Cullowhee, N.C. – Pushed back a day because of this week's early spring cold snap, Western Carolina baseball concludes its week-long, four-game nonconference swing on Wednesday evening as the Catamounts visit longtime archrival Appalachian State in the backend of the home-and-home series in Boone. The first pitch from Beaver Field at Jim and Bettie Smith Stadium is scheduled for 5 p.m.
 
Wednesday's rescheduled matchup will be shown on ESPN+ (paid subscription required) with live stats links available online at CatamountSports.com.
 
Western Carolina (16-15) enters the nonconference tilt with Sun Belt foe App State on a three-game win streak including a victory over the Mountaineers and two on the weekend over Gardner-Webb with the third meeting canceled.
 
App State (16-15) snapped a two-game losing skid by taking 2-of-3 at Louisiana-Monroe (ULM) including a pair of run-ruled wins – 14-2 in eight innings on Friday and 17-5 in seven innings in Sunday's finale.
 
Wednesday's Projected Starters:
WCU – Fr. RHP Carter Burnette (1-0, 5.79) vs. APP – R-Jr. RHP Liam Best (1-2, 5.71 ERA)

• Catamount true freshman right-hander Carter Burnette is expected to make his first collegiate start on Wednesday, having seen action in 11 games to date – all in relief … Wednesday is expected to be a short start;
• A local product out of Asheville, Burnette's longest outing of the season has been a 3.2 relief effort at Mercer, striking out a career-high six in limiting the Bears to just two hits.

About Western Carolina:
The Catamounts enter the week batting .315 collectively as a team with 338 base hits – the second-most in the SoCon – including conference-leading 71 doubles, six doubles, and 36 home runs. WCU averages 8.6 runs on 10.9 hits per game.
 
Seven Catamount regulars are batting above the .300 threshold this season, led by Hayden Friese at .354 (45-for-127) to rank ninth in the SoCon. Outfielder Brayden Corn is 11th in the conference with a .350 seasonal average and Trent Turner ranks 14th at .341. Elijah Smith (11) and Jack Spyke (10) both have double-digit doubles to lead the team with three hitters – Turner, Friese, and Mason Holton – tied for the team lead with six home runs apiece.
 
WCU's pitching staff ranks fifth in the conference with 265 combined strikeouts including 86 strikeouts looking, the second-most in the SoCon. Weekend starter Davis Wright has a team-best 49 strikeouts – third-most in the league including the second-most 17 strikeouts looking.
 
Scouting the Opposition – the Appalachian State Mountaineers:
Following its four-run, 14-10 loss to WCU in Cullowhee last week, App State took 2-of-3 from ULM by scoring 42 total runs over just 24 innings with a pair of run-rule decisions. The Mountaineers now lead the deep Sun Belt Conference in offense, the only squad over the .300 threshold with a .304 (329-of-1,082) average. The Apps have a Sun Belt-leading 74 doubles, seven triples, and 35 home runs.
 
Freshman Tyler Lichtenberger paces the conference with a .432 seasonal average (14th in the NCAA) collecting 48 hits (2nd) with 11 doubles, two triples, and a couple of homers. Riley Luft (.355) ranks eighth in the Sun Belt in batting average, while Juan Correa is tied for the Sun Belt lead with 11 home runs.
 
On the mound, Appalachian State is 14th out of 14 teams with a collective 7.46 team ERA with 247 strikeouts including 76 looking.
 
Last Time We Met – Western Carolina 14, Appalachian State 10
Eight of Western Carolina's 12 base hits went for extra bases including five doubles and three home runs as the Catamounts built a 13-5 lead before holding on for a 14-10 victory in the front end of the nonconference home-and-home with Appalachian State in Cullowhee.
 
Noah Quarless (3-for-4) and Jack Spyke (2-for-4) both doubled twice, and Trent Turner homered as a part of a two-hit effort to lead the Catamounts. Trey Spees hit a three-run home run and Mason Holton added an inside-the-park home run for an eighth-inning insurance marker in the win.
 
Four Mountaineers posted multi-hit games with Tyler Figueroa (3-for-5) collecting the lone two extra-base hits in a three-hit effort with a double and a three-run, eighth-inning home run as part of four RBI. Dillon Moquin (2-for-4), Tyler Lichtenberger (2-for-4), and Joseph Zamora (2-for-6) each tallied a pair of singles apiece, with Moquin adding a pair of walks to reach four times.
 
WCU left-handed reliever Owen Austin (3-0) was credited with the win in his first start, striking out five against a walk over four innings in the planned short start. Brandon Langley earned the save out of the bullpen for the Catamounts.
 
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 138 times previously on the baseball diamond with the Catamounts holding an 84-53-1 edge in the series. WCU has won 37 of the previous 64 meetings held in Boone (37-26-1), though the Mountaineers have won four straight over WCU on its home field dating back to 2013.
 
Wednesday marks the first regular-season meeting between WCU and App State in Boone since 2019 – a 6-3 victory for the Mountaineers.
 
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 192-164-1 record all-time against teams from the Sun Belt Conference.
 
The Mountaineers are 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 (84-53-1), 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)
 
On Deck for the Catamounts:
Following Wednesday's fourth consecutive game out of league play between two opponents – App State and Gardner-Webb – WCU returns to Southern Conference play on the weekend with a three-game series in Johnson City, Tenn., against East Tennessee State (22-9, 3-3 SoCon) April 11-13.
 
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