West Virginia came out fast and never looked back, picking up a win over Columbia to advance in the NCAA Tournament. The Mountaineers led wire to wire, and between a hot start, suffocating defense, and balanced scoring, they handled what was a dangerous matchup on paper.

Head coach Mark Kellogg said it best at the start: “Excited to advance, obviously. That’s the name of the game this time of year is just find ways. Whether it’s pretty, ugly, indifferent, but I thought for the most part we were pretty good and led, obviously, for the entire night.”

This was no walk-through. Kellogg made it clear Columbia was a challenge, pointing to last year’s experience against Princeton to prepare for Ivy League toughness. “That even means more when you get a win against such a quality program. But I thought our kids were ready.”

West Virginia hadn’t played in two weeks, but if there were concerns about rust, they were erased quickly. Kellogg wanted a strong start — and he got it.

Harrison Ignites Hot Start

Jordan Harrison scored eight of WVU’s first 12 points, setting the tone early. “Honestly, considering that we haven’t played for two weeks, I think we were super excited to come out and play. And I think I was just given, I mean, taking it with the defense was giving me and not overthinking, just having fun with my teammates.”

Harrison would finish with 23 points, matching her WVU career best, and said, “Obviously, I’m pretty proud of myself. I’m glad that I stayed aggressive… I feel like I didn’t force too many shots, and I just kind of played with some rhythm.”

Quinerly Hits 2,000 Points

JJ Quinerly hit a milestone, recording her 2,000th career point during the game. “I think it’s just an amazing accomplishment. I think I dreamed of scoring 2000 points, probably my whole life. So just seeing it happening and then being where I’m at with this group of girls and the coach I have right now, I love it.”

When asked about the moment it happened, Quinerly kept it simple. “I knew I needed 19, but I really wasn’t really thinking about it. I just shot it.”

The scoring is one thing, but Quinerly made her mark all over the stat sheet — rebounds, assists, steals — and made sure to stay aggressive. “Being for me, I love attacking the hoop, so that’s what I did most of the game. I did shoot a couple of threes that I may have didn’t like, but hey, I got to shoot them to get into a rhythm.”

Defense Still the Identity

Offense made headlines, but defense was once again West Virginia’s calling card. “I think for us, it’s just fun. Honestly, I think we love flying around. We love getting steals, getting easy points. So it’s just fun and we love it,” Quinerly said.

Kellogg called both Harrison and Quinerly “elite” defenders and said, “Everybody talks about our size or the lack of, but man, what’s inside you and your heart and how tough you are… their will to defend is what separates some of the elite.”

Freshman Impact

Freshman Jordan Thomas stepped up with 12 points and 22 minutes in her first NCAA Tournament game. “She’s gotten better all year long… Her first rotation, I thought she looked a little more freshman-like, and I thought she settled in and then really was good for us,” Kellogg said.

Harrison also gave Thomas credit: “She played hard. I think she thought she could have did a little bit better, but we just kept encouraging her to keep on rebounding, keep on going up to the paint, going to the basket, getting easy buckets. So yeah, I’m super proud of her, especially for her to be a freshman.”

Controlling the Run

Columbia cut the lead to 15 at one point in the second half, but West Virginia quickly regained control. “They got a little run going, but we stayed settled in and we figured it out,” Quinerly said. That control was key, especially late, when WVU committed just one turnover in the final three minutes.

“I think we had a couple times where we turned the ball over just kind of moving too fast a little bit, but we definitely still handled it pretty well, I thought, and we got through it,” Quinerly said.

Fan Support Felt Strongly

WVU fans showed up in a big way. “Honestly, we love our fans. We’re so glad that they made the time to come down here for us. We play really well off of energy, so having them there is very important and they’re very important to us,” Harrison said.

History in Reach

The Mountaineers are now one win away from the program’s second Sweet 16 appearance. Kellogg didn’t shy away from the moment. “If we can win two in the tournament, we would be the first team in our school’s history to win two NCAA tournament games.”

He added, “Certainly we’re going to go into that game with an expectation that we can do something really special.”

For now, the focus shifts to the next game, and a chance to do just that.

Arizona will not be going unbeaten in its first season in the Big 12 Conference.

The Wildcats dropped their first league game on Saturday afternoon, falling 11-3 at West Virginia to snap a 10-game win streak.

A 7-run bottom of the 4^th sealed the game for the Mountaineers (19-2, 2-1 Big 12), which chased UA starter Owen Kramkowski after 3.1 innings. The Wildcats (17-5, 4-1) were hoping he could go long after using seven pitchers in Friday night’s 16-inning win at West Virginia, a game that saw them record a school-record 29 strikeouts.

Kramkowski allowed eight runs, six earned, with the last three coming in after Raul Garayzar came on with the bases loaded and allowed a 3-run double. Garayzar gave up back-to-back run-scoring hits before retiring eight in a row, then Eric Orloff allowed two runs in the 7^th.

West Virginia’s starter only lasted 3.2 innings but it only needed one reliever, as Reese Bassinger went the final 5.1 innings and allowed only one hit and one walk with eight strikeouts.

Arizona scored once each in the first two innings, on an RBI double by Mason White and a run-scoring single from Brendan Summerhill, who had two of the Wildcats’ seven hits. Tommy Splaine —who also had two hits—led off the top of the 4^th with a solo home run to put the Wildcats up 3-2 but after that it was all West Virginia.

The rubber match of the series is set for 9 a.m. PT Sunday, with freshman RHP Smith Bailey set to start for Arizona.

What players could return for West Virginia next season?

Sencire Harris

Amani Hansberry

KJ Tenner

Harris Elezovic 

Ofri Naveh

Abraham Oyeadier