Women's Soccer Earns WVU Honors With Big 12 Title; Varsity Sports update

WVU’s conference title is its first since 2018, while West Virginia now boasts five regular-season and five championship Big 12 Conference titles. Of note, the Mountaineers are undefeated all-time in the Big 12 Championship Final, with five appearances and five victories since joining the conference in 2012.

Fifth-year senior defender Jordan Brewster’s incredible, game-winning goal in the 93rd minute was the difference maker, as she took a free kick from more than 90 yards out and sent it past the awaiting players and the TCU keeper to give WVU the go-ahead score. The goal was Brewster’s second game winner of the championship, as she was voted the tournament’s Defensive Most Ottstanding Player following the conclusion of the match. Classmate Lauren Segalla was honored as the Offensive Most Outstanding Player after she tallied a game-winning goal during the championship and scored in two of three tournament games.

After earning the Big 12 Conference’s automatic berth into the NCAA tournament, the Mountaineers will find out their fate in the 2022 NCAA Women’s Soccer Tournament on Monday, Nov. 7, during the 2022 NCAA Selection Show.

This Week in Women’s Soccer: West Virginia now waits to find out its fate in the 2022 NCAA Women’s Soccer Tournament after earning the Big 12 Conference’s automatic bid ... the NCAA Selection Show airs on Monday, Nov. 7, at 4 p.m. ET, on NCAA.com.

Last Week in Women’s Soccer: The No. 4-seeded Mountaineers (10-4-7) earned their fifth Big 12 Tournament title with a 1-0 win over No. 2-seed TCU in the Big 12 Championship Final on Nov. 6, in Round Rock, Texas ... West Virginia earned the conference crown after a goal from fifth-year senior defender Jordan Brewster in the 93rd minute ... the North Canton, Ohio, native took a free kick from more than 90 yards out ... with the wind at her back, she sent a long, powerful ball that took a big bounce and went over the TCU keeper’s head for the go-ahead score ... with this year’s new overtime rules that eliminated the golden goal, the two teams played out the remainder of the two, 10-minute overtime periods, but TCU couldn’t find the equalizer as WVU walked away as the 2022 Big 12 Champions ... the Mountaineers earned their spot in the championship match after tallying a 1-0 win over No. 1-seed Texas in the semifinals on Nov. 3 ... fifth-year senior forward Lauren Segalla tallied the game-winning goal in the 44th minute, and the WVU defense held off the UT attack to give West Virginia a spot in the finals, eventually leading the squad to its 10th Big 12 Conference title.

Notes: WVU earned its 10th overall Big 12 title, including the first since 2018 ... West Virginia has now won four conference titles in the last six seasons, dating back to 2016, when it won the regular-season and tournament titles ... overall, coach Nikki Izzo-Brown has led West Virginia to 18 conference championships in 27 seasons as the program’s only head coach ... the Mountaineers are undefeated all time in the Big 12 Championship Final, with five appearances and five victories since joining the conference in 2012 ... following the conclusion of the championship game, Brewster was named the tournament’s Defensive Most Outstanding Player, while Segalla was recognized as the Offensive Most Outstanding Player ... Brewster earned WVU’s fifth defensive MVP nod all time, as she becomes the third different Mountaineer to garner the award … Segalla’s offensive MVP award also is the fifth for West Virginia all time, and she is the fourth different Mountaineer to receive the honor ... additionally, West Virginia’s all-time advantage over TCU moved to 10-3-3, including 3-1-1 in the Big 12 Tournament ... the win marked the second time WVU has topped the Horned Frogs in the championship game to win the Big 12 Tournament title.

This Week in Men’s Soccer: West Virginia takes on No. 2 Kentucky in the Sun Belt Championship Semifinals on Wednesday, Nov. 9, in Lexington, Kentucky … kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET.

Last Week in Men’s Soccer: The Mountaineers (7-6-4) earned a 1-0 win over Coastal Carolina in the Sun Belt Championship Quarterfinals on Nov. 6, in Lexington … freshman forward Marcus Caldeira scored the game-winning goal in the 70th minute … fifth-year senior forward Adam Burchell was credited with the assist … in goal, junior goalkeeper Jackson Lee made three saves, including a key denial in the 84th minute, to secure WVU’s sixth clean sheet of the season … the Mountaineers outshot the Chanticleers, 10-7.

