2008-09 Annual Report

GoASU.com Appalachian Athletics 1

2008-09 Appalachian Athletics Annual Report

GoASU.com2008-09 Annual Report2

Dear Appalachian Family,

Thank You!

These are two very simple and precise words that are too often gone unsaid. For that oversight, I apologize. However, we could not accomplish our goals and enjoy the tremendous success without your involvement and support.

As you will see, the enclosed document is our annual report for the 2008-2009 athletics year. We are fortunate to enjoy our successes -- on the field of competition, in the classroom and in the community. Providing our 460 student-athletes with what we proudly describe as the Appalachian State Experience is our paramount goal each and every year.

Inside these pages, you will read about the commitment and courage demonstrated by our students, coaches and staff in representing us in a truly first-class manner. We are very proud of them and their accom-plishments.

Again, on behalf of the entire Appalachian State athletics department, I thank you for your support. Hope-fully, you will enjoy reading the next few pages and celebrating with us.

Today I Give My All For Appalchian State,

Charlie CobbDirector of Athletics

Director of Athletics Charlie Cobb


Commissioner’s Cup

2008-09 Commissioner’s Cup

Final StandingsAppalachian State 87.5Chattanooga 70.5Furman 69Western Carolina 63Elon 62Davidson 60The Citadel 60UNC Greensboro 56.5Georgia Southern 53Samford 52.5Wofford 51.5College of Charleston 38.5VMI 7

For the fourth-straight year and 29th time overall, Appalachian State University won the Southern Confer-ence Commissioner’s Cup, awarded annually to the conference’s top all-around men’s sports program. On the strength of SoCon titles in football, cross country and indoor track and field, Appalachian compiled 87.5 points in the Commissioner’s Cup standings, easily out-distancing second-place Chattanooga (70.5 pts.). ASU’s men’s teams finished in second place or higher in 5-of-10 sports and sixth or better in 8-of-10, leading to the fourth-highest points total in the 40-year history of the all-sports competition. All 29 of Appalachian’s Commissioner’s Cup titles have come since 1977-78, giving it 29 of the past 32 all-sports crowns overall. ASU’s 29 Commissoner’s Cups are by far the most in SoCon history — William & Mary boasts the second-most at five, followed by East Carolina (four) and Chattanooga, East Tennessee State and Furman (one each). On the women’s side, ASU placed sixth in the Germann Cup standings in ‘08-’09 with 64.5 points, just 13.5 points behind champion College of Charleston in the hotly contested women’s all-sports race.

DID YOU KNOW?

Since joining the SoCon in 1972-73, Appalachian has never finished lower than third in the Commis-sioner’s Cup race. ASU hasn’t finished lower than second since 1976-77.

ASU Commissioner’s Cups 1977-78 1978-79 1979-80 1980-81 1981-82 1983-84 1984-85 1985-86 1986-87 1987-88 1988-89 1989-90 1991-92 1992-93 1993-94 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-2000 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09


2008-09 Headlines

Junior Armanti Edwards broke numerous school and conference records to become the first Mountaineer to win the prestigious Walter Payton Award, which honors the top nation’s top NCAA Division I FCS player. Edwards easily out-distanced James Madison quarterback Rodney Landers for the award with 398 total points and 53 first-place votes, compared to 290 points and 17 first-place nods for the JMU signal-caller. Western Illinois running back Herb Donaldson finished third with 209 points and 14 first-place votes. Edwards is only the sixth underclassman in the 22-year history of the Payton Award to receive the honor. The consensus first-team All-American and Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Year finished the season with 2,902 passing yards, 941 rushing yards and a SoCon-record 41 touchdowns responsible for (30 passing, 11 rushing). He ranked second na-tionally with a 170.19 pass-efficiency rating, seventh with 3,843 yards of total offense and 58th in rushing. He threw only two interceptions in 224 regular-season pass attempts, with a school-record string of 176 passes without an interception that spanned over two months — eight full games and parts of two others. In addition to the season-long accolades, Edwards earned national player of the week recognition twice, SoCon Offensive Player of the Week accolades four times — including a record-tying three-straight from Oct. 4-18 — and SoCon Offensive Player of the Month awards in October and November.

Appalachian’s men’s and women’s cross country and track programs combined for four Southern Conference team titles in 2008-09. The men’s cross country, men’s and women’s indoor track and field and women’s outdoor track and field teams each won SoCon titles. At the outdoor meet, the men’s team was just half a point shy from the championship and coveted Triple Crown.

Below is a look at the program’s accomplishments during the John Weaver era by the numbers:

3 • The number of Triple Crowns (cross country, indoor track, outdoor track) that ASU has won (1994-95, 2001-02, 2002-03) (Only one other current SoCon school has won the Triple Crown: Furman in 1961-62)4 • Men’s cross country has won four-straight Southern Conference titles7 • Head cross country coach Mike Curcio has been named SoCon Coach of the Year seven times in his career9 • Coach Weaver has racked up nine SoCon Indoor Women’s Coach of the Year honors10 • The number of ASU athletes that qualified for NCAA Regionals in 200911 • Coach Weaver has been named the SoCon Outdoor Women’s Coach of the Year 11 times in his tenure with the Black and Gold12 • The number of men’s cross country titles the Mountaineers have, the most of any cur-rent SoCon school14 • Coach Weaver has coached 14 athletes to SoCon Freshman of the Year honors (Dennis Moore earning the most recent honor in ‘09)15 • ASU women’s track and field has won 15 SoCon indoor titles16 • ASU men’s track and field has won 16 SoCon indoor titles16 • ASU women’s track and field has won 16 SoCon outdoor titles18 • Women earned all-SoCon honors at SoCon Outdoor Championships38 • Men earned all-SoCon honors at SoCon Indoor and Outdoor Championships in 200990 • The total number of athletes Appalachian has had qualify for NCAA Regionals (Regional competition began in 2003)

Edwards Wins Payton Award

Track and Cross Country Combine for

Four SoCon Titles


2008-09 Headlines

Four ASU Players Selected in MLB Draft

Boyd Leads Softball to Best-Ever Finish Sophomore third baseman Katie Boyd broke nearly every single-season school record and led the Mountaineers to the best finish in program history. Appalachian won 14 conference games and tied for second in the SoCon standings. For her efforts, Boyd was named SoCon Player of the Month, SoCon Player of the Week (twice), all-SoCon, all-Mideast Region and all-state.

