By Joey Jones. BOONE, N.C. — App State Director of Athletics Doug Gillin announced Monday that football head coach Shawn Clark has been released from his contract following his fifth full season at the helm of the Mountaineers’ program.

“I want to thank Shawn for all he has done for the App State football program,” Gillin said. “Shawn is a true Mountaineer. He has given his heart and soul to his alma mater. He has navigated numerous challenges in his tenure and done so with class and integrity. This was a difficult decision, but after an evaluation of the program, we decided to make the change now.

“The expectation for App State Football is to annually compete for a conference championship and a berth in the College Football Playoff. We have commenced a national search to quickly find the next leader for App State Football. Mountaineer fans are among the most passionate in the country, and we are committed to providing a football program that builds upon the decades of previous championship tradition.”

By Jacob Plecker. WILMINGTON, N.C. — In the finale of the Live Oak Bank Holiday Classic, the App State Mountaineers (5-3) fell to the tournament host UNC-Wilmington (5-2), 61-76 on Saturday.

Regardless of the result, the Mountaineers finished the tournament 2-1 and defeated two NCAA Division I programs (Sam Houston and Colgate) that won their respective conference regular-season championships a season ago.

Jalil Beaubrun and Alonzo Dodd posted their best games in a Mountaineer uniform against UNCW, tallying 16 and 11 point,s respectively. Beaubrun also recorded the Mountaineers’ third double-double of the year, and his first as a Mountaineer, adding a season-best 11 rebounds. Dodd, who had been held scoreless in each of his last three outings, also tallied a season-best, on 4-of-5 shooting.

On the heels of two physical contests that opened the tournament, the Mountaineers struggled on the offensive glass against UNCW as the Seahawks grabbed 15 offensive rebounds and turned them into 15 second-chance points. Additionally, the Mountaineers couldn’t get anything going from deep, making just two 3-pointers on 17 attempts from behind the arc.

How it Happened

The finale was a tightly contested ball game, the lead changeing hands six times in the first five minutes. The Seahawks opened the scoring with a Donovan Newby 3-pointer, but the Mountaineers took their first lead at 5-4 off a CJ Huntley hook shot with 17:22 in the first half.

UNCW quickly regained the lead thanks to a Khamari McGriff jumper but Huntley answered right back, throwing down a two-handed dunk off a slick alley-oop pass from Myles Tate. A play later, Huntley was at it again, viciously slamming home a dunk over a Seahawk defender to put the Mountaineers ahead 8-7. Huntley accounted for six of the first eight Mountaineer points.

The Seahawks scored a basket just before the first media stoppage in the first half and never trailed again. Nolan Hodge, who tallied a season-best 15 points against App State, kicked off his night with a layup and Harlan Obioha converted on an “and-one” chance to put UNCW ahead by four at the 14:52 mark.

App State kept it close in the first half as Jackson Threadgill scored his first points of the game to keep the Mountaineer deficit at just two. Then, it was Huntley who nailed a hook shot to make it 14-12 in the first half. But the Seahawks scored the game’s next four points to take a six-point lead into the under-12 break.

As play crept under the 10-minute mark before intermission, it was still a close contest as the two teams traded baskets. Dodd got his season-best night started with a three from the right wing to bring the Mountaineers back within two points. The Seahawks answered with a three to go back ahead by five, but Beaubrun stuck with a missed Mountaineer shot and put back a layup to bring the score within three with eight minutes to play in the opening stanza.

A Tate three at the 4:41 mark of the first half brought the Seahawks’ advantage back down to three, but the home team answered by scoring eight of the game’s next 10 points to take an 11-point lead into halftime. Huntley, Tate and Beaubrun accounted for 28 of App State’s 33 points in the first half. UNCW shot it well in the opening stanza, making 53 percent of their shot attempts while also grabbing seven offensive rebounds.

Out of the break, the Seahawks scored six consecutive points to build their lead to 16 with 18 minutes to go. Two straight 3-pointers from Sean Moore rang the net as UNCW extended its lead.

Huntley ended the run with a free throw, but the UNCW advantage shot to 19 points after the under-16 timeout thanks to another 3-pointer. The Mountaineer deficit sank to 20 after a fourth second-half Seahawk three hit the net. App State struggled after halftime, missing five of its first six shots while turning the ball over three times.

After going ahead by 22 with 13:27 to play, UNCW endured a shooting drought which gave the Mountaineers a chance to mount a comeback. The Mountaineers found some momentum and cut into the deficit, scoring eight of the game’s next nine points to trim the UNCW lead back to 13 points with eight minutes left in regulation. The Seahawks ended their drought with a back-breaking 3-pointer from Josh Corbin at the shot-clock buzzer to jump back ahead by 16 at the under-eight minutes timeout.

Unfazed by the last-second shot, App State continued to work and trimmed the UNCW lead down to 12 by the 7:38 mark, which was the closest the game had gotten since halftime. Beaubrun cracked double figures with a layup and Dodd sank a pair of free throws to get it to that point.

