Chris Boyce - Varsity Sports

This is what the Appalachian State University women's basketball team, fans and head coach Barbie Breedlove had been waiting for all year.

A potent offense and stifling defense that persisted until the final buzzer sounded propelled the Mountaineers (5-20, 3-13 in SoCon) to a 76-68 victory over the College of Charleston Cougars (11-14, 7-9 in SoCon).

Senior Natasha Lettsome pounded the Cougars for Southern Conference MVP-like numbers, 19 points and 16 rebounds, and Junior Lauren Romano added 18 points including two three-point daggers late in the second half.

Brittney Scarberry's 15 points led the Cougars, but Charleston's chances were severely hurt when she fouled out of the game with three and a half minutes to play.

The Mountaineers led by as many as 10 points in the first half after Appalachian's Tiffany Johnson intercepted a Cougar pass and ran it the length of the court for the layup at the 11 minute mark, 20-10 ASU.

The Cougars battled back going on a 19-6 run over the next seven minutes of play to take a three-point lead, 29-26 with 3:48 left to play in the first half.

The Mountaineers finished the half in style with two back-to-back baskets by forward Jamie Gagliano, and a layup by Jaymi Wilson gave the Mountaineers a 33-31 lead at the half.

The second half was played closely but Appalachian State put the Cougars down by six, 58-52, after a three-pointer by Lauren Romano with 7:28 left to play.

The Cougars Kate Jackson answered with a basket to cut the lead to four but Appalachian's Jaymi Wilson buried a clutch 15-foot jumpshot as the shot clock winded down with 5:08 left to play to bump the lead back to six, 60-54.

Romano struck again with 4:31 left to play, connecting on another huge three-point shot, and Gagliano's follow-up bucket on the Mountaineers next possession gave the Mountaineers a nine-point lead, 65-56, with only four minutes to play.

Romano netted six of six from the free-throw line, including two clutch ones with 2:04 left in the game, giving Appalachian State the commanding 70-60 lead. The free throws proved to be the nail in the coffin for the Cougars, and Appalachian State finished the game with a 76-68 victory.

The win marks the Mountaineers second impressive victory of the season against Charleston, including a 84-70 win over the Cougars on Feb.15 in Charleston.

After the game, Breedlove was pleased with the outcome. "I just thought our team effort was outstanding tonight. We deserved to win and we got it. "We were more patient today offensively, and we did a great job on the boards. We did have a size advantage, and we boxed out extremely well," said Breedlove.

Forward Natasha Lettsome agreed and felt that this win could possibly act as a catalyst to spark the Mountaineers through the Southern Conference Tournament like they did in the 1998-1999 season, in which the Mountaineers came from nowhere to win the prestigious crown. "This win gives us confidence going into the tournament, and if we continue to keep playing like that, we maybe could pull a '98," said Lettsome.

One big factor in the game was the Mountaineers prowess on the boards, out-rebounding the Cougars 51-43 including several big offensive rebounds off of missed Appalachian State free throws. "We missed so many free throws," said Breedlove.

"If you can shoot free throws as poorly as we did today and still win, that tells you that your defense is doing good things."

The Mountaineers conclude their home stand this Tuesday when the Wofford College Terriers travel to the Holmes Convocation Center for a 7:00 p.m. tipoff.

This one means more to Lettsome, however, than just any other ordinary home game. Said Lettsome, "We're just trying to finish out the season. This will be our last home game and my senior night and a win would be just perfect to top off that."