Boyd’s Record-Breaking ‘09 at a Glance• Led the Southern Conference in seven offensive cat-egories: runs scored, RBI, home runs, total bases, walks, slugging percentage and on base percentage• Broke SoCon single-season records for walks (64), slug-ging Percentage (.879) and on base percentage (.590)• Finished in the top-10 nationally in four categories, including second in walks, third in on base percentage, sixth in slugging percentage and tied for 10th in home runs with 17• Broke seven single-season offensive records and already holds ASU career records in home runs (26) and walks (90)• Hit a home run the first game of the year in back-to-back years

Head Coaches Bentley and Peterson Hired

Appalachian added two new head coaches for 2009-10. Buzz Peter-son returns as men’s basketball coach, while JohnMark Bentley takes the reins of the wrestling program. Peterson coached the Mountaineers from 1997-2000, culminating with a berth in the NCAA Tournament in ‘00. He won an NIT title with Tulsa in 2001. As a player, Peterson won a national title with North Carolina in 1982. Bentley was an assistant on the ASU bench from 2006-09. The former all-American was previously the head coach at Watauga High School and assistant coach at Davidson College. Peterson Bentley

Relief pitcher Zach Quate, center fielder Rand Smith, third baseman Isaac Harrow and starting pitcher Josh Dowdy were all selected in the 2009 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. Quate went to the defending American League champion Tampa Bay Rays in the 14th round (439th overall), Smith was tabbed by the Florida Marlins in the 20th round (608th overall), the New York Yankees made Harrow their 24th-round selection (735th overall) and Dowdy went to the Baltimore Orioles in the 38th round (1,136th overall) in the 50-round MLB Draft. They join a then-record trio of Mountaineers who were selected in 2008 in the pro-fessional ranks after a drought of 12 years without a selection from Appalachian.

Player Position Round Selection TeamZach Quate RHP 14 439 Tampa Bay RaysRand Smith OF 20 608 Florida MarlinsIsaac Harrow IF 24 735 New York YankeesJosh Dowdy RHP 38 1,136 Baltimore Orioles


Sport-By-Sport Recaps

FOOtball For the fourth-consecutive year, Appalachian football won the Southern Conference championship, but for the first time during that stretch, the Mountaineers did not claim the ultimate prize - the NCAA Division I FCS national title. After a 1-2 start, which included a season-opening loss at FBS powerhouse LSU and a heartbreaking 35-32 setback at fellow FCS title contender James Madison, ASU reeled off nine-straight wins to close the regular season. Along the way, the Apps dominated the SoCon to the tune of a perfect 8-0 conference slate. The high-light came in the form of a 70-24 rout over second-place and No. 3-ranked Wofford, which came in front of a Kidd Brewer Stadium-record crowd of 30,931 and a national-television audience on ESPN2 on Halloween night. However, the Mountaineers’ record run of national titles came to a close with a quarterfinal setback at the hands of eventual national champion Richmond. Despite the end of the national-title streak, Appa-lachian’s seniors finished with 50 wins over their four seasons in Black and Gold and senior linebacker Pierre Banks set an NCAA all-divisions record by playing in 62 games in his illustrious career. However, the Apps’ most prestigious individual honor came when quarterback Armanti Edwards was named the recipient of the 2008 Walter Payton Award, which is presented to the nation’s top FCS player. With Edwards’ honor, ASU became joined fellow FCS stalwart Montana as the only programs to boast winners of the Payton, Buck Buchanan (nation’s top defensive player) and Eddie Rob-inson (nation’s top coach) awards.

MeN’s CrOss COUNtrY Appalachian State men’s cross country capped off yet an-other impressive season, as the Mountaineers captured their fourth-straight Southern Conference title. In the Blue Ridge Open, on a cold and rainy afternoon, ASU prevailed to place 3rd out of 26 teams and keep the Old Moun-tain Jug by defeating arch-rival Western Carolina. ASU then turned its sights to the 2008 Southern Conference Championships. Once again Appalachian was dominant, win-ning its eighth title in the past 11 years. The title is the 12th in school history, the most out of any current SoCon institution. Asmeron Desta paced the Apps once again, finishing second overall and running a personal best of 24:45 on the 8k course. Phil Mitchell finished fifth with a time of 24:49, while Ryan O’Keefe and Josh Houser rounded out the top ten, grabbing the ninth and tenth place spots. Head Coach Mike Curcio was named the SoCon Coach of the Year for the seventh time. The 2008 campaign concluded with a strong showing at the NCAA Southeast Regionals. Appalachian finished 15th out of 29 teams and Desta paced the Black and Gold once again. The Old Fort, N.C. native finished 20th and earned all-region honors. He was the first Mountaineer since 2005 to be named to the all-region squad.

MeN’s INDOOr traCK aND FIelD Appalachian State men’s track and field showed their domi-nance once again at the 2009 Southern Conference Indoor Championships, capturing the team’s 16th SoCon indoor title. Junior Matt Boruff won his second-straight heptathlon title with 5021 points, shattering his previous ASU and SoCon record of 4720 points. Freshman Dennis Moore posted a breakout performance for the Black and Gold, as he took home the runner-up title in the 60m dash, running the event in 6.92. He also finished second in the 200m dash, recording a new personal best time of 21.91 and moving into seventh on ASU’s all-time list in the event. Freshman Chris Moen was impressive as well, with his stron-gest showing of the day coming in the mile run, where the freshman won the title, running the race in 4:11.08, moving him into fifth on ASU’s all-time list in the event. Senior Mark Sturgis continued his dominance in the triple jump, winning his first SoCon title in the event since 2006 with a leap of 50-00.50. Ricky Harris nabbed the runner-up spot in the event. Sophomore Malcolm Styers swept the throwing events winning both the weight throw and shot put title, while the distance medley relay team of Bud Galloway, Nick O’Keefe, Carlos Carter and Josh Houser defended their title from 2008.

Pierre Banks



WOMeN’s INDOOr traCK aND FIelD Appalachian State women’s track and field capped off yet another successful season in 2008-09 as the Apps won their 15th Southern Conference indoor champion-ship in school history, capturing the crown with 211 points, along with 18 Mountaineers earning all-SoCon honors. The nearest competitor was Western Carolina who came in second with 135 points. It was the first time since 2007 that both the men and women’s squads swept the crown. Julie Ward led the Black and Gold in the pole vault, as the junior won her first-ever SoCon title in the event and just third in Appalachian’s school history. Ward finished first with a personal best vault of 11-9.75 moving her into third on ASU’s all-time list in the event. ASU swept the event, with Shea Snow, Ashley Beale and Meg Irwin taking the second through fourth place spots. Junior Danielle Thorpe won the triple jump crown for the first time for Appalachian since 2005. She jumped 41-7.25, a new personal best, which was good enough to put her at fourth on Appalachian’s all-time list in the event. The Mountaineers continued their dominance in the throwing events, as Whitney Smyre won the weight throw and shot put. Smyre had a personal best toss of 58-4.50 in the weight throw, moving her into third on ASU’s all-time list in the event. For the team’s impressive showing and winning of the SoCon title, head coach John Weaver was named the So-Con’s Indoor Coach of the Year for the ninth time in his career.

