STATESBORO - Appalachian State hit 10 three-pointers for a second straight game and held off a furious fourth-quarter charge from Georgia Southern to pick up an 81-78 win in the regular season finale for both teams on Saturday afternoon at the Holmes Convocation Center.

The Mountaineers finish the regular season with a 13-11 overall mark and a 10-8 mark, while Georgia Southern finishes at 11-12 overall and 5-9 in the league. The Eagles will be the No. 5 seed in the East Division for the 2021 Sun Belt Conference Championships, and the full tournament bracket will be released at 1 p.m. on Sunday afternoon. 

Appalachian State and Georgia Southern were knotted at 14-all at the end of the first quarter. The Mountaineers began the second quarter on a 7-0 run, and maintained that seven-point advantage into halftime, leading 40-33 at the break.

The Mountaineers pushed the lead to 13, 67-54, with 6:31 left in the fourth quarter when the Eagles started their comeback. Georgia Southern embarked on a 9-0 run over the next two minutes to cut the lead to four, 67-63, with 4:26 left. App State pushed that lead back to eight, 75-67, with 1:41 left, but three-pointers by Terren Ward, Lacey Robins and a pair of Mya Burns free throws got the Eagles back to within a possession, 78-75, with six seconds remaining. App State made three out of four free throws within the final five seconds to clinch the win. 

Terren Ward had a career-high 26 points to lead four Eagles in double figures. Mya Burns had 14 points, while Eden Johnson had 12 points and Lacy Robins added 11. Lainey Gosnell's 23 points led a quartet of Mountaineers in double figures. Pre Stanley added 16 points, Janay Sanders had 15 and Michaela Porter chipped in 14.

Eagle of the Game
Ward hit 10-of-12 shots from the floor, including both of her three point attempts, and also knocked down all four free throws en route to her 26 points - the most scored by an Eagle this season. She added three assists, three steals and a pair of rebounds as well.

Stat of the Game
Both teams combined to shoot 20-of-29 from the field in the fourth quarter, hitting 68.9% of their shots. Georgia Southern was 11-of-17 from the floor en route to its 30-point period, while App State was 9-of-12 from the floor in the quarter.

Quotables • LISTEN TO FULL POSTGAME COMMENTS HERE
Head Coach Anita Howard on the fourth quarter surge from the Eagles
"We were just trying to push in transition. Our defense looked much better, and our zone gave them fits a little bit. It's hard to get a win on the road, so I was pulling all kinds of tricks to try to get us back in the game. We went with a younger lineup, since this game had no bearing on seeding. I was trying to get some of those younger players some minutes to get ready for the tournament and I think they did a good job.

Next Up
The Eagles will play the 12:30 p.m. first game of the 2021 Sun Belt Conference Championships on Friday, March 5, taking on fourth-seed from the west Texas State at Hartsell Arena on the campus of Pensacola State College.