Keeping the pressure on, App State forced two fouls to stop the clock, giving the Mountaineers a chance to score at the free-throw line. With the Seahawks now ahead by 13 with five minutes to go, the Mountaineers forced a stop on the defensive end and trimmed their deficit down to just 11 points thanks to a fastbreak dunk by Huntley. But it was another shot by McGriff late in the shot clock that halted any more momentum as the Seahawks went ahead by 15 by the final media stoppage.

The Seahawks continued to score at the free-throw line and eventually closed out the game with a 15-point victory. App State finished 2-1 at the Live Oak Bank Holiday Classic and has won four of its last five games at in-season, mutli-team events.

Top Performers

CJ Huntley paced all scorers in the final game of the Live Oak Bank Holiday Classic, scoring 17 points. He was aggressive to start the game, tallying 11 of those points in the first half, and now needs just 45 points to eclipse 1,000 in his Mountaineer career. Jalil Beaubrun was stellar against the Seahawks, recording his sixth career double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Beaubrun was also a perfect 6-6 from the charity stripe. Alonzo Dodd was the third Mountaineer to reach double figures against UNCW, tallying a season-best 11.

Up Next

App State will return home to begin the month of December as it hosts the Mid-Atlantic Christian Mustangs on Tuesday. Dec. 3. The matchup with the Mustangs will be the Mountaineers’ only home game of December. After that game, the Mountaineers will not play a game at the Holmes Center until Jan. 2, 2025. Tipoff from the Holmes Center is slated for 6:30 p.m. and can be streamed on ESPN+.

By David Rogers. WILIMINGTON, N.C. — A slow start quickly morphed into a flash fire on Nov. 29, with Appalachian State men’s basketball storming to a convincing, 72-50 win over Colgate at Trask Coliseum. It was the first game of the Live Oak Bank Holiday Classic’s second day, with the win leaving the Mountaineers 2-0 for their trip to the coast and 5-2 on the young, 2024-25 season.

After a barrage of 3-point shooting and 50 percent shooting from the field, overall, helped the Raiders dismantle tournament host UNC-Wilmington on Nov. 27, 72-59, App State expected a challenge, particularly from the perimeter. But the Mountaineers were able to limit Colgate’s outside shooting and instead beat them at their own game.

Behind a long distance performance for the ages by senior Myles Tate in the first half. After the first media timeout, the Mountaineers scored 20 consecutive points, including three straight 3-pointers by Tate, to take a 19-point lead, a margin that barely shrank at any time for the rest of the game.

Tate finished the contest shooting 4-of-8 (50 percent) from behind the 3-point arc, accounting for 15 total points on the afternoon. Forward C J Huntley missed on all three of his 3-point attempts but it hardly mattered as he went on to put down a game-high 19 points. Center Jalil Beaubrun was also in double figures for the day’s work, landing 11 points to go with 6 rebounds.

The Raiders have been to the NCAA “March Madness” tourney seven times, including five of the last six years. They were the Patriot League’s regular season champions in 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023, and 2024. They didn’t win the league’s regular season in 2021, but they made up for it by being the conference tourney champions that year. An interesting tidbit: Colgate started its basketball program in 1900-01.

The Mountaineers were not intimidated by the Raiders’ pedigree, to be sure. dominating in five primary categories:

• • Points from turnovers: APP 23, COL 7
  • Points in the paint: APP 36, COL 20
  • Second chance points: APP 11, COL 5
  • Fast break points: APP 12, COL 7
  • Points scored by bench: APP 16, COL 8

The bench points advantage came in spite of the court time being dominated by four Mountaineers each playing more than 30 of the 40 game minutes. That included Tate (33 minutes), Huntley (35 minutes), Jackson Threadgill (35 minutes) and Dior Conners (32 minutes). The fifth starter, Beaubrun, was on the court for 21 minutes. The only other players to get meaningful court time were Luke Wilson (16 minutes) and Anthony Alston (12 minutes). Alston poured in 8 points off the bench while Wilson added four as well as six rebounds.

Next up for the Mountaineers will be the tournament finale against host UNC-Wilmington on Saturday, Nov. 30, with tipoff slated for 3 p.m., following the noon curtain-raiser between Colgate and Sam Houston State.

UNCW salvaged its host weekend by defeating Sam Houston State on Nov. 29, 69-60, after falling to Colgate on the tournament’s first day, 72-59.

By David Rogers. Manchester, Conn. — More than 12,000 runners braved the cold and rain on Nov. 28, in the 88th year of the Manchester Road Race — and Blowing Rock-based ZAP Endurance team member Andrew Colley bested a strong field that included 2024 Olympians

It is hard to call the Manchester Road Race a “turkey trot” even if run every year on Thanksgiving Day. The 4.7 mile course historically attracts a strong field of professionals to toe the line near the front at the start, this year including Colley, as well as other top athletes like 28-yearold Edwin Kurgat, who finished No. 7 at the Paris Olympics at the 5,000 meters’ distance. Kurgat finished No. 3 in Manchester, nipped at the tape by another professional, Eduardo Herrera, the 2024 Mexico national champion at 1500 meters (3:43.73).