WOMeN’s OUtDOOr traCK aND FIelD Completing a clean sweep of the track titles during the 2008-09 seasons, Appalachian State University women’s track and field captured their 16th Southern Conference Outdoor Championship in school history and first since 2006. The Apps scored 210.5 points, while Western Carolina took the runner-up spot with 177 points, and 18 athletes earned all-SoCon honors. Senior Shea Snow won her second straight outdoor pole vault title, tying a personal best vault of 12-1.5. Snow is the only female at ASU to have won an outdoor pole vault title. The Mountaineers also captured titles in all four throwing events, completing a clean sweep, with Whitney Smyre winning the hammer throw and Lily Tallent winning the discus, javelin and shot put. Junior Danielle Thorpe defended her title in the triple jump, as she lept a personal best and regional qualifying mark of 42-1.50, putting her at third on ASU’s all-time list in the event. For their efforts, Tallent was named the Most Outstanding Athlete and Coach Weaver was named the Southern Conference Coach of the Year. Tallent, Thorpe, Smyre, and Snow along with Jen Povick and Rebecca Hazeltine all competed at the NCAA East Regionals as well. Thorpe posted an App-best ninth place finish in the triple jump.

MeN’s OUtDOOr traCK aND FIelD Looking for a complete sweep of the indoor and outdoor championships and for a triple crown title, Ap-palachian State men’s track and field came up just short at the 2009 SoCon Outdoor championships, as the Apps took home the runner up spot. The Apps lost in a heart-breaker, Western Carolina finished first with 254 points and Appalachian posted 253.5 points. Although the Black and Gold notched the runner-up spot, numerous strong performances were recorded at the outdoor championships and 19 Apps earned all-SoCon honors. Sophomore Tim Daly captured the hammer throw title, while Jerod Gardner won the discus title and Mark Sturgis dominated in the triple jump, winning his sec-ond career title in the event. Sophomore Jake Goodchild posted a stellar perfor-mance as well, earning the runner-up spot in the de-cathlon and breaking a three-year old school record, as he scored 6278 points. Teammate Matt Pfingst finished third in the event. Daly, Gardner and Sturgis all qualified for the NCAA East Regional, and Sturgis posted the most impressive finish, placing 11th in the triple jump, with a personal best leap of 50-7.25. Jake

Goodchild


WOMeN’s CrOss COUNtrY Appalachian State University women’s cross country posted solid performances once again throughout the entire 2008 season. ASU started the year strong, with a second-place finish at the Covered Bridge Open and fourth place at Winthrop. Appalachian continued with its road trip, as ASU headed to Bethlehem, Pa. to compete at the ever-competitive Paul Short Run. Senior Meghan Gaffney continued to pace the Black and Gold, as she set a new personal record for the 6,000m, running the course in 21:17. At the Apps’ final home meet of the season, the Blue Ridge Open, Appalachian continued with its solid performances, finishing fourth. ASU was also able to retain the Old Mountain Jug by defeating SoCon rival Western Carolina. At the Southern Conference Championships, the Mountain-eers finished fourth. Gaffney recorded a new personal record on the 5k course and finished second. Senior Hannah Parks was the next best finisher for Appalachian, placing 13th. The 2008 campaign capped off at the NCAA Southeast Regionals. The Apps finished 22nd out of 33 teams. Gaffney again led the way for ASU, placing 19th out of 231 runners and earned all-region honors.


MeN’s sOCCer Appalachian State University men’s soccer started the sea-son on a four-game winning streak to catapult the Mountain-eers’ to a 10-8 record in 2009, the sixth time this decade ASU has finished with at least 10 wins. The Mountaineers were paced offensively by junior Arie Muniz. Muniz led Appalachian with 15 points and was tied for first in the SoCon with seven assists. Senior Juan Obregon led the team in goals with seven. Led by captain Paul Pessina, the Apps finished first in the league in goals against average, with 1.13. Goalkeeper Collin Taylor led the SoCon in saves with 82 and finished with a 0.98 goals against average. With Taylor, Pessina and Muniz earning first team all-confer-ence honors, it was the most Mountaineers to earn first team league honors since 1989. With Juan Obregon earning second team honors and Mark Bridges and Sean Dreybus earning all-freshman accolades, it was the most all-conference honorees since ’89 as well.

sOFtball Appalachian State University softball broke 31 school records en route to its highest Southern Conference finish in program history, placing second with a league mark of 14-9. The Mountaineers were 26-29 overall for the year. Records fell early and often, as the Mountaineers’ beat their first ever-ranked opponent the first weekend of the season with a 3-2 win against Purdue. The following weekend Ashley Stubbs became the second ASU pitcher, and the first freshman to throw a no-hitter as Appalachian beat Western Carolina 10-0. The strong performances continued as ASU won a school record 14 Southern Conference games. Sophomore standout Katie Boyd finished second in the conference with a .386 bat-ting average and led the league in seven offensive categories and earned second team all-conference and first team all-region honors. Senior Kayla Richardson was the ace of the pitching staff, setting single-season school records in wins, complete games, strikeouts and innings pitched. She also broke career records for wins and strikeouts.

MegGaffney

KaylaRichardson



WrestlINg Junior Frank Celorrio won the Southern Conference cham-pionship at 133-pounds and the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament to highlight the 2009 Appalachian wrestling season. Celorrio sprung together 12 wins in a row at one point in the season and went 8-0 against SoCon opponents. Dylan Temple capped off his first 20-win season with a sec-ond place finish at 184 while David Pritz earned a second place finish at 197. Kyle Blevins led the team with 24 wins and finished third at the SoCon tournament. Mike Kessler, Savva Kostis and Chip Powell all finished in third place as well. As a team, Appalachian finished third at the SoCon Mat Jam with 63 points.

baseball Appalachian baseball rebounded from a 6-14 start to its season, which included a 1-9 record in SoCon play, to record its third-straight 30-win season and match its highest victory total in 23 years. After the slow start, the Mountaineers won 26 of its final 31 regular-season games, which matched top-ranked UC Irvine for the nation’s best record during that stretch. An 18-2 April, led by SoCon’s Player and Pitcher of the Month (Isaac Harrow and Zach Quate, respectively), highlighted the magical run. The Apps were especially impressive at their newlyfinished home - Beaver Field at Jim and Bettie Smith Stadium - where they won 18-of-25 games, including 16 in a row to close the season. Appala-chian’s senior class of Nick Daniels, Nick DeRose, Josh Dowdy, Aubrey Edens, Har-row, Quate and Rand Smith finished their careers with 122 victories, the most by an Appalachian group of seniors since the Class of 1989 left with 124 wins.

