BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State shot 55.4 percent from the field in notching an 87-56 Sun Belt Conference women's basketball victory over visiting Georgia Southern on Saturday afternoon at the Holmes Center in Boone, N.C.

The Mountaineers (5-12, 3-3 SBC) collected their second straight home win and third overall with the victory over the Eagles (3-14, 0-6 SBC), who saw their current slide reach 11 games. Georgia Southern will next travel to Georgia State for a Noon Sun Belt contest on Saturday, January 20th. The game will be part of the Southern vs. State Rivalry Series with the winner earning a point.

Appalachian State came into the game hitting 32 percent from three-point range, but knocked down 5-of-7 threes in the first quarter to take a 20-12 lead after the first period. The Mountaineers then went on a 13-0 run over a 7:44 stretch of the second quarter to build a 35-17 lead and stretch that to a 38-19 halftime advantage.

In the second half, the Mountaineers pulled away with a 14-0 run over the final 3:25 of the third quarter and the first minute of the fourth to build a 64-32 lead. After a quick time out, the Eagles went on a 16-7 run over the next 3:10 but the deficit was too great for GS to make up.

The Eagles had a stellar edge in points off of turnovers (21-10) but struggled from long range. Georgia Southern made just 8-of-35 three-pointers (22.9 percent), setting a new school record for most three-point attempts in a game, surpassing the 34 attempts previously taken against Lipscomb (11/15/15) and against Troy (2/19/15). 

Individually, Alexis Brown led the Eagles with 12 points and three steals, while Rhein Beamon added eight points and Amira Atwater notched six assists. Appalachian State placed five players in double figures, led by Tierra Wilson's 21 points on 7-of-7 shooting from the floor, including 5-of-5 from three-point range. Lainey Gosnell had 14 points off the bench, while Bayley Plummer notched a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. LaPresha Stanley and Dominique Jeffery also chipped in 11 points apiece.

"I thought the second half we took better threes," Georgia Southern Head Coach Kip Drown said. "We played better offensively. In the first half, we bailed them out and shot some rushed threes. I thought the second half we attacked the inside a little more, wee were able to get CB {Sierra Butler] to the line and were just more aggressive.

"Down big at half, only way to get back in it was to create some turnovers and step up," Coach Drown said. "We created those turnovers, but the problem with extending pressure is that we started fouling them. We never gave ourselves a chance to get back in it because of the free throws."

Georgia Southern finished the game hitting 19-of-67 shots from the floor (28.4 percent) and 10-of-17 from the foul line (58.8 percent). Appalachian State went 31-of-56 from the floor (55.4 percent) and 9-of-19 from three-point range (47.4 percent) while making 16-of-23 shots from the foul line (69.6 percent).