West Virginia
WVU, short-handed after 6 ejected, upsets Duke
With just five players available for the second half after multiple ejections, West Virginia’s women’s basketball team upset No. 15 Duke 57-49 on Friday.
“You see in sports things like that happen; there’s just something where you rally around each other,” West Virginia coach Mark Kellogg told ESPNU after the game. “I’m so proud of that group of five. I guess it’s one of those moments where you don’t really know what to say. But that’s as good a win as I’ve probably ever had.”
Friday’s game was the opener of The Greenbrier Tip-Off, a series of college games played this weekend and next at Colonial Hall at The Greenbrier Resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. Mountaineers fans made up most of the crowd, and they became the “sixth player” for West Virginia in the second half.
Only five players — guards Sydney Shaw, Sydney Woodley and Loghan Johnson and forwards Célia Rivière and Riley Makalusky — were eligible for the second half after West Virginia’s other six players were ejected following a skirmish just before halftime.
It started when Duke’s Jordan Wood blocked a shot attempt by West Virginia’s Jordan Harrison as time expired in the first half. Wood taunted Harrison by yelling in her direction. Harrison then shoved Wood, and a brief fracas broke out as a few other players also pushed each other.
Five Mountaineer players left the bench to come onto the floor: Gia Cooke, Carter McCray, Madison Parrish, Kierra Wheeler and Jordan Thomas. Although they didn’t get involved in the shoving, they were ejected for leaving the bench. Harrison and Wood were also ejected.
The Mountaineers trailed 23-20 at halftime. Their leading scorer in the first half was Cooke with 12 points, but she was no longer available. The only starter not ejected was Shaw.
Rivière, a senior reserve from France, had played just two minutes in the first half, but she came up huge in the second half, finishing with 12 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists. She picked up her fourth foul with 6:14 left in the game but avoided a fifth, which would have left the Mountaineers with just four players on court.
“She was fantastic,” Kellogg said. “We changed her spot in the zone and told her, ‘Don’t even really try to score, just be available to rebound on the defensive end.’ But she’s a talented kid. She has great hands and is our best passer out of the post. Sydney Shaw stepped up big time, too.”
Shaw, also a senior, led West Virginia with 16 points and had seven rebounds. She made five consecutive free throws to seal the win for West Virginia (4-0).
The Blue Devils, who lost their opener to Baylor on Nov. 3, fell to 2-2. They have relied heavily on defense, and their offensive struggles were a problem again Friday, as they shot 38% (21-of-56) from the field and 17% from 3-point range (2-of-12). Senior guard Taina Mair led Duke with 10 points.
MOUNDSVILLE, W.Va. — The Moundsville Police Department is investigating a pharmacy break-in that led to the theft of a large amount of narcotics.
Police said the burglary happened in the early morning hours of June 30. Investigators said the suspects broke a window, went behind the pharmacy counter and stole the narcotics.
Authorities believe the suspects are from outside the area.
Police said the suspects used a stolen Infiniti Q50. The vehicle was later recovered by Ohio authorities near Cambridge.
The investigation is ongoing and involves law enforcement agencies in multiple states.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Moundsville Police Department at 304-845-1611.
The United States Supreme Court issued its long-awaited opinion in West Virginia v. B.P.J. and Little v. Hecox on Tuesday, ruling that states may exclude transgender athletes from competing on women’s and girls’ sports teams.
The justices were unanimous in their analysis that the laws do not violate civil rights laws. However, the court was split on whether West Virginia’s law stood up to constitutional muster.
The ruling concludes this chapter in the ongoing cultural debate. The Save Women’s Sports Act was overwhelmingly approved by the legislature and signed by then-Gov. Jim Justice in 2021, and was almost immediately challenged in court. The legal battle trudged on for the next five years on its way to becoming a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision.