MeN’s teNNIs Appalachian State men’s tennis had yet another successful season in 2009. The Apps finished the campaign with a 15-10 record including a 5-5 mark in SoCon play. The 15 wins are the most the program has posted in more than 10 years and helped Coach Bob Lake earn his 100th career win. The 2009 season proved to be one of many firsts for the Black and Gold, as the Mountaineers earned their first-ever national ranking, at No. 67, and senior Bobby Lake was ranked No.125 in the country at the number one singles spot. Every Mountaineer in the top six singles spots finished with a winning record. Freshman Philip Kloc had the best record, going 19-6, while junior Peter Jacobs followed at 17-8. Some of the team’s most impressive play came from Lake, who made quite a turn-around his senior season, as he recorded a 13-11 mark at the number one singles spot. The Boone native also defeated two nationally ranked opponents. For his efforts, Lake was named first team all-SoCon. It was the first time since 1997 a Mountaineer earned first team honors. In doubles action, the duo of Trent Constance and Peter Jacobs proved to be quite a combination, as the partners went 19-6 on the season, including an 8-2 conference record. The Apps’ season came to a sudden end in the quarterfinals of the SoCon Tournament, with a 4-2 setback against Elon.

RandSmith

FrankCerrolio

BobbyLake



MeN’s basKetball Appalachian State men’s basketball had an up-and-down season in 2008-09, and saw it come to an end against Da-vidson in the SoCon quarterfinals. The Mountaineers posted a 13-18 record and tied for third in the North Division after winning the north in back-to-back years. The Apps played in five overtime contests and 15 games decided by six or fewer points. Junior guard Kellen Brand anchored the Apps with 14.8 points per game on 49 percent shooting on the season. The men’s basketball team again faced top-notch non-conference competition, with road contests against traditional national powers Kentucky and Texas. ASU set a facility record against Davidson when 8,350 fans packed the Holmes Center in January. The Apps ended the regular season with a thrilling 88-82 win at home over even-tual league champion Chattanooga. Sophomore Donald Sims was the hero of the game, and averaged 13.7 points and hit 40 percent from beyond the arc for the season. In the paint, sophomore Isaac Butts averaged 8.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. The big man ranked third in the SoCon with nine double-doubles and a .594 shooting percentage.

WOMeN’s basKetball In her first season at helm, head Coach Darcie Vincent helped Appalachian State women’s basketball post more overall and more SoCon wins than the previous season and coached the Apps to the Southern Conference quarterfinals for the first time since the 2006-07 season. Highlighted by a strong second half of the season, the Mountaineers earned impressive wins over Davidson, Georgia Southern, UNC Greensboro, Furman and Wofford. ASU’s solid play began with a 63-59 victory over Elon on January 6, a contest that saw senior Brittany Mixon record a career-high 25 points and grab 12 boards. Mixon would finish her career with the Black and Gold in style, scoring in double figures in 23 of 31 games and setting career highs during her final season in points, assists, steals and blocks. The Mountaineers’ most impressive victory of the season came at Davidson, when the Apps handily ran past the Wild-cats on January 24, beating DC 77-57. Led by Frances Hernan-dez’ career-high 27 points, including 21 in the first half, the Mountaineers were able to snap a five-game losing streak to the Wildcats, who at the time were third in the standings.

WOMeN’s sOCCer Appalachian State women’s soccer posted a valiant effort throughout the entire 2008 campaign, finishing the season with a 7-10-2 record, including a 3-7-1 mark in the SoCon. The season began with a 1-1 draw to in-state competitor Campbell and a tough loss to Tennes-see Tech, but the Apps rallied and captured their first home match win of the season against Gardner Webb. The last three games of the regular season were all at home and proved to be crucial in deciding the Moun-taineers post-season fate. ASU took on a talented Samford team and dropped a close 1-0 contest, before rebounding to beat Chattanooga 2-1, and then falling in a 3-2 heart-breaker to eventual SoCon Tourna-ment Champion Western Carolina. The Black and Gold grabbed the eighth seed in the SoCon Tourna-ment and took on No. 1 seeded UNC Greensboro. ASU held the Spartans to just a 1-0 lead at the end of one period, but UNCG was unstoppable in the second half and ended Ap-palachian’s season with a 6-0 loss.

WOMeN’s teNNIs Appalachian State women’s tennis finished the 2009 season with a 9-16 record overall, including a 3-7 SoCon mark. ASU started the season off strong, picking up 6-1 wins against Lees-McRae and NC Central, along with handily defeat-ing South Dakota 7-0. The end of March proved to be good to Appalachian who went on a three match winning streak, defeating UC Bakers-field 4-3, Gardner-Webb 5-2 and SoCon foe Wofford 4-3. The Apps went on to notch three more wins in the regular season, beating Western Carolina, Presbyterian and Chatta-nooga in a 4-3 thriller. Although the Apps ended the 2009 season a strong note, they fell in the first round of the Southern Conference Tourna-ment to Chattanooga, losing 4-2. Senior Caroline Mauch capped off 2009 with a team best record of 13-10 at the number two, three and four positions, including a 4-5 mark in SoCon action.

CarolineLowe

KellenBrand

SamRamirez

CarolineMauch



WOMeN’s gOlF Under first-year head coach Heather Brown, Appalachian wom-en’s golf started the season strong, placing sixth at the Draper Intercollegiate. It was just the first of four top-10 team finishes in the nine-tournament year for the Mountaineers, as the squad placed fourth at the Mimosa Hills Women’s Intercollegiate in April, behind junior Brooke DeHart’s eighth-place finish at the event. Sophomore Kerri Dice had a breakout sophomore season with a team-best 81.0 stroke average spread over 22 rounds. Her best round of the year came on the second day of the Draper Intercol-legiate, as she carded a 74 to tie for 11th place. Senior Mary Kate Bowman continued her consistency through her final year on the course, ranking second on the team with an 81.05 stroke average. Her best round and finish came at the Great Smokies Women’s Intercollegiate, where she shot a 71-76-147 (+3) to place 16th out of 115 competitors. Appalachian wrapped up the season with a ninth-place finish at the Southern Conference Championship.

VOlleYball A relatively young team, ASU volleyball featured five newcomers in 2008, as the team finished 7-25 overall and 3-15 in league play. The Mountaineers tied for fifth in the SoCon north division follow-ing a challenging schedule. The Apps faced three NCAA tournament teams and mixed youth and experience throughout the season. The team opened the year with a rough stretch of three tournaments and played 10 of the year’s first 11 matches on the road. At the Appalachian Invitational in September, the Apps bounced back from a hard-fought loss to Wake Forest to close out the week-end with sweeps against Charlotte and Winston-Salem State.

