By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Even with one leg stuck in a proverbial bucket of cement for more than three quarters of regulation time, Watauga Men’s Soccer battled valiantly to push the Pioneers’ Northwestern Conference match vs. Alexander Central to overtime before succumbing, 4-3, on Sept. 25 at Jack Groce Stadium.

BONUS PHOTOS AT BOTTOM OF ARTICLE (click on any image for slideshow mode)

All photographic images by David Rogers

It was a challenging night for the Pioneers, to be sure. They had to play a man down after a controversial “red card” was shown to backline defender Riley Cook early in the first half. The referee initially showed a yellow card but after conferring with a sideline official changed his call to a red card. The officials explained to High Country Sports at halftime, that the card was awarded for “denying an obvious goal scoring opportunity.” They clarified that when a defending player effectively “takes out” an attacking player when the only other defender is the goalkeeper, the rule (Law 12) applies.

After the game, Watauga head coach Josh Honeycutt acknowledged the rule, but insisted that it was wrongfully applied in this instance.

“I’m not sure it was an obvious goal-scoring opportunity because nobody had possession of the ball, yet,” said Honeycutt. “I see the argument. I get it, but I think the referee in the middle called it right (the first time). He gave the yellow not knowing whether it was an obvious goal-scoring opportunity or just a loose ball. The side ref overruled him and said she had a better view. He changed his mind (in awarding the red card). I completely disagree.”

Because this proved to be the critical turning point in the match, High Country Sports needed to know more. Quick research led to looking up Law 12 online at U.S. Soccer and its related website, SoccerRefereeUSA.com.  Our review suggests that the rule may have been misapplied for other reasons, too. Honeycutt may have a legitimate criticism.

As explained by SoccerRefereeUSA:

In order for a player to be sent off for denying an “obvious goal-scoring opportunity,” (all) four elements must be present:

• • Number of Defenders — not more than one defender between the foul and the goal, not counting the defender who committed the foul 
    • AUTHOR’S NOTE: This element appeared to be true.
  • Distance to goal — the closer the foul is to the goal, the more likely it is an obvious goalscoring opportunity
    • AUTHOR’S NOTE: The alleged foul occurred roughly halfway from the nearest goal post to the sideline, an estimated 20-30 yards into the field of play (well outside the penalty box). It is a judgment call as to whether the “distance to goal” element was present. Watauga would argue that it occurred too far away from the goal to be fairly applied, Alexander Central would likely say it was close enough.
  • Distance to ball — the attacker must have been close enough to the ball at the time of the foul to have continued playing the ball.
    • AUTHOR’S NOTE: It appeared the attacker and the defender were both in pursuit of the ball, shoulder to shoulder, with neither having yet gained possession.
  • Direction of play — the attacker must have been moving toward the goal at the time the foul was committed.
    • AUTHOR’S NOTE: The players were pursuing the ball straight downfield, not yet angling toward the goal, directly, from this reporter’s view.
  • If any element is missing, there can be no send off for denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity. Further, the presence of each of these elements must be “obvious” in order for the send off to be appropriate under this provision of Law 12. (emphasis added)
    • AUTHOR’S NOTE: Given that not all of the four elements were obviously present, we would contend that Law 12, in this case, was inappropriately applied. In our interview with the officials at halftime, they acknowledged that the foul was not vicious or flagrant, just that the goal-scoring opportunity had been denied with only the goalkeeper available to defend a scoring opportunity taken. 

In filing our report on this game, we have spent extra time in discussing Law 12 and its application because it was a critical turning point in this key Northwestern Conference matchup between two conference championship contenders, with a lot on the line. Our analysis will not change the outcome, but as a result of the red card Watauga was forced to play almost the full match a man down and had to make changes to its defensive formation as well as to the team’s attacking strategy in order to try and manage or counter the Cougars’ extra man advantage — whether or not Law 12 was applied appropriately.

