BOONE, N.C. - Highlighted by four home games, trips to Georgia Tech and Tennessee along with a season-opening weekend tournament at DePaul, Appalachian State University women's basketball head coach Angel Elderkin announced the 2016-17 non-conference schedule on Monday .
Coach Elderkin and the rest of the coaching staff made sure the Apps would be tested during their non-conference schedule, where nine of the 12 teams posted a winning record while six made it to the postseason and two teams won their conference tournament.
Appalachian will kick-off the season with a pair of 7 p.m. exhibition contests in the Holmes Center against Coker College (Nov. 2) and Lenoir-Rhyne five days later on Nov. 7.
The Mountaineers will spend the first two weeks of the season on the road, as they will open up the 2016-17 slate with a weekend tournament in Chicago against two formidable opponents in either Gardner-Webb, UAB or host DePaul. The three teams combined for a .622 win percentage, including DePaul's 27-9 mark. The Blue Demons advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament with wins over James Madison and Louisville.
Six days later, the Apps will make the trek to Lynchburg, Va. for a Nov. 18 contest against Liberty. The Flames finished with a solid 20-13 record en route to an appearance in the WNIT. Liberty dealt Appalachian State a 74-68 setback in the Apps' season opener in the Holmes Center. Appalachian will then make the short trip to Richmond two days later to face the Spiders on Nov. 20.
On Nov. 23, the Mountaineers hit the road once again to face former SoCon rival, ETSU. The Mountaineers have had the Bucs' number, winning six out of the past seven contests while last season's victory gave App State its first win of the season, 70-52.
App State's first home game won't ensue until Nov. 27, which will start a stretch of three-straight home affairs. The Black and Gold will play College of Charleston (Nov. 27), North Carolina A&T (Nov. 30) and Radford (Dec.4) in the Holmes Center. NC A&T won the MEAC Tournament Championship with a 19-12 record while Radford also finished with a winning mark at 18-13.
Road contests against Georgia Tech (Dec. 11) and storied program Tennessee (Dec. 14) will ensue during the following week. The Yellow Jackets and Volunteers posted a .608 (42-27) combined winning percentage while both teams played in the postseason. UT advanced all the way its third elite eight appearances in four seasons before being eliminated by Syracuse.
A Dec. 21 contest in the Holmes Center against Big South Tournament Champion and NCAA Tournament participant UNC Asheville will close the non-conference schedule. UNCA ended the season with an impressive 26-7 mark and a 16-4 record in its league.
Coming off a 10-20 (9-11 Sun Belt) 2015-16 campaign, the Mountaineers will return 13 of 15 student-athletes from last season's squad along with four highly-talented freshmen, giving the Apps plenty of depth for what looks to be a rebound season.
Quotable
“ We had two goals when we put our 2016-17 non-conference together, identify championship programs and schedule more road games. In order to be ready and compete in the Sun Belt Conference, it's important that we learn to how to win on the road. I love not only the challenges but the opportunities we will face this season.” - Angel Elderkin.
