Mountain Momma Monday: December 3

A lot has happened in the past week of Mountaineer women’s athletics. The basketball team got back to winning while the swimming and diving team as well as the track team all competed this past week for the last time until after winter break. The gymnastics team received national recognition prior to the start of their 2013 campaign. Take a closer look at the week in WVU women’s sports:

Mar 19, 2012; Norfolk, VA, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers guard Christal Caldwell (1) shoots the ball over Stanford Cardinal guard Grace Mashore (1) during the first half in the second round of the 2012 NCAA women

Basketball:

The Mountaineers took to the court in Charlottesville, VA yesterday after losing two games in Miami last week. The #25/23 ranked WVU squared off with a tough Cavaliers unit, looking to put together a complete 60 minute game and get back on the winning side of things.

West Virginia fell behind the Cavaliers early, trailing midway through the first half 17-8 before mounting a rally to tie the game on a 10-1 run. Both teams would go shot for shot through halftime, with the Cavaliers taking a 26-23 lead into the locker room. The Mountaineers, who have had a hard time of finishing games, came out firing in the second half. Behind the play of guard Cristal Caldwell, built a 13 point lead midway through the second half. They would hold on for a 54-47 win on the road. Caldwell led WVU with 19 points and Averee Fields led the team with 9 rebounds and 4 steals.

West Virginia will take to the court in Charleston tomorrow against Marshall in the Chesapeake Energy Capitol Classic and then again on December 8 at home against St. Bonaventure.

Gymnastics:

The gymnastics team has been ranked #24 in the preseason Coaches’ Poll, released today. Also appearing in the preseason rankings are 6 of WVU’s opponents: #4 Oklahoma, #5 Utah, #9 Oregon State, #10 Michigan, #20 Denver, and #22 North Carolina State.

The Mountaineers will host their annual Gold-Blue Meet on December 6 to gear up for the 2012-13 season. Fans can watch the Mountaineers at 7 pm in the Cary Gym.

Swimming and Diving:

The swim team competed in the US Winter Nationals at the University of Texas November 29 – December 1. Two of the WVU swimmers qualified for the finals in the competition. Senior Rachel Burnett placed 5th in the 1650 meter free style and senior Mandie Nugent placed 6th in the 200 meter fly. Other Mountaineers in action this past week included senior Kata Fodor (8th in consolation 1650), sophomore Julie Ogden (27th in consolation 200 fly), senior Nikki Vetterlein (36th in the 200 back), junior Danielle Smith (38th in the 200 back), and Breanna McCann (47th in the 200 back).

The dive team took to Miami, OH for the Miami University Invitational at the same time as the US Winter Nationals. The Mountaineers had an eventful meet, with multiple ladies placing in the diving competitions. In the 3-m dive, sophomore Hailey VandePoal placed 4th and freshman Lindsey Schmidt placed 7th. Both VandePoal and Schmidt placed in the 1-m dive competition, taking 5th and 6th respectively. Also placing in the 1-m dive was sophomore Jenna Rey (7th) and Tori Taffner (12th).

The Mountaineers also announced the signing of two athletes for 2013-2014 season this past Friday. WVU picked up commitments from Lindsay Morrow from Katy, TX and Emma Skelley from Manassas, VA. Morrow is a free swimmer recruit while Skelley was recruited for distance swimming.

The swimming and diving teams will be on a break until after the winter break. They resume action on January 12 at Pitt.

Track:

West Virginia track hosted the Marty Pushkin Track Classic this past Saturday. WVU dominated their host event, winning the vast majority of the events. The Mountaineers took the top three spots in the 400-m dash with Shakiyla Cosby, Brianna Kerekes, and Hannah Stone finishing 1, 2, and 3 respectively.WVU also took the top four spots in the 500-m dash with Peyton Hampson, Alyssa Scherich, Arielle Gaither, and Shannon Daly finishing 1, 2, 3, and 4 respectively. In the 800-m run, WVU once again took the top three spots. Allison Tyree, Christa D’Egidio, and Lauren Moskal finished 1, 2, and 3.

In the field events, WVU once again conquered the competition, winning both the high jump and pole vault competitions. Hannah Stone won the high jump event while Katlyn Shelar, Kiley Defabaugh, Lindsay Kopenhaver, and Caitlin Walton finished 1 through 4 in the pole vault.

The Mountaineers faced off against a field of lesser competition as a pre-season tune up prior to the start of the season on January 12 at Kent State.