Live From........Appalachian vs. Western Carolina

4:30: We are live from Holmes Convocation Center in Boone for today's Southern Conference showdown between App State and the visiting Catamounts from Western Carolina! Jamie is taking a day off, so I am here filling in and hope to bring you the same amount of coverage that you are used to. This game is a huge North Division showdown. Western Carolina leads the division with a 4-2 SoCon record and a 9-7 overall. Appy State is 3-5 in the conference and sports a 6-10 record. The Apps are looking to break a four game losing streak as they start a three game home stand. If your around the house, this game is being broadcast LIVE on SportSouth, and we will have updates all through the game.
4:45: Some quick pregame notes: App dropped their last name on Wednesday to College of Charleston 88-80 after the team rallied from a 17-point defict. A 66-52 setback at The Citadel on Thursday was the third loss in four games for the Catamounts who were previously unbeaten in SoCon play.
4:55: The teams are on the floor for final shootaround, and we are almost ready for player introductions!
5:06: The tip is up and we are on the way!
5:10: First media timeout at 15:53 remaining in the second half. The Mountaineers are up 7-4 as Kellen Brand has accounted for all seven points in the contest for the Apps. So far, it has been a physical game, and the refs are letting them play.
5:23: The Mountaineers call timeout at 9:16 remaining. The Catamounts have went on a 18 to 6 run since the media timeout as Appalachian has squandered several opportunites.
5:24: After one Mountaineer offensive shot, its time for the media timeout. App has had chances but hasn't been able to capitlize. The physical style of play has continued, however, it seems the Mountaineers cannot get any anything going. So far, the Catamounts have outrebounded App 10-7 and have taken 12 more shots then the Mountaineers.
5:30: Media timeoutat 7:29. App has pulled within seven points, 25 to 18. There is a nice crowd in Holmes, and they have been quite vocal so far.
5:35: The Catamounts have gotten called for traveling on their last two poessiesions, and the Mountaineers recieved an excellent steal and layup from Ryann Abraham. Western still leads 27-22 with 4:50 left.
5:37: The Catamounts responded to the traveling outbreak with five straight points to push their lead to 12. Mountaineers called a 30 second timeout.

5:45: The Mountaineers have closed the gap to three at the break. Western leads 34-31 after having a 12 point lead at the last media timeout. (We are having some computer issues, but should be back now.) Kellen Brand is putting on a show as he has 19 of App's 31 points so far in the contest.

6:00: It is almost time to start the second half. At the break, the Mountaineer football team was honored for its' fourth straight SoCon title. A look at the stats: App has shot 57.9% from the floor as they are 11 of 19. Western has shot a lower 40% but is 13 of 32. Both teams are 40% from behind the arc.

6:05: First App series: Brand hits a 3-pointer to tie the game at 34.

6:08: What a difference a halftime break can make. The Apps have taken a 41-36 lead after Brand and Sims nailed 3-pointers. Josh Hunter got a steal and was fouled while doing a layup with foul shot pending. The Catamounts were forced to call a timeout. Since the last media timeout in the first half, App outscored the Catamounts 19-2.

6:15: The App lead is down to two at 43-41 as the Mountaineers have quickly accured three team fouls. Interesting note at this point is that Brand has 22, the rest of the Apps 21.

6:17: Media timeout: App 43-41. Not much has changed. The tempo favored the Mountaineers the first part of this half, but Western is getting it back to more of their style. The gameday atmosphere is quite a treat.

6:25: Media timeout: App trails 48-46 with 11:49 remaining. This game has became a even style of play. App is shooting 55%, and is taking advantage this half of their offensive opportunites.

6:31: Western has called a timeout at 9:29 remaining in the contest as the Mountaineers have taken a 54-50 lead. The App defense has turned up the pressure on the Catamounts. The crowd is getting more vocal as this game progresses.

6:35: App is getting production from some other players has Brand has taken a rest. Josh Hunter has stepped up with nine points so far. App 57-52.

6:42: Oddly, we are at a media timeout with 6:42 remaining. App continues to lead 59-56 with two free throws on the way after the break. The tempo in this game as quickened and so has the emotions. This game is important for both teams.

6:48: Media timeout as App leads 66-64 with 3:53 remaining. Brand has 27 points so far. Both teams are making mistakes that are costing them. Western is pushing trying to get things to happen, luckly for them App has thrown some shots up in the same fashion. Both teams are proving they are teams to watch out for.

6:56: Timeout with 1:57 to go. App is up by three 70-67, and it is their poessesion when we come back. A great game looks to have an excellent ending.

6:59: App 70-69 with Sims on the line.

7:02: Sims converted and App holds a 72-70 lead with Brand on the line. Brand was slow to get up on the play. 27.4 remaining.

7:03 Brand hits both shots as App leads 74-70.