Colley, 33, trailed Kurgat by a step with almost two minutes to go in the race but showed off some of his mountain training by going past the now U.S. athlete born in Kenya on a down, then uphill finishing segment. Once past, he continued to gain separation.

Colley’s winning time was 21:09, a 4:28 mile pace. Herrera finished six seconds later, in 21:15 (4:30 pace), just ahead of Kurgat’s 21:19 (also a 4:30 pace).

The last almost two minutes of the 2024 Manchester Road Race, courtesy of ZAP Endurance

CLICK: att.iGsyMhFZSKEcIThmAdus65jAbk0BpNplE6cuI1GDavo

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Named men’s cross country “Runner of the Year” for the Northwestern Conference, Watauga High School’s Will Bradbury led a virtual posse of Pioneers as all-conference selections, joined by “Coach of the Year,” Randy McDonough.

Of the 13 student athletes named to the all-conference team, 10 of the young men are members of the Watauga team.

Northwestern Conference “all-conference” selections:

1. Will Bradbury – Watauga
2. Grady Gates – Watauga
3. Calvin Zwetsloot – Watauga
4. Bryce Corpening – South Caldwell
5. James Bostrom – Watauga
6. Elliott Taft – Watauga
7. Zeke Walker – Watauga
8. Samuel Rex – Watauga
9. Griffin Duncan – Alexander Central
10. Levi Anderson – Watauga
11. Zachary Zirkle – Alexander Central
12. Jonah Norris – Watauga
13. Andres Roman – Watauga

NWC Final Men’s Standings

1. Watauga
2. Alexander
3. Freedom
4. South Caldwell
5. Hibriten
6. Ashe County

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Pioneer senior Annabelle Stewart was wearing her trademark “shades” when she crossed the finish line at the Northwestern Conference championship meet in October, just like she had in finishing among the best all season. This time, though, she also earned the NWC nod as “Runner of the Year,” joining head coach Randy McDonough (“Coach of the Year”) in headlining the conference selections.

Of the 13 individual total number of individuals selected to All-Conference, 11 are Pioneers:

1. Annabelle Stewart – Watauga
2. Cali Townsend – Watauga
3. Janie Beach-Verhay – Watauga
4. Clara Noble – South Caldwell
5. Lainey Johnston – Watauga
6. Lily Kimbrough – Watauga
7. Josephine Walker – Watauga
8. Ama Higgs – Hibriten
9. Susanna Goff – Watauga
10. Carrie Bradbury – Watauga
11. Ava Langley – Watauga
12. Anna Norris – Watauga
13. MaKenzie Pyatte – Watauga

NWC Women’s Cross Country – Final Team Standings

1. Watauga
2. Alexander
3. Ashe County
4. Freedom
5. South Caldwell
6. Hibriten

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Winning a seventh straight undefeated conference championship is a good way to earn a lot of nods to the all-Northwestern Conference team and Watauga didn’t disappoint with 15 players earning recognition, including “Player of the Year” (Maddox Greene), “Offensive Player of the Year” (J T Cook), and “Defensive Player of the Year” (Trathan Gragg).

“Special Teams Player of the Year” was awarded to Hibriten’s Landon Key and “Coach of the Year” honors went to Alexander Central’s Butch Carter.

FINAL LEAGUE STANDINGS

• 1 – Watauga
• T2 – Alexander Central
• T2 – Freedom
• 4 – South Caldwell
• T5 – Ashe County
• T5 – Hibriten

Full List of all-NWC Selections

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — After losing a strong group of seniors in 2023 to graduation, a “down year” might have been expected for the Watauga High School women’s volleyball team. In the early matches of the 2024 season, the potential of the up and comers was evident, but so was the rebuilding phase.

The Pioneers struggled in a purposefully challenging non-conference schedule, going 3-6. Most of the losses were 3-0 sweeps but a turning point in the season arguably came on Sept. 5, when they lost a 5-set nail biter to Greater Metro 4A powerhouse, Cox Mill. In taking the Chargers to the brink of victory, Watauga gave notice that the young team was arriving.

From there, the Pioneers rolled on to a 6-2 Northwestern Conference record, 10-9 overall. They split the home-and-home matchups with Ashe County and Alexander Central, but swept through all other conference opponents, officially finishing No. 2 in the overall NWC standings, behind only Ashe County, but earning the top 4A seed coming from the 3A/4A conference in the state playoffs.

Not surprisingly, Ashe County and Watauga dominated the all-NWC selections, the Huskies with seven players recognized, including “Player of the Year” Lanie Bowers and “Coach of the Year” Dalton Lewis.  The Pioneers placed six on the list, including “Offensive Player of the Year” Emma Pastusic. South Caldwell’s Sydnee Bumgarner got the nod as “Defensive Player of the Year”

The Full List of All-NWC Selections

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Alexander Central’s Meredith Wike and head coach Brent Durmire swept the Northwestern Conference individual honors as “Player of the Year” and “Coach of the Year,” respectively, and led the Cougars to the regular season conference championship, but South Caldwell led all schools with four all-conference selections, followed by Watauga and ACHS with three each, and Hibriten with two.