Mountain Momma Monday: December 10

Most of the women’s sports hit mid-season lulls or end of season wrap ups as the winter final exams have begun. The women’s hoops team caught all the headlines for WVU this week as they built a 3-game winning streak. The women’s soccer team got an all-star nod while the tennis team announced their 2013-14 recruiting class. Take a look back at the past week in Mountaineers women’s sports.

Basketball:

Photo Credit: WVUSports.com

The ladies’ basketball team came into this week after getting back on the winning side of things with a road win over Virginia. Mike Carey’s team extended their winning streak this past week with two wins over a pair of mid majors. The three game winning streak propelled the Mountaineers back into the rankings, to #25 in the AP Poll.

WVU started the week off with a win over in-state little sister Marshall in the Capitol Classic in Charleston, WV. The Mountaineers started off the game on a 12-2 run and never looked back from there. Marshall would tighten the deficit early in the first half, but the Mountaineers would reclaim their double digit lead going into halftime. The Mountaineers cruised through the second half, beating the Herd by a 64-48 margin.

The Mountaineers got a huge boost from freshman Bria Holmes, who came off the bench for 15 points. Crystal Leary also had a big game with 12 points and 11 rebounds.

Bria Holmes followed up her strong performance against the Herd with a solid 9 point performance at home against St. Bonaventure. West Virginia took control of the Bonnies from the start, dominating them en route to a 67-47 win. WVU shot a season best 50.9% from the field.

It is good to see WVU taking care of the easier teams on their schedule, especially now that their non-conference schedule is getting a little stiffer. WVU will be taking on the 6-1 Youngstown State Penguins this coming Sunday on December 16. That will be the first big challenge of the season for coach Carey’s squad. It will be a good, early measuring stick for the Mountaineers season.

Soccer:

Senior Bry McCarthy picked up ECAC All-Star honors for her great 2012 season. That honors comes on the heels of her Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year Honor.

Great individual honors for one of the key players to the Mountaineers undefeated Big 12 regular season championship.

Tennis:

Coach Tina Samara announced this past Thursday, the addition of Sydney Rider to the 2013-14 freshman class. Rider hails from Annapolis, MD and is the 3rd rated prospect in the state of Maryland.

WVU tennis will get back into the swing of things (pun intended) on January 19 with a home match against Ohio State.