Cullowhee, N.C. – Longtime rivals Western Carolina and Appalachian State play the front end of a nonconference baseball home-and-home that spans a week, opening Tuesday evening at Childress Field / Hennon Stadium with a 5 p.m. first pitch.
 
Tuesday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+ (paid subscription required) with live stats available online through a link at CatamountSports.com. Buy tickets in advance online. The first 350 Western Carolina students through the gates will receive a replica WCU baseball jersey, courtesy of The Everson.
 
Western Carolina (13-15) won its most recent midweek home contest, rallying past mountain-rival UNC Asheville 9-8 on the strength of a walk-off, two RBI single by Cole Jones as the Catamounts erased an 8-2 deficit in the winning effort. The Catamounts are unbeaten at home in midweek nonconference games, adding wins over USC Upstate and Presbyterian to the victory over UNCA.
 
WCU has dropped 2-of-3 in SoCon play over the last two weekends both against VMI at home and last weekend at Mercer in Macon, Ga.
 
Appalachian State (14-13) took 2-of-3 from Old Dominion in Sun Belt Conference play over the weekend in Boone and have won three of their last four games overall. The Mountaineers are 0-3 in midweek road games, falling at High Point (L, 13-7), at ETSU (12-3), and at Charlotte (L, 7-6). All told, the Apps are just 1-8 away from the High Country this season, earning a Saturday win at the College of Charleston back in early March – and have lost five-straight road games.
 
Projected Pitching Matchup:
WCU – LHP Owen Austin (2-0, 3.31 ERA) vs. APP – LHP Jake Beaty (1-0, 8.79 ERA)
 
About Western Carolina:
The Catamounts enter Tuesday's home date with Appalachian State ranked third in the SoCon batting .313 (304-of-971) on the season with 56 doubles (3rd), six triples (t-4th), and 32 home runs (t-4th). The Catamounts are third in the SoCon in both on-base percentage (.417) and slugging percentage (.482).
 
Junior Hayden Friese ranks eighth in the SoCon with a .365 batting average with his 42 hits the second-most in the conference, while Brayden Corn and Trent Turner rank tied for 12th overall at .345. Turner is tied for third with 39 hits and Corn tied for seventh with 38 knocks. Elijah Smith enters the week ranked in a fourth-place tie with a team-best 10 doubles and is tied for 10th with a team-best 29 RBI.
 
WCU's pitching staff has worked to lower its seasonal ERA to 7.99 collectively and has combined for 236 strikeouts – fifth in the SoCon, including a league-best 81 strikeouts looking. LHP Davis Wright ranks third in the conference with a team-best 42 strikeouts including 15 looking, tied for the most in the conference.
 
The Catamounts have slipped into a tie for fourth in the SoCon with 20 double-plays this season, trailing ETSU (22), The Citadel (21), and tied with Samford (20).
 
Scouting the Opposition – the Appalachian State Mountaineers:
Entering the week, Appalachian State is batting .293 (273-of-931) as a team with a Sun Belt-leading 65 doubles – a mark that ranks them 15th nationally – six triples, and 29 team home runs. Senior catcher Braxton Church has a team-leading 10 doubles, followed by freshman Tyler Lichtenberger and sophomore Tyler Figueroa with nine doubles apiece. Lichtenberger is batting a team-best .421 and has reached base safely in 26 consecutive games. Juan Correa leads the way with 10 home runs as a part of 15 extra-base hits.
 
On the mound, the Apps have a 7.34 combined team ERA over 236.2 innings, surrendering 278 hits including 53 doubles, 10 triples, and 38 home runs. Mountaineer pitchers have combined for 221 strikeouts over 27 games – averaging 8.2 per contest – while allowing teams to bat .294.
 
ASU projected starter Jake Beaty has 10 appearances with one start this year, tossing 14.1 innings with an 8.79 ERA with 17 strikeouts against eight walks.
 
The Mountaineers were picked ninth in the 14-team Sun Belt Conference preseason poll.
 
Western Carolina vs. Appalachian State – The Series:
Longtime rivals who shared membership in the Southern Conference for several years, WCU and App State have met 137 times previously on the baseball diamond with the Catamounts holding an 83-53-1 edge in the series. WCU has won 39 of the 63 previous meetings held in Cullowhee (39-24).
 
Tuesday marks back-to-back seasons the two rivals have met in Cullowhee – with last year's matchup marking the first meeting on the baseball diamond since 2020.
 
Last year, WCU used an offensive explosion through the opening four frames including a six-run first and four-run fourth to take a 10-0 lead before holding off the Mountaineers for a 10-5 win in Cullowhee. App managed five combined runs over the final four innings. The Catamount win snapped a six-game App State series win streak.
 
Western Carolina vs. the Sun Belt Conference:
Western Carolina has faced nine of the current 14 teams in the Sun Belt Conference with three – App State, Georgia Southern, and Marshall – sharing Southern Conference allegiance. WCU has a 191-164-1 record all-time against teams from the Sun Belt Conference.
 
The Mountaineers represent WCU's third Sun Belt Conference opponent this season – swept by Georgia Southern and dropped 2-of-3 at Georgia State. App State was also swept by Georgia Southern, the No. 5 pick in the preseason Sun Belt poll.
 
Appalachian State (83-53-1), Coastal Carolina (2-7), Georgia Southern (51-61), Georgia State (9-12), James Madison (0-1), Louisiana-Monroe (1-2), Marshall (38-18), Old Dominion (4-8), and Troy (3-1)
 
Up Next for Western Carolina:
The Catamounts remain at home for a split three-game nonconference series against Gardner-Webb, playing the first two games on Friday and Saturday in Cullowhee before wrapping up the series in Boiling Springs on Sunday afternoon. The first pitch on Friday is scheduled for 5 p.m., with Saturday's start at 3 p.m. following WCU's annual football Spring Game.
 
Tickets to WCU's home games can be purchased online at CatamountSports.com/BuyTickets.
 
Sunday's series finale is scheduled to be played in Boiling Springs, N.C., with a 2 p.m. start.
 
All three games of the series are slated to be broadcast on ESPN+ (paid subscription required) with live stats linked online at CatamountSports.com.
 
Keep track of everything related to WCU Athletics and Catamount baseball including any game day schedule changes through our social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/CatamountSports), Twitter (@Catamounts, @CatamountBSB), and Instagram (wcu_catamounts, catamountbsb).