BOONE, N.C. — Appalachian State University wrestling received 15 votes in the first USA Today/NWCA poll of the 2016-17 season, ranking 30th overall in the country.

The Mountaineers are one of only two teams from the Southern Conference to be ranked nationally in the poll – Chattanooga at No. 24.

Last season, the Black and Gold found themselves ranked in several polls in the top echelon of the country. App State first received votes on Dec. 22, getting seven votes to lead the "others receiving votes" category with Wisconsin.

Appalachian then cracked the top 25 for the first time in program history when they ranked No. 25 in the USA Today/NWCA poll on Jan. 12. It was the first time, outside of App State football being ranked in the FCS poll, that any of App State sports teams had been ranked in the top-25 of a major national poll since App State baseball was ranked No. 24 in Baseball America's May 14, 2012 poll.

Then a month later, App State found itself ranked No. 24 by the InterMat Wrestling poll after being ranked No. 25 the week prior. The Mountaineers peaked in both polls at No. 23 (USA Today/NWCA) and No. 22 (InterMat Wrestling).

The Mountaineers will now head into the regular season as they travel to the Hokie Open on Sunday, Nov. 6 in Blacksburg, Va.

2016 Appalachian State wrestling season and individual match tickets are on sale now. Season tickets for adults will be $30/each and for youth fans (ages 3-12) $15/each. Individual match prices will be $7 for adults and $3 for youth except for Mountaineer Duals (Belmont Abbey/Oregon State) and Chattanooga, which will be $10 for adults and $3 for youth.

To purchase tickets, visit appstatesports.com/tickets, (828) 262-2079, or visit the Appalachian State athletics ticket office, located inside the Holmes Center.