Tuesday’s ruling settled the legal debate, but the court of public opinion weighed in on the issues long before the justice issued their legal opinions. According to Pew Research, 66 percent of U.S. adults support laws requiring athletes to compete on teams that match their biological sex. A Gallup poll found similar results, with 69 percent of adults supporting such laws.
West Virginia is not alone in passing a law to protect women’s and girls’ sports. Twenty-six other states have recognized the basic fact that there are differences between males and females and have chosen to pass legislation acknowledging those distinctions in athletic competition.
Lawmakers, who campaigned on protecting women’s and girls’ sports, can now tell constituents that they have fulfilled their campaign promise. The Save Women’s Sports Act is now the law of the land in West Virginia.
“I would say that for the foreseeable future, we have a very certain future for women’s sports. And here in West Virginia, we know what the rules are, we know what the law is, we know that it’s constitutional,” said West Virginia Attorney General J.B. McCuskey on Talkline.
Tuesday’s ruling also presents an opportunity for legislators to move on from the issue. Discussions surrounding the topic during the legislative session have been known to grind momentum to a halt, and Republicans running for office over the last five years have made it a centerpiece of their campaigns.
The issue is now settled, at least for now.
As J.B McCuskey cautioned,
“In the world of constitutional litigation, Dave, there’s never an end to any chapter.”
CHARLESTON, W.Va (WCHS) — As the conversation around two large transmission lines being built through parts West Virginia continues, the biggest question remaining is, will ratepayers be impacted?
The Valley North project is on the table and it would span from Putnam County to Frederick County, Maryland, totaling to 260 miles. Two new substations would also be built, one in Hardy County and the other in Frederick County Maryland.
According to the project website, these lines would strengthen the grid to deliver more reliable and affordable electricity to homes, hospitals, schools and businesses.
Energy Efficent West Virginia policy director, Emmett Pepper said, building these lines will not strengthen the power that we get at home.
“We have some of the least reliable electricity in the country here in West Virginia. That’s not because of the large transmission lines that we see their tower above us. It’s because of the local distribution lines, the ones that come close to our homes. While there can be some small amount of benefit potentially from the big transmission lines going in, it is the local lines that are the problem and that is not being addressed by this,” he said.
Lawmakers we spoke with earlier this month said between both transmission line projects, West Virginia could have to front the bill for anywhere between $440 million to $900 million.
“This is going to be more cost for rate payers and will not fix our problems here. There are other places in the region that have issues with transmission, but that’s not our issue,” Pepper said.
He said he’d like to see state leaders take action to ensure these costs don’t fall back on ratepayers.
“I think we need to have a rate payers’ bill of rights that would actually protect people and have a plan for how we’re going to deal with this so that it has less of an impact on rate payers,” he said.
Multiple open houses are scheduled for this project in West Virginia:
-Berkeley County, WV: July 7, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. Holiday Inn Martinsburg Foxcroft Ballroom
– Hampshire County, WV: July 8, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m Bottling Works Event Center
– Tucker County, WV:July 8, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m.Tucker County High School
– Hardy County, WV: July 9, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. Misty Mountain Event Barn
– Barbour County, WV: July 15, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. Philippi Middle School
– Lewis County, WV: July 16, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. Robert L. Bland Middle School
– Upshur County, WV: July 16, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. The Event Center at Brushy Fork
– Harrison County, WV: July 21, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. South Harrison High School
– Preston County, WV: July 21, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. Craig Civic Center
– Calhoun County, WV: July 22, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. Calhoun County Middle-High School
– Gilmer County, WV: July 22, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. Glenville State University Waco Center
– Braxton County, WV: July 23, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. Days Inn Flatwood Conference Center
– Grant County, WV: July 23, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. Landes Arts Center
– Kanawha County, WV: July 28, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. Sissonville Middle School
– Roane County, WV: July 28, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. Spencer Armory
– Jackson County, WV: July 29, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. Greene Center
– Putnam County, WV: July 29, 2026 | 4:00 – 7:30 p.m. Poca High School
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