Here is an interesting sequence of images, showing a dramatic defensive stop by Alexander Central, from Watauga’s shot by Jossue Galan to AC defender Christian Arroyo’s clearing save as the ball is about to enter the goal.

With the advantage in numbers, Alexander Central scored two more goals in the first half, taking a 2-1 lead into intermission. Thanks to a brilliant, powerful goal by the Pioneers’ midfielder Thomas Moss late in the second half to make the score 2-2, the game was forced into overtime: two, 10-minute halves. From his midfielder position, Moss stormed into a melee some 20 yards out from the goal and ripped the shot past the goalkeeper’s right side.

On a cross off the foot of Ben Myers, Lade Oguntoyinbo laced a go-ahead goal from the left front of the net to put the shorthanded Pioneers up, 3-2, but the Cougars manufactured a couple of goals in each overtime period and played steady defense the rest of the way to craft the 4-3  win. To his credit, the Alexander Central goalkeeper Ethan Holdren had to fashion some spectacular saves to preserve the Cougars’ win.

Another interesting sequence, involving Thomas Moss (19)… Sliding tackle by AC defender Eli Kerley — or tripping foul?

One aspect of playing a man down are the likely increased shot opportunities by the opponent, in this case Alexander Central. While allowing four goals, the Pioneers’ senior goalkeeper Kyle Painter tallied 20 saves on the night, facing a barrage of shots by the Cougars.

Soundbites from post-game interview with head coach Josh Honeycutt:

• “I told everyone, especially the midfielders, after we went a man down that it was going to take everything they have. It was going to take a lot of work. That’s why we (stress) fitness. That is why we put in the work at practice. We want our fitness to be at a high level so that no matter what situation we are in we are able to compete… All of our guys put in an unbelievable effort.”
• “I am tired of poor officiating. I really wish we could get some officials who could keep control of the game and call it both ways. They scored a goal off of a deflection when the guy was offsides, but the official took our goal away (under the exact same circumstances). There is no consistency… If one is a goal, the other one is a goal. You have to be consistent.”
• “Like South Caldwell, Alexander Central is much improved. It is a much better conference now, which is a great thing for our sport. We are competing at a much higher level with our conference schools. We may not have given Alexander Central our best tonight, especially being a man down early in the game, but I give them and their coaches credit for putting together a solid team.”
• “Thomas Moss is a phenomenal player and he brings a lot of energy all the time. Some of the guys do, some of the guys don’t and that is frustrating for me because that is what our program is about: energy and effort. Thomas has one of those motors that there is no question when you get him on the field. It is all the energy. He’s getting in on tackles. He is winning the extra balls. He is doing the extra things that make a big difference.”
• “Being down a man, we had to figure out a way to create some more opportunities. Instead of having Mike and Curtis as our outside midfielders, we pulled them back and told them they must defend, but they also had to get forward to give us numbers (in attacking situations) I felt like it worked.”

Next up for the Pioneers is a road game matchup at Hibriten. With the loss, Watauga falls to 1-1 in Northwestern Conference play, 3-9-1 overall, counting an intentionally rigorous non-conference schedule.

BONUS PHOTOS (click on any image for slideshow mode)

RELATED LINKS

• U.S. Soccer Referees

By Matt Present. BOONE, N.C. – Trailing by a goal in the final 90 seconds of regulation, Summer Bowman drilled a shot towards the James Madison goal. While the initial effort went ringing off the crossbar, the ball bounced right back to Bowman who headed it home, to help the Mountaineers pull out a 1-1 draw against the Dukes, Sunday at The Valley.

For the second time in a matter of five days, App State (5-3-2, 1-0-2) showed tremendous fight to overcome a late-game deficit. Wednesday in Conway, Bowman netted an equalizer with seven minutes to play to earn a point at Coastal, and Sunday’s effort was even more dramatic, helped by the eruption of the home crowd in Boone.