Notes: With the win over CCU, WVU extended its current unbeaten streak to eight matches … Calderia’s goal was his fifth of the season, tied for the team lead, as well as his third game-winner … West Virginia improved to 4-1-2 all-time against Coastal and 20-17-3 in conference tournament action … the win also gave coach Dan Stratford his first conference tournament victory as the head coach at WVU … the Mountaineers and Wildcats previously played to a 3-3 draw on Oct. 15, in Morgantown … West Virginia is looking for its first-ever win over UK … the winner of Wednesday’s semifinal moves on to play the winner of the other semifinal matchup, featuring Georgia State and James Madison, on Sunday, Nov. 13, in the Sun Belt Championship Final at a site to be determined … the Mountaineers are 0-4-1 against ranked opponents this season … four of those five matchups against top-25 foes were played on the road … West Virginia has earned a win over a ranked opponent in 14 of the last 16 seasons.

This Week in Volleyball: West Virginia heads out on the road to play Kansas State at Ahearn Field House in Manhattan, Kansas on Thursday, Nov. 10 … first serve is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET … the Mountaineers then stay in the Sunflower State, as they travel to Lawrence, Kan., to take on the Jayhawks on Saturday, Nov. 12 … both matches will be streamed on ESPN+.

Last Week in Volleyball: WVU (7-17, 0-11 Big 12) continued its Big 12 Conference campaign against Oklahoma on Saturday, Nov. 5 at the WVU Coliseum … the Mountaineers fell to the Sooners in three sets … redshirt freshman setter Kamiah Gibson racked up 21 assists, while junior libero Skye Stokes notched 11 digs … West Virginia tallied 32 kills and 33 digs in the match.

Notes: West Virginia ranks third in the Big 12 in opponent assists per set (10.98) and opponent kills per set (11.74) … the Mountaineers also stand third in service aces per set with 1.44 and opponent service aces per set with 1.20 … through 24 matches, Junior libero Skye Stokes is fifth in the Big 12 with 3.96 digs per set and sixth with 0.35 service aces … fifth-year senior outside hitter Adrian Ell ranks 10th in the Big 12 in kills per set (2.92) … redshirt freshman Kamiah Gibson ranks eighth in the Big 12 in assists per set with 6.65.

This Week in Tennis: The Mountaineers return to action in January 2023 to open their spring slate.

Last Week in Tennis: WVU traveled to Stillwater, Oklahoma for the 2022 Big 12 Fall Invitational hosted by Oklahoma State, on Nov. 4-6 ... West Virginia sent only one doubles pair and had four Mountaineers compete in singles play ... duo of junior Momoko Nagato and sophomore Michaela Kucharova fell, 6-3, to OSU’s Raquel Gonzalez and Alana Wolfberg on Friday’s opening round ... the pair went on to win, 6-4, against Kansas’ Jocelyn Massey and Carmen Roxana Manu in the first round of consolations, before dropping the match, 6-4, against Oklahoma’s Alexandra Pisareva and Romana Cisovska ... in singles play on Friday, junior Ting-Pei Chang, Kucharova and Nagato all suffered losses, while senior Pei-ju Hsieh defeated Texas Tech’s Camryn Stepp, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(5) ... the Changhua, Taiwain, native went 3-1 on the weekend ... during singles consolation and extra rounds, Kucharova went 2-1, Chang went 1-2, while Nagato had a 0-2 record over the fall invite weekend.

Notes: Sophomore Camilla Bossi and senior Ting-Pei Chang’s debuted tied for No. 37 on the ITA’s Preseason Doubles Rankings ... duo junior Momoko Nagato and sophomore Michaela Kucharova currently lead the Mountaineers in doubles with an 9-2 record ... Chang leads the team in singles (9-3) and overall record (16-6), while Nagato is a close second with 14-8.

This Week in Swimming & Diving: West Virginia is off this week ... the Mountaineers return to action on Nov. 17-19 as they host their annual WVU Invitational at the Aquatic Center at Mylan Park, in Morgantown, West Virginia.