Senior middle blocker Carla Durham wrapped up a successful career at the net as she led the team and ranked sixth in the conference with 1.04 blocks per set. Her 12 blocks against Davidson were the second-most in a match by any SoCon player for the year. Durham also paced the team with nearly 2.5 kills per set, just ahead of sophomore Lauren Swecker. Fellow senior and team captain Cha-rissa Clearman led the team with seven assists per set, good for top-10 in the SoCon. She shared setting duties with freshman Kasey Sauls, who had an im-mediate impact as a rookie.

FIelD HOCKeY Winning their first NorPac contest since 2006, Appalachian State field hockey wrapped up the 2008 season with a 2-17 mark, including a 1-5 record in league play. The Apps had somewhat of a tough start to the season, dropping its first few contests by very narrow margins, before picking up a 4-3 victory against Monmouth on September 27. ASU continued with its impressive play, as the Mountaineers were able to squeak out a 3-2 win over Davidson, after two overtime periods and a stroke off. Pacific defeated the Black and Gold in the first round of the NorPac Tournament, and in the consolation bracket, ASU could not hang with familiar opponent Davidson, losing 3-2 in 2 over-times to end the Apps’ season. Appalachian was led offen-sively throughout the season by junior Amanda Young who fin-ished the 2008 campaign with six goals, while Jessie Harris contrib-uted as well, scoring five goals on the season. Sophomores Nicole Morgan and Christine Zanowicz each chipped in four goals.

MeN’s gOlF Led by junior Casey Johnson and senior Taylor Hines, Appala-chian State men’s golf posted solid scores throughout the 2008-09 campaign. The highlight of the year was Johnson’s first-place finish at March’s North/South Intercollegiate. He shot two of his best rounds of the season with a 68-65-133 (-7) to beat out 80 other golfers. As a team, the Apps placed sixth at the event. Overall, ASU placed in the top-10 seven times out of 11 tourna-ments, with two 11th-place finishes as well. ASU took home fourth

at the Geico Intercol-legiate in Savannah, Ga. led by Hines’ fourth-place individual finish. He then put a wrap on his career with ninth place in the rain-shortened Cavalier Classic, where the Apps placed fifth out of 18 op-ponents. Hines was just one stroke off of fourth-place finisher Lance Wheeler. As a sophomore, Wheeler was one of five under-classmen on the roster. Appalachian placed 11th at the SoCon Tournament.

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Athletic Honors and AwardsFOOTBALL• Record: 11-3• SoCon: 8-0 (1st)• 2008 Southern Conference champion• Walter Payton Award (National Player of the Year): Armanti Edwards• Buck Buchanan Award finalist (National Defensive Player of the Year): Mark LeGree• Eddie Robinson Award finalist (National Coach of the Year): Jerry Moore• All-America: Mario Acitelli, Pierre Banks, Jonathan Bi-eschke, Armanti Edwards, Cortez Gilbert, Ben Jorden, Mark LeGree, Jacque Roman• Regional Coach of the Year: Jerry Moore• SoCon Coach of the Year: Jerry Moore• SoCon Offensive Player of the Year: Armanti Edwards• SoCon Defensive Player of the Year: Jacque Roman• All-SoCon: Mario Acitelli, Pierre Banks, Jonathan Bieschke, Brad Coley, Armanti Edwards, Jabari Fletcher, Cortez Gilbert, Ben Jorden, Daniel Kilgore, Mark LeGree, Jacque Roman, D.J. Smith, Anthony Williams, Neil Young• SoCon All-Freshman: Ed Gainey, Ben Jorden, Brian Quick, Lanston Tanyi• SoCon Player of the Month: Armanti Edwards (twice), Mark LeGree• National Player of the Week: Armanti Edwards (twice), Mark LeGree• SoCon Player of the Month: Armanti Edwards (twice), Mark LeGree• SoCon Player of the Week: Armanti Edwards (four times), Cortez Gilbert, Mark LeGree, DeAndre Presley, Brian Quick, Devin Radford, Jacque Roman, D.J. Smith, Robert Welton Men’s Cross Country• 2008 Southern Conference Champions• Placed 15th at NCAA Regional Championships• SoCon Coach of the Year: Mike Curcio• All-SoCon: Asmeron Desta, Josh Houser, Alec Meyer, Phil Mitchell, Ryan O’Keefe, Sean Soderman• NCAA Southeast all-Region: Asmeron Desta• SoCon Runner of the Week: Phil Mitchell (twice)

Men’s Indoor Track and Field• 2009 Southern Conference champion• SoCon Freshman of the Year: Dennis Moore• SoCon Individual Champions: Matt Boruff (Heptathlon), Carlos Carter (DMR), Bud Galloway (DMR), Josh Houser (DMR), Chris Moen (Mile), Nick O’Keefe (DMR), Mark Sturgis (Triple Jump), Malcolm Styers (Shot Put/Weight Throw)• All-SoCon: Matt Boruff, Carlos Carter, Asmeron Desta, Bud Galloway, Jerod Gardner, Jake Goodchild, Ricky Harris, Josh Houser, Chris Moen, Dennis Moore, Daniel Neal, Nick O’Keefe, Darius Purcell, Sean Soderman, Jared Stallling, Mark Sturgis,Malcolm Styers, John Svoboda, Ryan Twiford• SoCon Field Athlete of the Week: Matt Boruff, Mark Sturgis, Malcolm Styers,Ryan Twiford• SoCon Field Athlete of the Month: Mark Sturgis (twice)

Women’s Indoor Track and Field• 2009 Southern Conference champion• SoCon Coach of the Year: John Weaver• SoCon Individual Champions: Meghan Gaffney (3000m), Whitney Smyre (Shot Put, Weight Throw), Danielle Thorpe (Triple Jump), Julie Ward (Pole Vault)• All-SoCon: Ashley Beale, Michelle Brutus, Kiara Crutchfield, Asia Dunlap, Meghan Gaffney, Rebecca Hazeltine, Lynda Hiller, Monica Johnson, Nadia Liriano, Ashley McKiver, Mi-chaela McGriff, Hannah Parks, Jen Povick, Whitney Smyre, Shea Snow, Lily Tallent, Danielle Thorpe, Julie Ward• SoCon Track Athlete of the Month: Meghan Gaffney• SoCon Field Athlete of the Week: Rebecca Hazeltine (twice), Danielle Thorpe• SoCon Track Athlete of the Week: Meghan Gaffney (twice)

MEN’S OUTDOOR TRACK AND FIELD• 2009 Southern Conference Runner-Up• SoCon Individual Champions: Tim Daly (Hammer), Jerod Gardner (Shot Put), Mark Sturgis (Triple Jump)• All-SoCon: Matt Boruff , Phillip Bush, Mason Campbell, Tim Daly, Asmeron Desta, AJ Dohanic, Jerod Gardner, Jake Goodchild, Ricky Harris, Dennis Moore, Daniel Neal, Nick O’Keefe, DeSean Pearce, Matt Pfingst, Darius Purcell, Mark Sturgis, Malcolm Styers, John Svoboda, Mike Wilson• NCAA Regional Qualifiers: Tim Daly, Jerod Gardner, Darius Purcell, Mark Sturgis• SoCon Field Athlete of the Week: Mark Sturgis, Darius Purcell

