Mountain Momma Monday: February 11

Jan 19, 2013; Waco, TX, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers center Ayana Dunning (33) during the game against the Baylor Bears in the first half at the Ferrell Center. Baylor won 76-58. Mandatory Credit: Jim Cowsert-USA TODAY Sports

Basketball:

Mike Carey’s team struggled out the gate this past week with fouls. In the first game of the week, fouls would be the difference between a Mountaineers victory and a loss.

WVU faced Texas Tech this past Wednesday in Lubbock, seeking to avenge a tight overtime loss in Morgantown three weeks earlier. The Mountaineers were looking to play a physical game against the Lady Raiders and did just that…. to the tune of 30 personal fouls and 42 free throw attempts for Texas Tech.

To further compound matters for the Mountaineers, WVU ended up shooting a paltry 7 of 38 from the field (18.4%) in the first half, allowing Texas Tech to jump out to a 29-17 lead at halftime.

The Mountaineers shot exceptionally well in the second half (54.5%) but could not stay out of foul trouble, allowing the Lady Raiders to keep step with the Mountaineers and hold onto their double digit lead. Three Mountaineers fouled out: Averee Fields, Linda Stepney, and Jess Harlee.

Texas Tech completed their season sweep of the Mountaineers, 76-63.

WVU continued their Big XII road trip on Saturday at Kansas. The Mountaineers did a great job of mitigating their foul issues while keeping Kansas in check.

The Mountaineers would play it tight in the first half, holding onto a 1 point margin at the half. From there on, the Mountaineers would light up the Jayhawks in the second half by a 43-28 margin. West Virginia’s succes is due in large part to “YaYa” as coach Carey says:

"“YaYa, especially in the second half, our players were doing a good job getting the ball to her. She was hitting some shots and finishing and when YaYa plays well, we play well. I hate to put all that pressure on her, but I will,” coach Mike Carey said."

Ayana “YaYa” Dunning finshed one rebound shy of a double-double with 17 points and 9 rebounds. WVU got a big bounce back win, 72-56.

The basketball team will host Oklahoma State on February 13, 7 PM at the WVU Coliseum and then hit the road again on February 17 at Iowa State with a 1:30 PM tip-off.

Gymnastics:

The Mountaineer tumblers registered their first Big XII victory in program history yesterday at the WVU Coliseum. The meet was part of the “Beauty and the Beast” match that featured the Mountaineers gymnastics and wrestling teams in simultaneous matches.

WVU fans showed up in droves for the event, with 2,522 fans in attendance. The attendance at the last two meets is showing that WVU gymnastics is gaining traction with Mountaineers fans and building a loyal following. All great signs for coach Butts’ girls.

"“The crowd’s energy was awesome. For the second straight meet, Mountaineer Nation cheered us on to a great score, and we are thankful for all of the support we’ve received from our fans this early in the year. We’re so happy to get our first Big 12 win in front of our fans. Hopefully, there are many more conference victories in our future,” Coach Butts"

The Mountaineers took down the Iowa State Cyclones by a 196.15-194.825 score. WVU will get back to competition on February 17 with a quad meet at Maryland with George Washington and Rutgers.

Swimming and Diving:

West Virginia faced off with George Mason in a diving competition at the WVU Natatorium this past Saturday. The meet was highlighted by the diving of Haily VandePoel, who took home first place in the 1-m and 3-m dives, leading the Mountaineers to a victory.

The diving meet is the last competition for the Mountaineers prior to the Big XII Championships 27-28 February in Austin, TX.

Track:

The West Virginia track team headed to Geneva, OH this past weekend for the SPIRE meet. The Mountaineers got a pair of strong showings from senior Heather Adams in the weight throw and freshman Kelly Williams in the mile run.

Adams, fresh off setting the WVU record for weight throw at 18.04 meters, went out to the SPIRE meet to reset her own school record.  She set the new WVU school record in the weight toss at 18.18 meters, giving Adams 3 of the top 5 tosses in school history.

Freshman Kelly Williams, in her first ever mile run competition, ran a 4:38.47 mile time. The mile run by Williams was good enough to take second at SPIRE while also placing her in the top 5 mile run times in program history. An extraordinary run by the freshman.

WVU will split the track team this coming weekend, with half the team travelling to Akron for the Zips Invitational while the other half of the team will remain in Morgantown for the Gold-Blue Open.

For more on WVU women’s sports, visit wvusports.com.