The goal, which crossed the line with just 1:03 remaining in regulation, keeps the Mountaineers unbeaten in Sun Belt play, and undefeated at home where they are now 3-0-2 on the campaign, and have conceded just one goal on the turf in Boone.

eagleston finished the match with four saves

JMU (5-2-4, 2-0-1), which was picked to win the Sun Belt this season, opened the scoring in the 24th minute when Suwaibatu Mohammed capitalized on a counter attack and flicked the ball past Kerry Eagleston.

That was the only blemish on Eagleston’s line. She finished the match with four saves, and despite JMU controlling possession, 59 percent to 41 percent, the App State defense did well to keep that control outside threatening areas of the field.

App State out-shot JMU 12-11, including seven shots (three on goal) from Izzi Wood, who also rang a shot off the crossbar with 13 minutes to play in the opening half.

The Mountaineers will continue their homestand on Friday night, when they host Georgia Southern at 5:30 p.m. It’s Pups at the Pitch night, and fans are encouraged to bring their furry friends out to the match. The contest will be broadcast on ESPN+.

By David Rogers. SEATTLE, Wash. — What started as a battle of football field goals in the first half and well into the third quart of the NFL game between the Carolina Panthers and Seattle Seahawks on Sept. 24, quickly morphed into a TD fest of the home team at Lumen Field.

Carolina’s 13-12 halftime lead didn’t last long in the second half. With just under 10 minutes remaining in the third quarter, Seahawks placekicker Jason Myers slotted his fifth field goal to put Seattle ahead, 15-13. Then, two TD scores by running back Kenneth Walker III and a 5-yard pass from Seattle QB Geno Smith to former undrafted free agent wide receiver Jake Bobo proved too much for the visiting Panthers to overcome.

It’s not as if the Panthers didn’t try. Besides the two 4th quarter touchdowns — one a plunge across the goal line by running back Miles Sanders and the final one a 15-yard wrestling pass TD to Adam Thielen from backup QB Andy Dalton — Carolina’s offense was, on the surface at least, productive.

Dalton, called to action after 2023 NFL Draft No. 1 draft pick injured an ankle a week ago against the New Orleans Saints on Monday Night Football, passed for 361 yards and two touchdowns, completing 34-of-58 passes. He spread the ball around to 10 different receivers, including Thielen and D J Chark for 145 and 86 yards, respectively, and one TD each.

The apparent problem was that the Panthers defense had their work cut out for them in containing Seattle’s Geno Smith-led, balanced offense. Walker (18 carries for 97 yards and rookie RB Zach Charbonnet (9 carries, 46 yards) led a Seahawk rushing attack that rolled up 146 net yards to complement 23-of-36 passing by Smith for 296 yards. Each team recorded three TDs, but Seattle was 5-for-5 on field goals while the Panthers were 2-for-3.

Also telling: the Panthers had to punt five times, the Seahawks only twice. The Panthers accumulated a lot of yards, but only got into the red zone twice, converting them into points each time. The Seahawks, they got into the red zone six times, converting on half of them.

By David Rogers. BLOWING ROCK, N.C. — It wasn’t the day either Josh Izewski or Tyler Pennel were working toward in the BMW Berlin Marathon on Sept. 24. With Izewski pulling up and out with a “hip flare,” Pennel continued on but was well off his personal best, finishing in 2 hours, 14 minutes and 28 seconds, No. 39 to cross the finish line out of almost 29,000 runners, according to the Berlin Marathon official results.

Pennel’s “PR” was set in the Chevron Houston Marathon this past January, in 2:12:16 where he finished No. 5 in a strong field. ZAP Endurance head coach said before this year’s Berlin race that Pennel and Izewski were both aiming for 2:11, perhaps lower.

At the halfway point in the race, Pennel was running in the No. 55 position, so was able to close on some of those ahead of him by the end. His 3:04 to 3:05 per kilometer pace in the first half of the race slowed to 3:26 by the end, according to data obtained from BMW Berlin Marathon. Pennel was No. 6 in his Men 35 age group.

Izewski, unfortunately, had to drop out after the halfway point, where he was running No. 56 on the shoulder of training partner Pennel, at No. 55.

