West Virginia

West Virginia takes care of business in round one win over Columbia

Published

9 months ago

March 23, 2025

West Virginia takes care of business in round one win over Columbia

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.

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West Virginia

E-News | Downtown Dash planned Dec. 13

Published

5 hours ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

Join the Main Street Morgantown family-friendly holiday shopping event from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday (Dec. 13) in Downtown Morgantown.

The event will feature a district-wide scavenger hunt for a chance to win prizes and the opportunity to explore holiday pop-up markets by Hoot and Howl, The Co-Op and Apothecary Ale House.

While exploring downtown shops, participants who spot DASH the Dog can collect stamps. Each stamp brings participants closer to the chance of winning prizes from downtown merchants such as gift cards and goods. To qualify for prizes, completed Downtown Dash Guides with five or more stamps must be turned into Hoot and Howl, The Co-Op, Apothecary Ale House or at Breezeline’s play-to-win tent on Courthouse Square.

As a break from shopping, parents and their little ones can visit Kids Craft, Cookies & Cocoa Central at the WARD Building to enjoy a complimentary hot cocoa and cookie bar and children’s crafts provided by Hotel Morgan sponsored by Main Street Morgantown and Breezeline.

Visitors can also visit the beautiful 25-foot-tall holiday tree on display at Courthouse Square, a collaboration between the City of Morgantown, Monongalia County and Main Street Morgantown.

Sponsored by Breezeline, the Downtown Dash celebrates the holiday season, promotes walking and shopping throughout the downtown district, and supports local businesses by driving foot traffic directly to storefronts.

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West Virginia

West Virginia First Foundation lauds Wheeling police for crisis intervention success

Published

17 hours ago

December 11, 2025

Press Room

West Virginia First Foundation lauds Wheeling police for crisis intervention success

WHEELING, W.Va. — The West Virginia First Foundation visited the Wheeling Police Department to commend its efforts in addressing the area’s mental health and opioid crisis.

Wheeling Police Chief Shawn Schwertfeger presented to the WVFF board, highlighting the department’s progress.

Schwertfeger attributed a 14% decrease in Group A crimes from 2024 to 2025 to the department’s crisis intervention program.

“Just another great partnership,” he said. “More collaboration in this area that we are very proud of and we want to keep the momentum going,.”

WVFF Executive Director Jonathan Board praised the program’s success.

“This in particular, the CIT program, that isn’t just in the ether, but is showing success – actual scientific success about de-escalation, about bringing together services providers and to boots on the ground and first responders, this is vitally important to not only this region but the entire state,” Board said.

The visit was part of WVFF’s ‘Hold the Line’ tour across the state.

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West Virginia

Where West Virginia’s Decommits in the 2026 Recruiting Class Signed & What Happened

Published

1 day ago

December 11, 2025

Press Room

Where West Virginia’s Decommits in the 2026 Recruiting Class Signed & What Happened

Now that you know about West Virginia’s 2026 recruiting class, I figured it’d be a good time to give a little insight into those who were once committed to the Mountaineers and landed elsewhere.

What happened, and where did they go?

QB Brodie McWhorter (Mississippi State)

McWhorter committed to Neal Brown and his coaching staff, but reopened his recruitment when the coaching change was made. Rich Rodriguez did recruit him at the beginning, holding several conversations with him before backing off and pursuing Jyron Hughley and Legend Bey. Hughley committed, Bey committed to Ohio State (signed with Tennessee), while WVU added two more quarterbacks in Wyatt Brown and John Johnson III.

RB Jett Walker (Texas)

Walker fit the bill for what Rodriguez wanted in the backfield. A big, physical presence who could absorb contact and hammer it in between the tackles. With multiple backs committed and feeling good about a few others, WVU didn’t feel pressed to hold onto him. Walker flipped to Minnesota and then flipped to Texas just three weeks later

WR Jeffar Jean-Noel (Georgia Tech)

Jean-Noel was the second recruit to commit to Rodriguez in the 2026 class, but reopened his recruitment in mid-April. He then considered Purdue, Pitt, Kentucky, UCF, and Florida State before landing at Georgia Tech.

OL Justyn Lyles (Marshall)

The Mountaineers had a number of offensive line commits, and with the late additions of Kevin Brown and Aidan Woods, and their chances of securing Jonas Muya, Lyles took a visit to Marshall and flipped his commitment.

LB Caleb Gordon (North Carolina)

Gordon’s commitment to WVU was very brief. As a matter of fact, it was the shortest of the bunch, announcing his pledge on November 24th and then flipping to NC State on the first day of the early signing period (December 3rd).

LB Daiveon Taylor (Kent State)

Taylor was the first commit in the class; however, it was so early that he was committed to Neal Brown’s staff, announcing his decision in April of 2024. He backed off that pledge the very day Brown was fired (December 1st) and eventually signed with Kent State.

CB Emari Peterson (unsigned)

Peterson decommitted from WVU just days before signing day, likely due to the Mountaineers zeroing in on a pair of JUCO corners in Rayshawn Reynolds and Da’Mun Allen. He will sign in February and currently has offers from Appalachian State, Arkansas State, Bowling Green, Charlotte, Cincinnati, East Carolina, Florida Atlantic, FIU, Georgia State, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Kentucky, Liberty, LSU, South Florida, Southern Miss, Texas A&M, Toledo, Wake Forest, and a few others.

S Aaron Edwards (committed to Tulsa)

West Virginia chose to part ways with Edwards and ultimately replaced his spot with fellow JUCO safety Da’Mare Williams.

S Jaylon Jones (undecided)

Jones decommitted in late October and did not sign during the early signing period. He will likely choose between Central Michigan, Hawai’i, Sam Houston, Stephen F. Austin, and Texas State.

S Taj Powell (Louisville)

Taj is the brother of former Mountaineer basketball guard Jonathan Powell, who is now at North Carolina. He decommitted the day after West Virginia lost to Ohio and flipped to Louisville that same day.