7:04: Next Catamount offensive shot is missed and Hunter is fouled and sent to the line with 14.1 left. Both shots are good as App leads 76-70. The 'Neers take a 30 second timeout. App looks determined not to let this win slip out of their hands.

7:06: FINAL APPs 76-70. Brand ends the game with 31 points. This is a major victory for App has it brings the Northern Division lead into the their grasp. For more coverage of this game check the Avery Journal-Times Sports Blog for more on this game.

CHS Schedule Changes

Last week, the weather caused major headaches in the area. For Cloudland, the weather has forced three games next week to be moved around to. On Tuesday, the 'Landers will travel to University High for four games beginning at 3:30 instead of the showdown with Avery. The Avery game has been moved to Thursday evening for TWO games at 6:00. Saturday, the 'Landers will return to Sonny Smith Gymnasium as they host Johnson County for four games starting at 3:30.

The Avery Vikings were not immune to schedule changes either as detailed in the post below. For more information, keep checking the Avery Journal-Times Sports Blog.

Avery Basketball Schedule Changes for Coming Week

Avery and Owen will tangle in Western Highlands Conference basketball action this evening with JV games slated to begin at 4 p.m.

The Avery basketball schedule has had to endure some editing, however, due to the state End of Grade (EOG) testing requirements for the county.

Avery's game that was scheduled with the rival Mitchell Mountaineers this past Tuesday the 20th has been moved back to Monday, February 2nd, with junior varsity games at Viking Gym slated for the regular start time of 4 p.m. The Tuesday, January 27th non-conference varsity-only games against Cloudland (TN) have been moved to Thursday afternoon, January 29th.

Cloudland Games Postponed today

Cloudland's basketball games scheduled with University High have been postponed for this evening. No reschedule date has been set. We'll post reschedule information here as it becomes available.

Avery Schedule Changes

Due to the North Carolina Department of Education regulations concerning EOG Testing, the Avery vs. Mitchell game was postponed. The date has NOT been set, due to scheduling conflict.It will NOT be played on Thursday, Jan. 29th. When an official date is announced, we will post it on the blog.

Avery Wrestling for tomorrow night has also been postponed until a date to be announced.

We do not have word how the weather will effect Cloudland's trip to University High Tomorrow afternoon.

Keep checking for more information!

Avery Wrestling Meets Madison, Travels to Far West

The Avery wrestling team continued its stretch of action with a dual meet at Madison High School and its annual trek to Robbinsville High School for the annual James Orr Invitational, also known as the Far West Invitational.

Tuesday’s match was a one-sided dual meet as the strong Patriots roster was dominant in a 71-11 triumph. Avery winners during the meet were Brock Yackey, who captured a 18-2 technical fall victory over Jarrett Ipox at 112 pounds, and a forfeit victory by Anthony Varacalli at 145 pounds.

“There isn’t much to say about the Madison match, and my mom said if you can’t say anything nice not to say anything at all,” Avery wrestling coach Stacey Clark said following the meet. “I was just disappointed in our level of performance at the Madison match. They weren’t an opponent to be taken lightly and they proved that to our team. I hope that match was a learning experience for us.”

On Saturday the Avery club took a total of eight wrestlers to Robbinsville High School for the Far West Invitational. The team experienced mixed results in the event.

Brock Yackey continued his terrific season with a second place finish in the 112 pound class. Yackey defeated Nick Morefiled of Robbinsville by pin at the 5:00 minute mark, and defeated DJ Rauland of West Henderson 7-6. In the championship round Yackey was defeated by Jason Bottoms of Tuscola by pin fall in the third period.

“Brock wrestled really well at the tournament. I believe he even wrestled well in his finals match. The kid was a good bit better than Brock, but it showed him some things he needs to work on going into regional and states,” Coach Clark commented. “There is not a lot of competition in his weight class in our conference, so this was a good experience for him.”

Anthony Varacalli captured fourth place at the tournament. Following a first round bye, he was defeated 11-14 by John Hicks of Robbisnville. Varacalli bounced back to take 6-2 decision over Jordan Heatherly of West Henderson, but lost 6-1 to Tuscola’s Cody Saggus in the second consolation round.

“Anthony had a decent day. He came in ranked highly, and it showed him that being ranked high doesn’t mean anything. You still have to go out there and wrestle hard and wrestle well. I believe he also learned from the tournament,” the coach added.

Jacob McKinney (119 pounds), Bryan Moody (130 pounds), CJ Vance (171 pounds), and Nathaniel Buchanan (215 pounds) each wrestled a pair of matches, but unfortunately were not able to come away with victories during competition.

A pair of wrestlers did not place, but did earn wins at Robbinsville. Forrest Sickler (135 pounds) lost his first match to eventual champion of his weight class, but did advance to second round consolations as he came from five points behind to win his first consolation match by second period pin fall over Aaron Fritts of Cherokee.