“Josh had to drop out early because his hip flared up badly,” said Rea, after the race. “Tyler’s 2:14 was an OK day, not great.”

Overall, the race was not without its dramatic moments, however. Kenya’s Eliud Kipchoge won a record fifth Berlin Marathon in the Men’s Division, in 2:0242. He was followed by countryman Vincent Kipkemoi (2:03:13) and Ethiopia’s Tadese Takele (2:03:24).

In the Women’s Division, Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa blew away the field in world record fashion, recording a 2:11:53, well ahead of second place finisher Sheila Chepkirui of Kenya (2:17:49). Magdalena Shauri of Tanzania was came in No. 3 (2:18:41). Six of the top 8 runners were from Ethiopia.

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Having just started Northwestern Conference volleyball play where the Watauga has a so far unblemished, 3-0 record, the Pioneers hosted two more strong, non-conference opponents on Sept. 23. Call it a “north” day in Lentz Eggers Gym.

BONUS PHOTOS AT BOTTOM OF ARTICLE (click any image for slideshow mode)

All photographic image by David Rogers, High Country Sports

Western Foothills 3A Conference powerhouse North Iredell was 8-0 in conference and 13-1 overall going into the morning battle vs. Watauga. The Raiders lived up to their record, sweeping the Pioneers, 3-0. Not to take anything away from North Iredell, but the match was closer than a sweep usually reflects: 25-19, 25-16, 28-26, with lengthy rallies, thunderous kill shots, and spectacular digs to keep the ball in play.

Defensively, the teams were evenly matched but the Raiders’ offensive attack seemed to take the Pioneers out of system, many of their sets and attack opportunities coming somewhat off balance.

In an early afternoon tilt against North Henderson, Watauga rallied to win, 3-2 (20-25, 25-23,25-14, 15-25,15-9. Against the Knights, Brooklyn Stanbery and Emma Pastusic forged 29 and 22 kills, respectively. Setting up the offensive attack, Madi Combs and Lainey Gragg did yeoman’s work with 28 and 22 assists, respectively. Defensively, Evie Robbins had 36 digs, Standbery 17 digs, and Olivia Kop 15 digs, while Grace Twillery and Kora Knight showcased their defensive skills with four and three stuff blocks, respectively.

BONUS PHOTOS FROM THE MORNING MATCH

By David Rogers. LARAMIE, Wyo. — It was special teams, defense and clock management night on Sept. 23 in War Memorial Stadium. In the end, it was special teams and defense that powered host Wyoming to an improbable, come-from-behind win over Appalachian State, 22-19.

In one sense, the fifth time was the charm for the Cowboys. After Mountaineer placekicker Michael Hughes slotted four field goals in the first half and redshirt senior Tyrek Funderburk seemed to put the game away for App State with an 18-yard return of a pass interception in the fourth quarter to put his team ahead, 19-7, things started going remarkably wrong for the Boone boys.

On the first play from scrimmage following Funderbunk’s INT, Wyoming’s junior running back Harrison Waylee broke through the left side and rambled the distance, a 75-yard TD run. Junior placekicker John Hoyland’s successful PAT pulled the Cowboys within a TD, 19-14, the Mountaineers still leading.

App State got the ball back with 11:24 left on the clock and seemed to have two objectives: take as much time off the clock as possible in keeping the Wyoming offense off the field and, in the end, put points on the board. A field goal would put them ahead by eight points, the preferred TD and PAT by 12.

Right on cue, App State quarterback Joey Aguilar orchestrated a 17-play drive that took all but 2:02 off the clock. Facing 4th down and 11 at the Wyoming 29-yard line, the estimated 47-yard kick seemingly well within Hughes’ range, the coaching staff opted for the field goal.

What they got instead was the worst case scenario: a blocked kick by the Cowboys’ Jakorey Hawkins, who followed it up with a “scoop and scoot,” returning the blocked kick 62 yards for a TD — putting Wyoming ahead, 22-19, for the first time since a QB keeper run by senior QB Andrew Peasley gave them a tenuous, 7-6 lead in the second quarter.