Women’s Outdoor Track and Field• 2009 Southern Conference champion• SoCon Coach of the Year: John Weaver• SoCon Most Outstanding Athlete: Lily Tallent• SoCon Individual Champions: Whitney Smyre (Ham-mer), Shea Snow (Pole Vault), Lily Tallent (Shot Put, Discus, Javelin), Danielle Thorpe (Triple Jump)• All-SoCon: Ashley Beale, Michelle Brutus, Kiara Crutchfield, Crystal Dukes, Asia Dunlap, Meghan Gaffney, Lynda Hiller, Monica Johnson, Nadia Liriano, Michaela McGriff, Ashley McKiver, Christina Parker, Jen Povick, Whitney Smyre, Shea Snow, Lily Tallent, Danielle Thorpe and Julie Ward • NCAA Regional Qualifiers: Rebecca Hazeltine, Whitney Smyre, Shea Snow, Lily Tallent, Danielle Thorpe (Triple Jump)• SoCon Field Athlete of the Week: Rebecca Hazeltine, Shea Snow, Danielle Thorpe

Men’s Outdoor Track and Field• 2009 Southern Conference Runner-Up• SoCon Individual Champions: Tim Daly (Hammer), Jerod Gardner (Shot Put), Mark Sturgis (Triple Jump)• All-SoCon: Matt Boruff , Phillip Bush, Mason Campbell, Tim Daly, Asmeron Desta, AJ Dohanic, Jerod Gardner, Jake Goodchild, Ricky Harris, Dennis Moore, Daniel Neal, Nick O’Keefe, DeSean Pearce, Matt Pfingst, Darius Purcell, Mark Sturgis, Malcolm Styers, John Svoboda, Mike Wilson• NCAA Regional Qualifiers: Tim Daly, Jerod Gardner, Darius Purcell, Mark Sturgis• SoCon Field Athlete of the Week: Mark Sturgis, Darius Purcell

Men’s Soccer• Record: 10-8• SoCon: 4-3 (T2nd)• All-SoCon: Arie Muniz, Juan Obregon, Paul Pessina, Collin Taylor • SoCon All-Freshman: Mark Bridges, Sean Dreybus, Collin Taylor• NSCAA/adidas all-Region: Paul Pessina• SoCon Player of the Week: Antonio Harley, Juan Obregon

Softball• Record: 26-29 • SoCon: 14-9 ( T 2nd) Highest finish ever• SoCon Player of the Month: Katie Boyd• SoCon Pitcher of the Month: Kayla Richardson• SoCon Player of the Week: Katie Boyd (twice)• SoCon Pitcher of the Week: Ashley Stubbs• All-SoCon: Katie Boyd, Michelle Lighton, Kayla Richardson• SoCon All-Freshman team: Megan Rembielak• All-Tournament team: Kayla Richardson• All-Mideast Region: Katie Boyd• All-State: Katie Boyd

Women’s Cross Country• Placed fourth at Southern Conference Championship• Finished 22nd at NCAA Southeast Regional• All- SoCon: Meghan Gaffney, Hannah Parks• NCAA Southeast all-Region: Meghan Gaffney• SoCon Runner of the Month: Meghan Gaffney• SoCon Runner of the Week: Meghan Gaffney (three times)

Wrestling• Record: 7-16• SoCon: 2-3 (4th) • Placed third at Southern Conference Championship• 133-Pound SoCon Champion: Frank Celorrio• NCAA Tournament Participant: Frank Celorrio• All-SoCon: Frank Celorrio• SoCon All-Freshman: Kyle Blevins and Mike Kessler• SoCon Wrestler of the Month: Chip Powell• SoCon Wrestler of the Week: Austin Trotman and Frank Celorrio

Baseball• Record: 33-21• SoCon: 15-13 (6th)• All-America: Zach Quate, Isaac Harrow• All-SoCon: Zach Quate, Isaac Harrow, Wes Hobson, Rand Smith• SoCon Player of the Month: Isaac Harrow• SoCon Pitcher of the Month: Zach Quate MEN’S TENNIS• Record: 15-10• SoCon: 5-5 (7th)• All-SoCon: Bobby Lake • SoCon Player of the Week: Bobby Lake• Bobby Lake ranked (no. 125) at number one singles• First-ever national ranking (no. 67) Men’s Basketball• Record: 13-18 • SoCon: 9-11 (t-3rd North)• All-SoCon: Kellen Brand• SoCon All-Tournament: Donald Sims

Women’s Basketball• Record: 9-22• SoCon: 7-13 (8th)• All-SoCon: Brittany Mixon• SoCon All-Freshman: Sade Means, Canesha Edwards• SoCon All-Tournament: Brittany Mixon• SoCon Player of the Week: Frances Hernandez, Brittney Spencer Women’s Soccer• Record: 7-10-2• SoCon: 3-7-1 (8th) Women’s Tennis• Record: 9-16 • SoCon: 3-7 (8th) Women’s Golf• Placed ninth at SoCon Championship Volleyball• Record: 7-25• SoCon: 3-15 (t-5th North) Field Hockey• Record: 2-17• NorPac: 1-5 (6th)• All-NorPac: Quantina Chau and Amanda Young• NorPac Rookie of the Week: Bridgette Street• NorPac Offensive Player of the Week: Nicole Morgan

Men’s Golf• Placed 11th at Southern Conference Championship• North/South Golf Intercollegiate Champion: Casey Johnson• SoCon Golfer of the Week: Casey Johnson


Academic Honors and AwardsBob McCloskey Insurance Southern Conference Graduate ScholarshipCameron McCarthy (men’s soccer)

2008 Coleman Lew Leadership AwardCharissa Clearman (volleyball) Mark Sturgis (men’s track and field)

CoSIDA/ESPN the Magazine Academic All-DistrictMatt Boruff (men’s track and field)Mary Kate Bowman (women’s golf )Antonio Harley (men’s soccer)David Towarnicky (baseball)

CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-AmericaDavid Towarnicky (baseball)

Draddy Award semifinalist (National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete of the Year)Pierre Banks (football)

FCS Athletics Directors Association Postgraduate Scholarship FinalistPierre Banks (football)

National Academic All-Star Team (National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics)Pierre Banks (football)

National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) National Academic SquadQuantina Chau, Sabra Holt, Kelly Allaband, Stephanie Childress, Kelsey Dorset, Kate Garnet, Jessie Harris, Lauren Kloeppinger, Hannah Martin, Jeanette Miers, Katie Price, Bridgette Street, Jessie Thompson, Amanda Young, Christine Zanowicz

