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Mountaineers Hand Furman 66-52 Loss

LaShawna Gatewood played 16 minutes against Furman, and grabbed four rebounds for the Mountaineers. Photo by Dave Mayo and courtesy of Appalachian Sports Information
LaShawna Gatewood played 16 minutes against Furman, and grabbed four rebounds for the Mountaineers. Photo by Dave Mayo and courtesy of Appalachian Sports Information

Jan. 8, 2013. GREENVILLE, S.C. – Appalachian State University’s Maryah Sydnor led two players in double figures as the Mountaineers had a 66-52 win over Furman on the road Monday.

With the win, the Mountaineers improve to 8-3 for the season, and 2-1 in SoCon. Sophomore forward Sydnor dropped her second highest game of the season with 21 points. Sophomore Katie Mallow added 15 points and 10 for Anna Freeman. 

“I think the win was important for us because we bounced back. Saturday our whole world just deflated to absolutely nothing. The big thing we challenge these kids is to be who we are, which is resilient; come out and be App State, which is to play angry,” said Head Coach Darcie Vincent.

Appalachian opened the game shooting 2-6 in the first five minutes. The Mountaineers’ four points came from a Courtney Freeman layup, followed by a jumper from Katie Mallow nearly three minutes later. At the first timeout, Appalachian led Furman by one (4-3).

The timeout allowed App State to regroup, wrapping the half shooting 11-29. They amped up the defensive effort as well, pulling down 15 defensive boards, forcing 10 first half Paladin turnovers, and grabbing eight steals in the first half.

Sydnor led the team with nine first-half points with six players scoring in the first 20 minutes. 

The Mountaineer offense continued to turn up the energy in the second half, as they connected on 41 second-period points on 46.2 percent shooting, including three-of-three from 15fit point range. The Mountaineers forced 24 Paladin turnovers; their 112th straight contest forcing twenty or more.

The Apps finished in a 66-52 final, shooting 41.8 percent on the night, and grabbing 44 rebounds. Katie Mallow connected on three tres, while Raven Gary dished out nine assists. Tonight’s win marks Appalachian’s fourth-straight victory over Furman.

“We dominated a very physical team on the boards,” said Vincent. “We had more offensive rebounds than they did. We handled our screens well and so forth. So, to me, we needed to be physical and we were physical tonight. So, I’m really proud and happy with the way the girls played that part of the game.”

Appalachian returns home hosting Western Carolina on January 12 before heading back on the road at Wofford on January 14.