With 1:53 remaining, App State had plenty of time to march down for a TD to win or a field goal to tie the game and send it into probably overtime. Again right on cue, in nine plays Aguilar & Co. marched down to the Wyoming 35, for what would have been a challenging, 52 yard field goal attempt. On second and 10, with 18 seconds remaining on the clock and no timeouts, Aguilar aimed a pass to wide receiver Milan Tucker in the end zone, drawing a pass interference penalty against the Cowboys’ defensive back.

Although the Mountaineers had clearly moved to within field goal range with the ball at the 20 yard line, with 10 seconds remaining they had enough time to get either a TD or move the ball just that much closer for a field goal by gaining some insurance yards.

Unfortunately, Aguilar was pressured by the Cowboys’ defensive line and his pass over the middle intended for tight end Eli Wilson came up short — and was intercepted by junior defensive tackle Jordan Bertagnole — and immediately downed to preserve Wyoming’s come-from-behind win.

Except for Appalachian State offense’s inability to score touchdowns even upon getting the ball into the red zone, the Mountaineers played brilliantly. The time of possession was as lopsided as a football game could get, with App State controlling the ball for 40:25 vs. just 19:35 for Wyoming.

Give at least some credit to the Cowboys’ kicking team and punter Clayton Stewart. The graduate transfer from Texas State had four punts downed inside the 20, two of them at the Mountaineer 1-yard line to give App State’s offense poor starting field position.

App State won almost every statistical category except turnovers and red zone TDs, which came back to haunt them.

• The Mountaineers more than doubled Wyoming’s offensive production, with 417 yards of net total offense compared to just 208 yards for their hosts.
• App State converted on 10-of-19 third downs, vs. just 3-of-12 for the Cowboys.
• The Boone contingent racked up 17 first downs, vs. just 7 for the Laramie bunch.
• And they ran 90 total offensive plays compared to just 42 for the regular tenants of War Memorial Stadium.
• The Appalachian defense recorded three QB sacks, setting the Cowboys back 28 yards and disrupting those otherwise promising offensive possessions.
• On offense, Aguilar completed 22 of 40 pass attempts for 200 yards while Peasley was just 5-15, for 31 yards.
• As advertised the Mountaineers were successful in controlling the clock largely by running the football. Running back Nate Noel, who entered the game as the nation’s FBS rushing leader, carried the ball 30 times for 107 yards but App State also got good ground game production from a supporting cast that included Kanye Robers (6 carries, 59 yards) and Maquel Haywood, the transfer from Navy (8 carries, 31 yards).
• Aguilar’s 22 pass completions for 200 yards were spread among nine receivers, most notably to WR Kaedin Robinson’s three catches for 51 yards.
• Hughes’ made field goals in the first half included from 25, 28, 20 and 50 yards (the longest of his career).

The Mountaineers next open Sun Belt Conference play at Louisiana-Monroe on Sept. 30, before coming home to play Coastal Carolina on Tuesday, Oct. 10.

By David Rogers. NORTHPORT, N.Y. — Among Blowing Rock’s newest residents is Amanda Vestri, 24 — and boy, does she know how to make a first impression.

In her first professional race as a member of the ZAP Endurance elite running team, Vestri finished No. 4 in the women’s division of the USA Track & Field 10k Championships, run in conjunction with the The Great Cow Harbor 10k Run that attracted nearly 4,000 runners.

Including the men, Vestri finished No. 40, overall. Her time of 33:02 was only 1:05 behind the top female finisher, Weini Kelati, 27, of Johnson City, who clocked 31:57. Ednah Kurgat, 32, of Colorado Springs was second in 32:40 and Emma Grace Hurley, 26, of Atlanta was No. 3, in 32:56, crossing the line just six seconds in front of Vestri.

