Mountain Momma Monday: February 25

It was a split weekend for West Virginia women’s athletics. The basketball and gymnastics teams gave Mountaineers plenty to cheer about while the tennis and track teams gave WVU fans plenty to shake their head at. In case you missed any of the action, here is the recap of the past week in Mountaineers women’s athletics.

Jan 19, 2013; Waco, TX, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers forward Jess Harlee (14) 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:

It was a light week for the the women’s basketball team as they had 6 days to prepare for their road contest at TCU.The Mountaineers made the most of their time off, as was evident in their 66-56 road victory.

West Virginia held constant with the Horned Frogs for the majority of the first half, taking a slim 2-point lead into the locker rooms. After the first half, the Mountaineers began to steadily separate themselves from TCU behind strong performances from stars Ayanna Dunning (15 points and 8 rebounds) and Taylor Palmer (19 points).

The Mountainers also got big contribution from the ladies off the bench who chipped in with 20 total points. Brea Holmes and Jess Harlee were a big part of the Mountaineers success in the second half.

The win seals West Virginia’s season sweep of TCU and moves the Mountaineers record to 8-7 in Big XII play.

WVU will host top-ranked Baylor tomorrow night at the Coliseum before hitting the road to Texas on Saturday to wrap up regular season play.

Gymnastics:

WVU gymnastics hosted a quad meet this past weekend against #3 Michigan, Towson, and New Hampshire in the Wendy M. Roach Invitational Pink Meet.

The Mountaineers came up with a season high 196.55 score, good enough to take second place at their own meet. West Virginia’s outstanding performance was highlighted by a victory on the uneven bars.

"“To close the meet with two solid performances and for those scores to push us to our season-best team total – wow,” Butts adds. “That was just fun, and it helps build the confidence of this team. That will be what’s fresh on their minds next week, and that rotation is what will help us climb higher. They just need to keep having fun – they’re winning this season every day in the gym.”"

WVU came in second, posting season highs, in vault, beam, and floor competitions.

WVU defeated Towson (196.55-193.15) and New Hampshire (196.55-194.875) while losing to Michigan (196.925-196.55).

The wins pushed the teams record to 8-6 overall and to #16 nationally. West Virginia will now prepare for their second straight home quad meet. WVU will host #13 Denver, George Washington, and Temple at the Cary Gym this weekend.

Swimming:

The WVU swim team revs up to prepare for the Big XII Championships this week in Austin, TX on February 27-28.

Tennis:

WVU improved there play this past weekend at Penn State, but still failed to register a win since their home victory over Marshall a month ago. Against the #48 ranked Penn State tennis team, the Mountaineers played strongly in a 5-2 loss.

The Mountaineers wins were notched by Ikttesh Chahal in the third singles match and the team of Audrey Wooland/Emily Mathis in the second doubles match.

The loss drops WVU’s record to 1-6. The Mountaineers will attempt to break their winless streak this coming weekend with a neutral-site match with Virginia Tech at Charleston this Saturday.

Track:

The Mountaineers got roughed up at the Big XII Track Championships this past weekend in Ames, IA.

West Virginia registered 20.5 points in the meet, finishing 10th out of 10 teams. The Mountaineers missed a 9th place finish by 16.5 points, failing to pass TCU.

The Kansas Jayhawks, ranked #5 nationally, took home a win at the meet with a score of 150.5.

WVU will have to regroup to have a more successful outing on March 1-2 in the Columbia Last Chance meet in New York, NY.