WVU Athletics was in action over the weekend. WVU Baseball started the regular season, sweeping Georgia Southern. Men’s basketball defeated UCF in a pivotal game for their season. WVU Rifle took home the regular season GARC title for the third consecutive season. WVU Tennis and Wrestling also found victories over the weekend. There is a lot to catch up on, and we have you covered. Read more: WVU Rifle wins third consecutive GARC regular season title.
Rifle
No. 2 WVU Rifle (18-1, 5-0 in GARC) won its third consecutive Great America Rifle Conference (GARC) title over the weekend. They beat Kentucky, 4746-4741, on Saturday in Morgantown. WVU trailed Kentucky, 2362-2357, after smallbore. Braden Peiser paced Kentucky with 1198 aggregate score.
WVU beat Kentucky in air rifle, winning 2389-2379. The Mountaineers secured seven of the top eight spots in the air rifle standings. They also had four spots in the individual standings, but Peiser finished in first for Kentucky with a 1198. He scored 599 in both smallbore and air rifle.
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Griffin Lake finished in second place with an 1188, with a 592 in smallbore and 596 in air rifle. Jacob Wisman finished in third place with an 1187, with scores of 588 and 599 in small bore and air rifle.
WVU’s next competition is in the NCAA Qualifier on Saturday, February 21. The match is at the Bill McKenzie Mobile Rifle Range at the WVU Shell building. The Mountaineers do not yet have an opponent or a time determined.
Wrestling
WVU Wrestling lost to No. 4 Iowa State in Ames, Iowa, on Friday, February 13, but beat No. 15 Northern Iowa the following day in Cedar Falls, Iowa. They lost to Iowa State, 32-7, and won against Northern Iowa, 23-13.
WVU only won two of 10 matches against the Cyclones. Gunner Andrick defeated Adrian Meza at 133 pounds by decision. Ian Bush won at 184 pounds via major decision over Aiden Riggins.
The Mountaineers had much more success against Northern Iowa. They moved to 10-5 overall and 5-3 in the Big 12 after the victory. WVU won six of 10 matches to beat Northern Iowa. Jordan Titus earned his 90th career victory, winning via decision over No. 26 Max Brady at 141 pounds. No. 22 Ian Bush defeated No. 21 Nick Fox via decision at 184 pounds. No. 16 Gunnar Andrick closed the dual with a win over No. 17 Julian Farber at 133 pounds.
WVU travels to Lock Haven for its final dual of the regular season on February 21 at 6 p.m. EST.
Tennis
WVU Women’s Tennis swept Duquesne, 7-0, on Saturday, February 14, in Morgantown. They move to 5-1 on the season, with all of their victories coming at home. WVU won all three doubles matches and all six singles matches. Zuzana Kudlackova won a third-set tiebreak, 12-10, to defeat Denisse Guilarte in the closest singles match.
WVU faces Marshall next in Huntington, WV, on Friday, February 20, at 4 p.m. EST.
Gymnastics
WVU Gymnastics hosted Arizona State on Saturday, February 14, and lost 194.075-194.425. They are 6-7 overall and 1-2 in the Big 12. WVU struggled on beam after leading following the first two rotations.
WVU posted a 48.9 on vault, led by a pair of 9.8 scores from Karleigh DiCello and Sophia Rice. The Mountaineers scored 48.6 on uneven bars, with Amber Lowe leading the way with a score of 9.825. WVU posted a 47.850 on beam, while Arizona State scored 48.1. They also lost on floor, despite posting a 48.725. Auden Pederson led WVU with a score of 9.8. Arizona finished floor with a score of 49.075 to narrowly win the meet. Kayla Smith finished in second place on all-around with a 38.775.
The Mountaineers’ next meet is on Saturday, February 21, in Tucson, Arizona, against the Arizona Wildcats in a dual meet. It starts at 4 p.m. EST at the McKale Center.