Indoor Track and Field competes in last meet before SoCon

Compiled from ASUTrackandField.com

The Appalachian State University indoor track and field squads traveled to the University of Tennessee to compete in their last meet before the Southern Conference Championships last weekend. Sophomore Kevin McLeod ran to a season-best time of 6.49 seconds in the 55 meters. The time puts him at second in the Southern Conference. He trails leader Quez Smith from the Virginia Military Institute by 0.03 seconds. Throwers Senior Larry Brock and Sophomore Daniel Duckworth saw some improvements in the shot put and weight throw. Duckworth recorded season bests of 42-feet-11.75 inches in the shot put and 47-feet-6.5-inches in the 35-pound weight throw. Brock was off his season best in the shot put, where he placed sixth (45-10.75), but he did see a huge improvement in the weight throw. Brock's mark of 47-feet-9.25-inches is a improvement of over 12 feet for the season. His toss moves him into the No. 6 ranking in the SoCon. Aaron Pedrick was just off his season best in the pole vault as he placed second in that event (15 feet). He was followed up by teammate Bryan Tomilson who placed third with a 14-foot vault. The Mountaineers next event is the Southern Conference Championships in Johnson City, Tenn. at the Memorial Center beginning on Friday. The men will attempt to defend their title and the women will be looking to recapture the title.

Andy Morris - Sports Beat

The Appalachian State University wrestling team mounted an incredible comeback in one match and dominated another on Thursday night at Varsity Gym.

Trailing 15-0 to Carson-Newman College, nationally ranked at No. 9 in Division II, the Mountaineers needed a win to stay alive in the match. Mountaineer Daniel Salter, wrestling for the first time since November, scored two escapes in the third period to win 10-8. Rich Caisse followed with a major decision for the Mountaineers. Jeremy Hart, ranked No. 12 in the nation, pinned his opponent at 141-pounds, and 147-pounder Davey Blake got a pin to clinch the match.

But the most excitement came from the 157-pound matchup of Southern Conference champion P.J. Boccia and 1996 Cuban Olympian Lazaro Reinoso. Each wrestler managed an escape point in the match and went into a sudden-death overtime. Neither wrestler scored a point, so it went to a 30-second overtime. Boccia battled and managed to keep Reinoso, also the defending Division II national champion, down for thirty seconds to get the win.

In the second match, the Mountaineers crushed Anderson College 34-13. Appalachian won eight of the 10 matches en route to the victory. Every ASU win was either a pin or a major decision. The Mountaineers finished the regular season against James Madison University on Sunday.

The main focus for Appalachian now is the Southern Conference tournament on March 3 in Chapel Hill. For the first time ever, the conference tournaments for the Atlantic Coast Conference, the Southern Conference and the Colonial Athletic Conference will all be at the same venue and time.

Appalachian coach Paul Mance likes the new format. "They're trying to promote college wrestling in the southeast to try to get more and more fans and high school kids to see a lot of good college wrestling at one time," he said. "It showcases us a lot more because it shows all of us at one time."

Boccia, a junior, is excited about the multiple conference tournaments. "It's going to be a good day for wrestling," he said. "It will draw a bigger crowd, and hopefully, we'll get to see some guys from other conferences because those are the guys we wrestle against at nationals."

Senior wrestler Hart says that hard work will be essential to capturing the tournament championship. "We're busting our butts right now in the practice room and that's what it's going to take," he said. "We just have to peak at the right time and have a good day."

Mance sees the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga as the main competition in the conference tournament. The Mountaineers beat the Mocs 24-14 earlier this season in Boone. "They have a great team, and we had a real tight match with them earlier, but it's just a matter of how well we do when we get there."

Coming in ready to wrestle will be important as well, according to Boccia. "We're coming in on a high note from winning the conference, and we're working hard in the wrestling room," he said. "Hopefully, we'll be able to peak then."

According to Mance, the key to this season's undefeated conference championship was talent and support.

"We have a good team with a lot of heart and they stick together," he said. "When you've got a team that really likes each other and gives each other a pat on the back, then it's hard for the guy to lose when he has people out there supporting him."

Men's Ski Team to participate in USCSA Mid-Atlantic Regional Competition

James Nix - Clubs/Intramural Sports

The Appalachian State University men's club ski team will be traveling to Snowshoe, W.Va., this weekend to take part in the 2001 United States Collegiate Snowsport Association (USCSA) Mid-Atlantic Regional Competition.