“The excellent thing was to see Forrest bounce back from behind to win that match. It was a real confidence boost for him,” Clark explained. “He didn’t wrestle his best in his last match, but he is still improving, making strides, and gaining some experience every time he goes out on the mat.”
Lucas Lecka also lost his first match, but rallied to win his first round consolation match by first period pin over Hayesville’s Timmy Kelly before losing a second round consolation match.

“Lucas wrestled well, but he’s still at the point where there are still levels he can achieve and things he can improve upon,” Coach Clark stated. “Overall as a tournament I felt the Robbinsville tournament gave us a measuring stick of a number of opponents that we will meet in the Western region that we don’t see that often,” Coach Clark added.

Avery’s dual meet at Mitchell on Tuesday was rescheduled due to exams, but the Big Red is scheduled to grapple with Owen in a dual meet in Swannanoa on Friday evening.

Avery Girls Basketball Takes Two of Three in Busy Week

The Avery Lady Vikings varsity basketball squad started the week strong with a 78-57 whipping of Madison Tuesday night at Viking Gym. One night later the Ashe County Lady Huskies successfully pulled off a season sweep of the Big Red, however, winning a close 55-50 contest. Avery got back on track quickly, however, as they traveled to Burnsville and upended the Lady Cougars from Mountain Heritage by a 58-53 final score.

In defeating the Lady Patriots from Madison, Katie Ellis scored 17 points with nine rebounds and four steals for Avery, with Allison Vance and Samantha Shook reaching double-figures in the scoring column with 11 and 10 points, respectively.

Avery opened the game on fire from the floor, sprinting out to a 21-10 lead after one quarter. By the end of the half, every Lady Vikings player dressed for the contest had points on the scoreboard and the Vikings had a commanding 45-26 lead at intermission.

Both teams hit a cold stretch in the third quarter as the teams would combine to score only 16 points with the Big Red leading 52-35, but the defense was a fortress the Lady Patriots could not penetrate. The Lady Vikings forced 20 turnovers in the runaway win and was dominant on the glass with over 50 rebounds as a team.

On Wednesday Avery appeared in firm control of the game with Ashe County through much of the first half. The Huskies were without their leading scorer Kim McNeil who led Ashe in scoring when the two squads met Avery's first game of the season.

The first half was a low scoring matchup as Avery led 10-7 after one quarter and 20-18 at halftime. Katie Ellis led the Lady Vikings with seven points in the first half. Ashe County showed great poise coming out of the locker room, as well as better offensive execution. An 8-0 Ashe scoring run in the first 72 seconds of the half gave the Lady Huskies the lead for good at 26-20.
Ashe was paced by Mallory Clay, who scored 13 of her 16 points for the game during the third quarter scoring run that put the Huskies up 39-30 after three quarters.

Avery had a difficult time hanging on to the basketball throughout the contest, which led to a number of Ashe scoring changes. The Lady Vikings turned it over 21 times in the game, five of which came early in the second half to jump start the Ashe offensive transition game.

The Lady Vikings would not give up as they used their own 13-7 scoring run early in the fourth quarter to cut the lead to 46-43. Two Megan Tennant free throws cut the deficit to 46-45, but that would be as close as Avery would get. Ashe built its lead back late to 53-47 and won by the 55-50 final score.

Ellis led Avery with 15 points, to go with 10 rebounds, two steals, and a pair of blocks. Shook tallied eight of her ten points in the second half.

Avery got back on track as it ventured back into Western Highlands play Friday night at Mountain Heritage. Throughout the first quarter the Vikings dictated tempo and took an early lead. Katie Ellis scored four points through the first eight minutes and Samantha Shook knocked down the first of her three 3-point baskets for the game in the period to help Avery lead 13-7 through one quarter.

As important as the offensive production, the team’s defensive intensity and focus was as strong as it has been all season. Avery forced 22 first-half Lady Cougar turnovers and frazzled Heritage all night with its press defense. Avery shot only 31 percent from the field for the half, but the defense fueled the offense with extra possessions as the Big Red doubled up the Lady Cougars 30-15 by halftime. Solid free throw shooting also helped tip the scoreboard in Avery’s favor as the Lady Vikings were 10 of 12 from the charity stripe through two quarters.

Ellis, Shook, and Allison Vance each tallied six first-half points in a balanced Avery attack.
Mountain Heritage could have let the contest get away in the second half, but the veteran players stepped up to lead a Cougar comeback. Kayla Sheppard led the charge with 19 points in the second half and 23 points total to lead all scorers. She and teammate Courtney Huskins combined for 12 points to cut the 15-point Avery lead to only nine points at 40-31 after three periods.

