BOONE, N.C. – App State Baseball will return home on Tuesday to host High Point in a midweek matchup. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. on ESPN+. The first 230 fans in attendance will receive a voucher for a Mountaineers pint glass which can be redeemed as they exit the game or at the conclusion of the game from the marketing table at the front entrance.
SCOUTING THE MOUNTAINEERS
App State (12-10, 2-4) took its weekend series from Old Dominion, recording its first two wins of Sun Belt play. The offense tallied 36 hits across the three games, scoring ten runs in each of the two wins.
Ethan Wilson was superb out of the bullpen, combining for 5.2 scoreless innings across two outings and earning the win in Sunday's rubber game.
Gage Peterson recorded at least six strikeouts for his sixth consecutive outing during Saturday's start. Offensively,
Charlie Evans gave the team a boost, batting in the leadoff spot for the first time this season, while
Riley Luft extended his hitting streak to 11 consecutive games. The Mountaineers as a team rank 27th nationally in K/9 with a 10.7 rate, while their .296 team average is 65
th in the country.
SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
The Panthers (14-9, 4-2) on the season highlighted by a series win at No. 9 Florida followed by a midweek victory at Duke in non-conference play. The Panthers are coming off a weekend sweep of Presbyterian, including a walk-off win in the tenth inning on Friday. High Point is coming off a program-record 39 victories in 2025 and was picked to win the Big South for the second consecutive season. The Panthers are led at the plate by Lane Allen who is batting .333 on the season, while Jake McCarter's seven home runs pace the power department. The Panthers lead the Big South in home runs and slugging percentage.
SERIES HISTORY
App State and High Point have met 62 times in program history with the Mountaineers holding a 37-25 edge in a series between two teams separated by just over 100 miles. The two teams split the season series last year, with the Panthers winning 13-7 in High Point and the Mountaineers winning on a 10
th inning walk-off in Boone. The Mountaineers have won seven of the last eight games in the series and have not lost to the Panthers in Boone since 2014.
NATIONAL RECOGNITION
Four App State Baseball players have garnered national recognition heading into the 2026 season.
Nico Soul was projected to be the No. 1 impact freshman in the Sun Belt,
Gage Peterson (31) and
Carter Stanford (48) were both projected as top 50 draft prospects within the conference, while
Tanner Nolan was ranked as the 153rd best starting pitcher across Division I baseball. The recognition has continued into the season, as
Jonathan Xuereb was named to the Brooks Wallace Award Watch List, given to the top shortstop in college baseball, on March 4 and Peterson was named to the National Pitcher of the Year Watch List on March 11.
LED BY LUFT
Sophomore outfielder
Riley Luft has been on a surge for the Mountaineers, hitting safely in each of his last 11 games. Over that stretch, Luft is 15-for-41 (.366) with 17 RBIs, raising his average from .172 to .286 during that span. Luft played in 42 games as a freshman (starting 36) last season and has played and started 20 this season.
GAS FROM GAGE
Right-handed pitcher
Gage Peterson has been sensational for the Mountaineers through six starts this season. He has struck out at least six batters in all six outings this season. Peterson fired seven scoreless innings, striking out nine, against No. 16 Coastal Carolina on March 21. It came on the heels of a career-high 11 strikeouts against Presbyterian the weekend prior. Peterson is 3-0 this season with a 1.35 ERA and has struck out 47 batters in 33.0 innings of work. Peterson ranks second in the Sun Belt and 22
nd nationally in ERA, while also ranking second in the league and 21
st in the nation in strikeouts. He has not allowed an earned run in four of his six outings. The JuCo transfer from Walters Peterson posted an 11.98 K/9 across two seasons at the junior college level and sits at 12.69 this season. Peterson was named to the National Pitcher of the Year Watch List on March 11.
FLAMIN' HOT DIRITO
After early-season dominance out of the bullpen,
Nick DiRito was moved into the Friday spot in the rotation, where he has started each of the last three weekends. DiRito has struck out 42 batters while walking just nine this season. His 4.67 strikeout-to-walk ratio ranks eighth in the Sun Belt. The righty also owns a 14.00 K/9 rate on the year, which leads the Sun Belt and ranks 15
th nationally.
2-WAY STANDOUT
Steven Smith has impressed for the Mountaineers in the early season – both at the plate and on the mound. The transfer from Division III Emory and Henry is batting .364 (28-for-77) with eight doubles, three home runs and 19 RBIs. Smith hit his first home run of the season on Feb. 20 against North Carolina A&T and followed with a walk-off home run on Feb. 21 in a run-rule win. He has also pitched for the Mountaineers this season tossing 6.0 innings across five appearances. He is the first two-way player for the Mountaineers since Andrew Terrell and Phillip Cole pitched and hit in 2021.
BRINGING THE WIFF
App State pitching has struck out 230 batters this season, the third-most in the Sun Belt. The Mountaineers staff owns a 10.7 K/9 rate this season, a major jump from the Mountaineers 7.7 K/9 rate from a season ago. The K/9 rate ranks second in the Sun Belt and 27th nationally. App State has also lowed its team ERA from 7.03 in 2025 to 5.44 in 2026 under first-year pitching coach
Heath Blackmon.
UP NEXT
The Mountaineers will make their first ever visit to Hattiesburg, Miss., to face off with the 11th-ranked Southern Miss Golden Eagles. Southern Miss is 19-5 on the season and 3-3 in Sun Belt play. They rank third in the nation in RPI. First pitch on Friday is set for 7 p.m. ET with Saturday's game slated for 3 p.m. The series wraps up on Sunday with first pitch set for 2 p.m. in the finale. All three games will be broadcast on ESPN+