National Golf Coaches Association All-American ScholarsMary Kate Bowman

NCAA Public Recognition AwardField Hockey

National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) National Academic Team AwardField Hockey

Southern Conference Student-Athlete of the WeekPierre Banks (football)Matt Boruff (men’s indoor track and field)Frances Hernandez (women’s basketball)

United States Track and Field Cross Country Coaches Association All-Academic TeamWomen’s Cross Country

National Soccer Coaches Association of America College Team Academic AwardMen’s Soccer

2008 USTFCCCA all-Academic Team AwardWomen’s Cross Country

aCaDeMIC all-CONFereNCeMatt Andress (baseball)Austin Annas (wrestling)Pierre Banks (football) Ashley Beale (women’s indoor and outdoor track and field)Brett Bloomquist (baseball)Matt Boruff (men’s indoor and outdoor track and field)Mary Kate Bowman (women’s golf )Michael Brogan (baseball)Michelle Brutus (women’s indoor and outdoor track and field)Charissa Clearman (volleyball)Colin Davis (men’s outdoor track and field)Brooke DeHart (women’s golf )Nick DeRose (baseball)Josh Dowdy (baseball)Nash Dunn (men’s outdoor track and field)Cassie Engelgau (volleyball)Teri Fister (softball)Jabari Fletcher (football)Orry Frye (football)Ashley Gaston (softball)Brittany Gaston (softball)Kevin Glass (baseball)Brian Graves (men’s outdoor track and field)Kelsey Hanger (women’s outdoor track and field)Brad Hardee (football) Antonio Harley (men’s soccer)Rebecca Hazeltine (women’s indoor and outdoor track and field)Shannon Healy (women’s soccer)Frances Hernandez (women’s basketball)A.J. Highsmith (men’s basketball)Bridgette Hills (women’s indoor and outdoor track and field)Josh Houser (men’s cross country/indoor and outdoor T&F)Brett Houghton (wrestling)Dustin Hudson (men’s golf )Heather Kale (volleyball)Lindsay King (women’s Tennis)Melissa Kopec (women’s cross country/indoor and outdoor T&F)Meg Irwin (women’s indoor track and field)Bobby Lake (men’s tennis)J.T. Labruyere (men’s soccer)Stephanie Long (softball)Caroline Mauch (women’s Tennis)Cameron McCarthy (men’s soccer)Emily McGonagle (women’s golf ) Karina Mill (women’s basketball)Taylor Miller (baseball)Yancy Moose (softball)Amy Neilson (women’s outdoor track and field)Ashley Norris (women’s cross country/indoor and outdoor T&F)Becca Norris (volleyball)Hannah Parks (women’s cross country/indoor and outdoor T&F)David Port (baseball)Jen Povick (women’s cross country/indoor and outdoor T&F)Dani Reese (women’s cross country/indoor and outdoor T&F)Kala Robertson (women’s indoor track and outdoor field)Caroline Sedon (volleyball)Natalie Shaw (women’s cross country/indoor and outdoor T&F)Joseph Squiers (men’s golf ) Lauren Swecker (volleyball)Lily Tallent (women’s indoor and outdoor track and field)Dylan Temple (wrestling)Xan Thomas (football) David Towarnicky (baseball)Michael Walker (men’s cross country/indoor and outdoor T&F)Nick Zeller (men’s outdoor track and field)


School Records Broken in 2008-09

BaseballIndividualCareer At-Bats — Isaac Harrow (750)Career Runs — Harrow (165)Career Hits — Harrow (260)Career Doubles — Harrow (65)Career RBI — Harrow (201)Career Total Bases — Harrow (421)Career Pitching Appearances — Zach Quate (100)Career Games Played — Harrow (199)Single-Season Runs — Rand Smith (68)Single-Season Triples — Harrow (6)Single-Season RBI — Harrow (75)Single-Season Total Bases — Harrow (163)Single-Season Saves — Quate (11)Hitting Streak — Smith (27 games)

Men’s BasketballTeamMargin of Victory — 65 vs. Milligan

IndividualSingle-Game 3-Point FG Percentage — Donald Sims vs. Milligan (1.000, 5-5)

Women’s BasketballTeamSIngle-Season Blocks — 128

IndividualSingle-Season Blocks — Brittany Mixon (62)

FootballIndividualCareer Games Played — Pierre Banks (62^)Career Total Offense — Armanti Edwards (10,783*)Career Rushing Yards by QB — Edwards (3,682*)Career Touchdown Passes — Edwards (62*)Career Touchdowns Responsible For — Edwards (109*)Single-Season Total Offense — Edwards (3,843*)Single-Season Touchdown Passes — Edwards (30)Single-Season Touchdowns Responsible For — Edwards (41*)Single-Game Passing Yards — Edwards vs. S.C. State (433)Single-Season Interceptions — Mark LeGree (10*)Single-Game Interceptions — LeGree vs. Wofford (3)Consecutive Pass Attempts Without an Interception — Edwards (176)Freshman Receiving Touchdowns — Ben Jorden (6)

Women’s SoccerIndividualCareer Goals — Casey Cleary (30)Career Points — Cleary (71)

SoftballTeamConference Wins — 14Single-Season Runs — 238Single-Season Home Runs — 36Single-Season RBI — 205Single-Season On-Base Pct. — .342Single-Season Walks — 184Single-Season Sacrifice Flies — 11Single-Season ERA — 2.86Single-Season Shutouts — 7 (Tied)Single-Season Least Runs Allowed — 194Single-Season Complete Games — 35Single-Game Runs — 18 at NC CentralSingle-Game RBI — 17 at NC CentralSingle-Game Walks — 10 at Gardner-WebbSingle-Game Hit By Pitch — 3 (twice)

IndividualCareer Home Runs — Katie Boyd (26)Career Walks — Boyd (90)Career Wins — Kayla Richardson (34)Career Strikeouts — Richardson (349)Career Pitching Appearances — Richardson (129)Single-Season Runs — Boyd (46)Single-Season On-Base Pct. – Boyd (.590*)Single-Season Slugging Pct. – Boyd (.879*)Single-Season Home Runs — Boyd (17)Single-Season RBI — Boyd (45)Single-Season Total Bases — Boyd (116)Single-Season Walks — Boyd (64*)Single-Season Intentional Walks - Boyd (23*)Single-Season Sacrifice Flies — Michelle Lighton (4)Single-Season Wins — Richardson (14)Single-Season Starts — Richardson (28 tied) Single-Season Complete Games — Richardson (23)Single-Season Innings Pitched — Richardson (204.1)Single-Season Strikeouts — Richardson (155)Consecutive Stolen Bases — Sarah Rappe (17)Freshman RBI — Lighton (32)

Men’s Indoor Track and FieldHeptathalon — Matt Boruff (5,021 pts.)