On two separate occasions in the fourth quarter the Lady Cougars cut the Avery lead to as little as four points, the latter of which occurred with under a minute left in the game. But the Lady Vikings veteran players stepped up to stave off the hungry and upset-minded Heritage club.

Allison Vance scored eight of her team-high 14 points in the fourth quarter and hit four of five free throws in the quarter. Ellis completed a double-double performance with ten rebounds in the game to go with eight steals and four assists. Lauren Avery scored seven points with seven rebounds and Katelynn Eudy scored six with eight rebounds and four blocks.

The Lady Vikings return to conference action as they officially hit the midway point of the conference schedule with a rematch on Friday at Viking Gym against Owen.

Avery Boys Basketball Week in Review

Avery's varsity boys hit a tough patch in the schedule last week with a trio of games against quality opponents. Madison defeated Avery on Tuesday by a final score of 88-66, Ashe County upended the Vikings in Jefferson 70-50, and the Mountain Heritage Cougars defended its home court Friday night in Burnsville with a 74-33 win.

In Tuesday’s contest at Viking Gym Madison led after a high-scoring opening period by a 22-17 advantage, but the Patriots pulled away midway through the second quarter, lighting up the scoreboard for a total of 34 second-quarter points while the Vikings scored a respectable 21 points. Nevertheless, Madison's lead extended to 56-38 at halftime. Dustin Clarke paced the Vikings with 23 first half points to lead all scorers while Kody Hughes contributed with nine points.

Madison took a 74-50 lead after three quarters of play en route to the 22-point triumph. Clarke finished the night for the Vikings with 26 points, while Kody Hughes was the only other Viking in double-figures with 14 points. A total of four Madison players scored double-figures in the Western Highlands Conference contest.

In Wednesday’s contest in Jefferson, Avery fell to Ashe County 70-50 in a night of milestones for the Huskies. Ashe County head coach Marc Payne was honored for getting his 500th victory last Friday night in a win over North Wilkes. Early in the second quarter, Tommy Spagnolo registered his 1,000th career point and the contest was stopped temporarily to recognize his achievement.

Avery was not phased by the pomp and circumstance of the evening, however. The Big Red played even with the Huskies in the first quarter, leading on multiple occasions before closing the quarter tied at 15 points each.

The bane of Avery's squad and head coach Bo Manis has been the team's performances in the second quarter of games this season. That trend continued Wednesday as the Huskies outscored Avery 21-12 in the period to take a 36-27 halftime advantage. Dustin Clarke led the Vikings with 11 first-half points, with seven points from Cole Blackburn and six from Kody Hughes. All three players would end the night in double-figures scoring for Avery.

The Big Red tried to cut into the Husky lead in the third quarter, but the guard play of Grayson Wells and Daniel Waln was strong, scoring a combined seven points in the quarter and controlling game tempo.

Ashe led 52-38 after three quarters of action. Spagnolo, who had only five first-half points, asserted himself in the final eight minutes by scoring nine points in the final stanza. Ashe's Tatum Lemly, who registered 16 first-half points to lead his club, scored four of his six second-half points in the quarter en route to outscoring the Vikings 18-12 over the final eight minutes.

Clarke led the Vikings with 18 points, five rebounds, four steals, and three assists. Cole Blackburn added 12 points and nine rebounds, with 11 points and seven rebounds from Kody Hughes. Waln scored 11 points with ten assists for the Huskies to go with Tatum Lemly's 24 points to lead all scorers.

Friday night’s contest showcased a tall and talent-laden Mountain Heritage Cougars team that played hard on both ends of the court. The Vikings played hard as well but the offense simply struggled to hit its shots.

The Cougars led early as six points from guard Steven Wilson staked Heritage to a 15-5 advantage after one quarter. Joey Potter accounted for all five of the Avery points in the period.
As the second stanza played out, Avery encountered a scoring drought of epic proportions.

Mountain Heritage scored 14 consecutive points over a span of six and a half minutes in the period as the Vikings remained scoreless. Avery finally managed its lone basket of the quarter on a Jared Ward jump shot with 1:23 left in the first half. By that point the damage had been done as Heritage led 33-7 at halftime.

The Vikings shot only 2 for 18 in the first half (11%), while the Cougars shot the basketball 38 times, hitting 12 field goals while shooting 7 of 10 from the free throw line for the half.
Intermission gave the Avery team the opportunity to regroup, but Heritage kept the pressure on as it outscored the Vikings 21-9 in the third quarter to lead 54-16.

The Big Red continued to play with pride throughout the game as Chase Watson exemplified the fighting spirit, scoring a team-high nine points off the bench (all in the second half) to pace Avery. Cold shooting as a team and 22 turnovers combined with a strong shooting Cougars club were obstacles too great for the Vikings to overcome.