It was a strong week for West Virginia sports with the weekend bringing a perfect score in rifle, a school record in track and field, as well as wins for baseball, gymnastics, tennis, and wrestling.
Rifle competes in NCAA Qualifiers, as Mary Tucker shoots perfect 600
West Virginia rifle defeated VMI in their NCAA Qualifying match on Saturday, with the highlight of the day being senior Mary Tucker shooting a perfect 600 in the air rifle event.
“Anytime someone shoots a 600, it’s incredibly impressive,” head coach Jon Hammond said. “Mary had to work for it, but it was exciting for us to watch her finish her match. We’re really pleased for her and also ready to work hard this week to prepare for hosting our conference championships.”
The Mountaineers will be in action next at the GARC Championships this weekend. The Mountaineers lost their final GARC match of the year to Kentucky, with their three other losses during the season coming out of GARC play.
Track and Field closes season as Mikenna Vanderheyden sets a school record
WVU track and field ended their regular season at the Penn State Tune Up. During the competition, junior Mikenna Vanderheyden finished the 600-meter with a time of 1:31.81. This was a WVU program record previously set by sophomore Cassandra Williamson earlier this season.
The Mountaineers will have their eyes set on the Big 12 Championships this weekend in Lubbock, Texas, in the indoor championships.
Wrestling Picks up two Weekend Wins
Wrestling faced Clarion on Friday and Lock Haven on Sunday. The Mountaineers beat Clarion, 24-18 on Friday and then went to Lock Haven and won in much more convincing fashion, 34-9. Redshirt-senior Alex Hornfeck’s 13-0 major decision helped pace WVU to the win.
The Mountaineers finish 10-5 which is only the second team in school history to do so. (1972) This year’s team is also the sixth to finish the regular season with 10 wins. Big 12 Championships for wrestling will take place next weekend on Mar. 4-5.
Gymnastics bounces back with win over Bowling Green
WVU gymnastics was coming off a loss to No. 8 Denver, but they didn’t let that stop them in their victory over Bowling Green on Sunday.
All six gymnasts earned a 9.9 or higher on floor exercise and WVU posted a season-best score of 196.575. This finish was the best since March of 2022, and the 13th-best in program history. WVU will hit the road for two matches this weekend against Oklahoma and Texas Woman’s.
Tennis goes 1-1 during two-match weekend
Tennis went 1-1 over the weekend, defeating Radford 6-1 on Saturday, but losing 4-0 to Virginia Tech on Sunday. Tennis is 6-3 on the year, and continues non-conference play before beginning Big 12 play in March.
Baseball Salvages Sunday game as they begin 2023
WVU baseball began their 2023 season this week against Georgia Southern. Although things did not go their way on Friday or Saturday, the Mountaineers used the home run ball to help lift them past the Eagles on Sunday. WVU is 1-2 on the year and head to Maryland Tuesday, before heading out west for a three-game series against Arizona.