Women’s Indoor Track and Field3000m — Meghan Gaffney (9:39.84)High Jump — Rebecca Hazeltine (5-9.25)

Men’s Outdoor Track and FieldDecathalon — Jake Goodchild (6,278)

^ denotes NCAA record (all divisions)* denotes SoCon record

Along with the records set by student-athletes in 2008-09, Kidd Brewer Stadium and the Holmes Convocations Center saw single-game attendance records broken as well. 30,931 fans packed The Rock on Halloween for football’s win against Wofford, while 8,350 fans filled the Holmes Center in January for a game against Davidson.

Punctuating Appalachian’s success on the plaing fields and courts in 2008-09 is the fact that Mountaineers set 73 school records over the course of the year.


Yosef/DevelopmentAppalachian athletics’ unprecedented success in recent years has led to exponential growth in the department. Below is a look at ASU’s growth in Yosef Club donations and average football attendance over the past five academic years.

$2,295,010

$2,424,630

$1,376,441

$1,042,704

$664,500

2008

2009

2007

2006

2005

YOseF ClUb DONatIONs

2008 2009200720062005

aVerage FOOtball atteNDaNCe

27,140

22,589

23,169

28,727

13,556

2007

2008

2006

2005

20042007 2008200620052004


Facilities Enhancement CampaignIn 2008-09, Appalachian athletics continued working its way towards the completion of its $50 million facili-ties enhancement campaign. In addition to the completion of Beaver Field at Jim and Bettie Smith Stadium and ASU Soccer Stadium at the Ted Mackorell Soccer Complex, construction continued on Sywassink/Lloyd Family Stadium and Kidd Brewer Stadium.

KIDD breWer staDIUM

RENOVATIONS COMPLETED FOR THE 2008 SEASON INCLUDED:

• Installation of 4,400 seats on an expansion deck on the east side of the stadium, including temporary press facilities.• The expanded east concourse features new restrooms, concession stands and entrance gate.

Construction of the crown jewel of the athletics facilities enhancement campaign — the 120,000-square-foot KBS Complex is on pace to be completed in time for the Sept. 12 home opener versus McNeese State. Construction is also progressing on restroom facillities in the south end zone area and will be complet-ed before the Mountaineers take the field.


Facilities Enhancement Campaign

sOFIelD FaMIlY INDOOr PraCtICe FaCIlItY• Construction is complete.• ASU football held the first official practice in the facility on Monday, Oct. 22.• Facility is located, along with the new ASU Softball Stadium, on the former site of Red Lackey Field, adjacent to Kidd Brewer Stadium, Owens Field House and the future KBS Complex.• Facility, which features an 80-yard X 60-yard artificial playing surface that allows all 20 of ASU's varsity sports to practice and train during inclement weather.

asU sOCCer staDIUM• Located at the Ted Mackorell Soccer Complex. • Construction is complete.• Men’s and women’s soccer competed on the FieldTurf field in 2008.• 1,000 permanent seats and an accompanying state-of-the-art press box were completed in the spring.

JIM aND bettIe sMItH baseball staDIUM• Located behind the Broyhill Inn and Conference Center.• Construction of playing field, including state-of-the-art FiedTurf playing sur-face, dugouts, walls, lights and scoreboard/message center, is complete.• Construction of indoor hitting facility is complete.• Installation of permanent seating, both chairbacks and bleachers, is complete.• Construction of press box, concession stand, restrooms and team clubhouse facility was completed before the 2009 campaign.• Appalachian officially opened its new home with a 6-1 victory over in-state rival Gardner-Webb on Tuesday, April 10, 2008.

sYWassINK/llOYD FaMIlY staDIUM• Located on the site of baseball’s former home, Red Lackey Field (adjacent to Kidd Brewer Stadium).• Initial construction is complete.• Upgrades for the 2008 season included a new state-of-the-art scoreboard and message center and a newly sodded outfield.• New lights were installed for 2009, as was a team room in the press box facility.• Apps opened play at their first-ever on-campus facility on March 31, 2007 ver-sus College of Charleston.

VarsItY gYM• Construction of a wrestling-only practice facility and coaches’ offices were completed in 2006.• Installation of a mondo track surface on the gym’s balcony for use by ASU’s track and field programs was completed early in 2008.• Removal of the gym’s old bleachers and installation of a new hardwood floor, which includes four full-sized basketball courts and six volleyball courts to be used exclusively as a practice facility for ASU basketball and volleyball, was com-pleted in June 2008.• Retractable bleachers for wrestling matches were installed in fall 2008.


Success On and Off the FieldAppalachian’s student-athletes stay busy throughout the course of the academic year with schoolwork as well as sport committ-ments, but it doesn’t mean they take the summers off. Below are some of the activities Mountaineers are taking part in during the 2009 summer.

INterNsHIPs

leaDersHIP

COMMUNItY serVICe

INterNatIONal

Name Site or MajorMalcolm Bennett Creative PrintingKerry Brown Watauga Wellness CenterArmanti Edwards University CommunicationsBJ Frazier Appalachian District Health Dept.Tim Frye Sports MarketingCorbett Harris Eagle’sNestTrey Hennessee ASU Health Promotions

Name Site or MajorBrett Irvin Physical Therapy, Inc.Josh Jackson Health PromotionQuavian Lewis Western Youth NetworkTavaris Washington US BuildingsTyler Webb Health EducationAnthony Williams US Buildings

Jabari Fletcher (football)• Attended the NCAA National Student Athlete Leadership Con-ference, May 24-27 at Coronado Resort, Disney World. • 600 student athletes from around the nation were selected from 2,000 nominations.

Terrance McLean (football)• Currently working as an Appalachian Student Orientation Undergraduate Leader. He is conducting orientation sessions for incoming freshmen and transfer students.

Tony Robertson (football)• Finalist for the Coleman-Lews Leadership Award.

Joe Suiter (football)• Accepted to ASU’s Higher Education master’s program.• Working as a Graduate Assistant with the Learning Assistance Program.

Cedric Baker (football)• Was one of the coordinators of the Annual 5K Run/Walk Fund-raiser for Huntington’s Disease on April 25.

Jabari Fletcher was a volunteer coordinator and Quavian Lewis was a Volunteer Coach at the Watauga County Special Olympics.

Josh Houser (men’s cross country/track and field) studied abroad in China over the summer.

Charissa Clearman (volleyball), Ashley Norris (women’s cross country/track and field) and Anna Baker (women’s cross coun-try/track and field) went on a mission trip to Africa.

In addition to the student-athletes listed above, numerous Mountaineers participated in summer school, on-campus camps and several other activities in the High Country as well as their hometowns.


Back Cover

Documents

2008-09 Annual Report