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Blockbuster kill shots, defenders diving headlong across the floor in desperate attempts to keep the ball in play — and often accomplishing the miraculous. Bang-bang stuff blocks, service aces that impossibly found an open space in a corner. That was App State Volleyball at the Holmes Center on Sept. 22, on Youth Team Night.

BONUS PHOTOS AT BOTTOM OF ARTICLE (click on any image for slideshow mode)

And yet, on this night, visiting James Madison was all that and one notch more, ripping away a victory over the host Mountaineers in a 3-1 thriller, 25-22, 25-21, 19-25, 25-21. An estimated 700 fans got their money’s worth of top-notch volleyball thrills and spills.

SET ONE: JMU 25-22

The Dukes and the Mountaineers went point-for-point with each other early in the first set until JMU went on a 5-point run to take a 13-6 lead. Unfazed, App State fought back to tie the set at 13-13. In powering her App State team back, freshman middle blocker Maya Winterhoff rattled off three kills while fellow freshman libero Alyssa McBean recorded one of her two service aces on the night.

The Mountaineers couldn’t quite gain the advantage, however. They tied the Dukes again at 19-19, but dramatic kill shots by JMU’s Elizabeth Helmich, Annie Smith, Bre Reid, and Sophie Davis were too much for App State to overcome.

SET TWO: JMU 25-21

It became obvious that James Madison had gained some confidence with the first set win and they used that momentum to their advantage, jumping out to a 6-0 lead off consecutive, powerful kills by senior outside hitter Mitte Veldman, a stuff block by Veldman and fifth year senior middle blocker, Sophie Davis, and kills by Davis and a kill by freshman setter Rebecca Watkins.

The Mountaineers rallied after a timeout, but could never quite recover that opening point differential. They pulled within two on a service ace by sophomore defensive specialist Kenady Roper, at 20-18, but that was as close as they could get.

SET THREE: APP 25-19

App State head coach Sarah Rumely Noble said after the match that between the second and third sets the conversation was about attacking.

“When we went into the locker room at the break, we just talked about being assertive. Any time that we applied pressure from our serve or what we were doing offensively, we could feel them kind of step back a little bit. We kept that assertiveness up in the third but we just couldn’t maintain it in the fourth.”

The teams battled point for point in the third until the Mountaineers captured eight of nine points to gain separation at 10-7, a run that included three monster kills by junior outside hitter Lulu Ambrose. With even more kills off the arms of COVID-19 senior McCall Denny, Winterhoff and Ambrose, as well as timely blocks by Winterhoff and Ambrose, the Mountaineers marched out to a seemingly insurmountable 22-11 lead.

But JMU wasn’t quite done. On seven consecutive points scored off of stuff blocks (Davis, Watkins) and kills by Davis, Watkins and Julia McNeley, the Dukes closed to within 23-19. App State put an end to the run to win the set, 25-19, on service and setting errors by the Dukes.

SET FOUR: JMU 25-21

James Madison got their “mojo” back in the decisive fourth set, winning six of the first eight points en route to an early, 13-5 advantage the Mountaineers could never overcome. They narrowed the gap late in the set with blocks and kills by Winterhoff and Denny, as well as a service ace by Winterhoff that shrunk the deficit to a single point at 20-19, but the Dukes picked up four of the last five points, with Veldman’s kill nailing the match shut at the end.

JMU and APP go at it again on Saturday (Sept. 23), at 1 p.m. in the Holmes Convocation Center.

“Everything has got to be assertive, all of the time,” said Rumely Noble about her team’s next day work. “The exciting thing for us is how hard our team always works. Our kids are locked in. They believe in what we are doing. We didn’t execute our best tonight but when we are executing at our best we are going to be a really fun team to play against.”

