider.com Women's Mid-Major Top-25. Old Dominion leads the Sun Belt and ranks seventh in the NCAA in offensive rebounds per game (16.9) for the season. ODU also stands second in the league and 10th in the NCAA in rebounds per game (43.53). Individually, Buford stands in the Sun Belt's top-five in seven categories, including free throws (68), steals (39), free-throw percentage (81.0%), steals per game (2.29), assists (63), and assists per game (3.7).
On the Horizon
The Mountaineers will head to Huntington, W. Va. to take on Marshall on Saturday at 1 p.m. before returning to Boone for a four-game homestand. App State's homestand will feature clashes with Old Dominion (Jan. 23), Georgia Southern (Jan. 25), Louisiana (Jan. 30), and Georgia State (Feb. 1). Each game will be available to stream on ESPN+.
