Box Score
GREENVILLE, N.C. – Norfolk State (1-4) fell to Appalachian State (4-1), 68-61, on Sunday afternoon at Minges Coliseum in the ECU Pirate Invitational. Junior forward Rachel Gordon led the Spartans with 17 points and nine rebounds.
Quineshia Leonard added 11 points for the Spartans.
NSU got on the board first with a jumper by Kashay Barnes with 19:39 left in the first half to spark a 6-0 run for the Spartans.
Courtney Freeman's layup with 16:46 left before the half gave the Mountaineers their first points of the afternoon as NSU led Appalachian State, 6-2.
Aivah Parham's jumper capped a 15-6 run by the Spartans with 11:05 left before halftime to give the Spartans a 21-8 lead over the Mountaineers.
Appalachian State would not go down without a fight as they closed the half on a 19-8 run to cut NSU's lead to two as the Spartans led the Mountaineers, 29-27 at halftime.
Katie Mallow hit a 3-pointer to cap a 10-2 run for Appalachian State as the Spartans trailed 39-31 with 16:12 left in regulation.
Ebony Brown's layup with 12:20 left helped bring NSU within five as they trailed Appalachian State, 42-37.
Appalachian State's Farrahn Wood sparked a 7-1 run with 10:41 left in regulation to keep the Mountaineers ahead, 49-38.
Gordon's layup cut Appalachian State's lead to four as the Spartans trailed 54-50 with 5:45 left in the game.
Brown nailed a 3-pointer with 1:13 left on the clock, but that was not enough to overtake the Mountaineers.
Four Appalachian State players scored in double figures. Courtney Freeman and Katie Mallow each had 15 points for the Mountaineers. Farrahn Wood tallied 12 points and Anna Freeman followed with 11 points and 8 rebounds.
Kashay Barnes and Aivah Parham each added eight points for NSU.
The Spartans shot 45.0 (27-of-60) percent from the floor and outrebounded Appalachian State, 45-35.
Recca Trice had three points and seven assists to move into sixth place all-time at NSU for career assists.
The Spartans will travel to Savannah, Ga., on Saturday to take on Savannah State at 4 p.m.