ASU has a solid team this year. That is why they are headed to Snowshoe and that is why their chances of success are very good.

"There will be 16 teams there, and I'm expecting us to finish in at least the top seven," said club president Rob Byrd. "I'd love to be in the top four so we can go to nationals, but realistically I'm expecting the top seven."

ASU belongs to the Southeastern Collegiate Snowsport Conference (SCSC) along with the nationally recognized powerhouse Lees-McRae College (LMC), the University of Virginia (UVA), Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (VT), Duke University and James Madison University.

In the 2000 USCSA National Competition LMC finished fourth in the Slalom (Sl) and seventh in the Giant Slalom (GS).

The four conferences that will be represented in Snowshoe are the SCSC, the Allegheny Collegiate Snowsport Conference (ACSC), the New Jersey Collegiate Snowsport Conference (NJCSC) and the Mideast Collegiate Snowsport Conference (MCSC).

"The other conferences aren't expecting us to do anything," said Byrd. "The only team now that they're aware of is Lees-McRae.

"Basically, all we can do is go in there and prove to them that just because they're up north and have better mountains that doesn't mean anything."

In a comparison of results, ASU has placed with times equal to the northern schools if not higher. This puts ASU in a good position to do well in Snowshoe.

According to Byrd, the reason for this is that there is great coaching available here. The ski slopes also help them out a lot. The mountains ASU practices at shut down entire slopes for the team to practice on. Also, ASU is able to practice every day they can.

This year, ASU ranked third in the SCSC behind LMC in first place and UVA in second. Duke ranked fourth.

The ACSC is led by Pennsylvania State University (PSU) and the University of Maryland (UM). These teams traded back and forth between first and second during the first three races of their season in both Sl and GS. The United States Naval Academy (Navy) averaged in third place during the first three meets.

ACSC conference standings were not available as of press time.

In the NJCSC, Lehigh University has dominated the slopes, taking first place in each of the conference's first four meets in both Sl and GS. Following Lehigh are Columbia University, Rutgers University and Columbia University.

NJCSC conference standings were not available as of press time.

No statistical information was available for the MCSC. In the 2000 USCSA national competition, Clarkson University finished seventh in Sl and eleventh in GS.

ASU's best skier is Andrew Jochel, whose absence drastically hurt the team two weekends ago on Beech Mountain. Jochel is individually ranked fourth in the SCSC and has won several races. The other conferences should not underestimate him.

After Jochel is Mark Feichter. Feichter is ranked in the top 10 in the SCSC and will prove to be a dominant force for ASU.

Normally, ASU's number three man is Chapman Porterfield. Unfortunately, Porterfield has an irreversible prior engagement and will not be able to race for ASU. This calls for Byrd and Todd Sink to step up. Byrd feels confident that this should not be a problem.

Skiers from LMC pose the greatest threat to the Mid-Atlantic Regionals. Ryan Locher finished seventh in the nation in Sl last year and ninth in GS.

Keith Poore and Josh Worman are also major players for LMC. Both finished in the top 50 in the nation last year in the Sl and in the top 75 in GS.

Poore is ranked first in the SCSC this year. Locher ranked third because he missed three races due to U.S. Ski Team tryouts.

"He (Locher) missed a bunch of races and still got third in the conference," said Byrd. "That tells you how good he is."

Outside of the SCSC, ASU should watch out for Beau Gibson of UM. He won four out of his first six races and came in second in the other two. He is a solid racer in both the Sl and the GS.

Nick Fox, of PSU, is a solid GS racer averaging less than a second behind Gibson. GS is his strong point however, and he should be no threat to Sl racers.

From Lehigh comes Jeff Smith, who won every single race in his first four meets. Smith's times, however, were not available. In his conference, he is a very solid skier and should pose some threat in Snowshoe.

Hans Erickson of Columbia, trails slightly behind Smith and could also cause problems for ASU skiers.

In preparation, the ASU men's ski club practiced every day last week and will practice every day this week as well.