SELECTED STAT LEADERS

Kills

• • JMU – Mitte Veldman, 25
  • APP – McCall Denny, 12
  • JMU – Sophie Davis, 12
  • APP – Lulu Ambrose, 9

Assists

• • JMU – Rebecca Watkins, 50
  • APP – Katie Cruise, 16
  • APP – Sophie Cain, 14

Digs

• • APP – Kenady Roper, 16
  • JMU- Mitte Veldman, 16
  • JMU – Jaydyn Clemmer, 16
  • APP – McCall Denny, 13
  • JMU – Rebecca Watkins, 13
  • JMU – Julia McNeley, 10

Blocks

• • APP – Maya Winterhoff, 7
  • JMU – Sophie Davis, 5
  • APP – Lauren Pledger, 4
  • JMU – Rebecca Watkins, 4
  • APP – McCall Denny, 3
  • APP – Ava Leahy, 3
  • APP – Delanie Grevengoed, 3
  • JMU – Mitte Veldman, 3

BONUS PHOTOS

By Jacob Plecker for App State Sports. BOONE, N.C. — Bridget Donovan notched the first goal of her sophomore season in the fourth quarter on Sept. 22, but the App State Mountaineers (5-3, 1-1 MAC) fell 4-1 to the Miami RedHawks (6-3, 2-0 MAC) at Brandon & Erica M. Adcock Field.

The Mountaineer defense held the RedHawks to just 10 shots in the contest, with fifth-year goalkeeper Addie Clark saving four of those. Clark posted another shutout quarter in the game but saw her streak of consecutive games holding the opposition below three goals come to an end.

Donovan became the 10th Mountaineer to score a goal this season, coming off a stroke in the fourth quarter. With Donovan’s goal, 14 Mountaineers have recorded a point this season. App State leads the MAC Conference in points with 48.

Addie Clark’s four saves in Friday’s contest gives her 25  for the season and 230 for her career.

How it Happened

1st Quarter: Miami started the scoring, drawing the game’s first penalty corner in the fifth minute of play. Paula Peña Martinez recorded her third goal of the year off the corner. The Mountaineers came out aggressive early in the game, drawing two corners and firing two shots. Charlotte Bosma and Noa Ginjaume Matas each attempted a shot in the first 15 minutes, but each one wide of the mark. Miami added another score in the ninth minute of play after drawing a penalty stroke. Claudia Negrete Garcia was able to get the ball past Clark, giving the RedHawks a 2-0 lead  the first quarter’s end.

2nd Quarter: The Mountaineer defense turned up the pressure in the second quarter and held the RedHawks scoreless in the period. Miami drew just one corner opportunity in the period, with Clark picking up her first of four saves on the day on a Negrete Garcia shot attempt. App State maintained control of the ball for most of the second period but were unable to capitalize on any scoring chances. Miami kept the 2-0 lead into halftime.

3rd Quarter: App State came out of halftime aiming to break the Miami defense and generate scoring opportunities. Just three minutes into the period, the Mountaineers drew their third corner of the game, providing a good scoring opportunity. Charlotte Bosma took her second shot off the insert but fired it high. Later in the period, the RedHawks forced a turnover deep on the Mountaineers’ side of the field and Reese Wearren fought her way past the App State defenders and scored an unassisted goal to make it 3-0 Miami. Clark and the Mountaineer defense held out the rest of the period, stopping two more RedHawk shots to keep the Miami lead at 3-0 after 45 minutes of play.  Clark picked up her second save of the day on a shot attempt by Miami’s Carlie Servis.

4th Quarter: In the final quarter, the Mountaineers played outshot Miami, 4-3, and drew two penalty corners to Miami’s none. App State finally broke through on the scoreboard with Donovan’s goal and only five minutes left on the game clock. The goal was Donovan’s first of the season and sixth of her career.  Clark picked up two more saves in the fourth period to give her four on the day, but Miami was able to tally one more goal in the final stanza to round out RedHawk scoring for the contest. By day’s end, App State drew more penalty corners than Miami but couldn’t execute effectively, losing for the first time in the MAC this season.

App State’s next matchup is in Chapel Hill on Sept. 24, at nationally ranked (No. 2) North Carolina, with gametime slated for 12 noon.