Last Week in Swimming & Diving: WVU (1-1, 0-0 Big 12) traveled to University Park, Pennsylvania on Nov. 4-5 for its second dual meet of the 2022-23 season ... both squads fell to the Nittany Lions over the weekend ... the women dropped the meet, 208-92, on Friday night, before the men suffered a, 200.5-96.5, loss on Saturday ... the Mountaineer women tallied three wins, including two victories from freshman Mia Cheatwood ... the Bowling Green, Ohio, native won both the 100-yard (1:02.41) and 200 breaststroke (2:17.92) ... classmate Olivia Busch rounded out the wins during the women’s meet, touching first in the 1000 freestyle (10:15.88) ... WVU had a trio of second-place finishes, including sophomore Miranda Kirtley in the 1000 free (10.18.08), freshman Gabriela Martin in the 200 free (1:50.79) and junior Abby Reardon in the 500 free (4:56.07) ... during the men’s competition on Saturday, sophomore Conner McBeth was the West Virginia’s lone win ... the New Castle, Pa., native swam a 44.74 in the 100 free to take first ... the Mountaineer men saw seven second-place finishes, including juniors William Mullen in the 1000 free (9:23.25), Roanoke Shirk in the 200 free (1:41.39) and Justin Heimes in the 100 backstroke (49.71), freshman Alvaro Santiago in the 200 butterfly (1:51.38) and seniors David Snider in the 100 fly (49.47) and diver Owen Johns on both 1-meter (294.98) and 3-meter (342.68).

Notes: WVU has three divers that have qualified for NCAA Zones, including seniors Owen Johns (1-meter, 3-meter) and Marian Tiemeier (1-meter), and sophomore Glenn Eloriaga (platform) ... Mullen, Cheatwood and sophomore diver Sarah Krusinski all earned Big 12 weekly honors on Wednesday, Oct. 19, following their respective performances at the 2022 West Virginia State Games ... following the WVU Invite, the Mountaineers will send qualifying swimmers to the Toyota U.S. Open in Greensboro, North Carolina, on Nov. 30-Dec. 3.

This Week in Rifle: No. 6 West Virginia (8-1, 3-0 GARC) embarks on its final road trip of the fall 2022 semester, as the team travels to West Point, New York, to square off against Army on Saturday, Nov. 12 … the match is schedule for 9 a.m. ET, and will be held at the Tronsrue Marksmanship Center in West Point.

Last Week in Rifle: The Mountaineers hosted the inaugural WVU Fall Classic from Nov. 5-6, at the Bill McKenzie Rifle Range inside the WVU Shell Building in Morgantown … WVU shot a 4733 as a team, including a match-best 2382 in air rifle on Sunday, to place second at the event … West Virginia also shot a 2351 in smallbore … the Mountaineers finished just four points shy of No. 3 TCU, who claimed the top spot with a team score of 4737 … of note, WVU’s 4733 as a team was good enough for the team’s highest score inside the Shell Building since the Bill McKenzie Rifle Range opened in the spring of 2018 … West Virginia was led by junior Tal Engler, who tallied team bests in aggregate (1188), smallbore (590) and air rifle score (598) … the Tzur Yigal, Israel, native tied her career high in aggregate score and finished with the No. 2 combined score at the event.

Notes: West Virginia is 42-10 all-time against Army and has won the last 14 matchups with the Black Knights, dating back to the 2009 campaign … last season, the Mountaineers defeated Army twice – once on Nov. 13, 2021 (4711-4659), and in a tri-match with Air Force and Ohio State on Nov. 14, 2021 (4724-4653) … WVU ranks No. 4 nationally in aggregate average (4719.4) … additionally, the Mountaineers are No. 2 in the nation in air rifle average (2380.6) and are No. 4 in smallbore average (2338.8) … senior Mary Tucker continues to lead the squad in aggregate average (1187.333), smallbore average (590) and air rifle average (597.333) … the Sarasota, Florida, native is tied No. 2 nationally in air rifle average and is No. 3 in aggregate average … she also is tied for No. 6 in the country in smallbore average.

This Week in Cross Country: West Virginia continues the 2022 campaign with the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional hosted by Penn State University in State College, Pa. on Friday, Nov. 11 … the women’s 6k begins at 11 a.m. ET … the meet takes place at Penn State’s Blue and White Golf Course.

Last Week in Cross Country: WVU was off last week.

Notes: McCabe became the first WVU runner to win the Big 12 Individual title in 2021 and is not the only Mountaineer to take the trophy twice … the team also set a record with five Mountaineers earning All-Big 12 honors after each finished in the top-15, and when scoring a program record for lowest point total at the Big 12 Championships with 49.

This Week in Women’s Basketball: West Virginia officially opens its 2022-23 season on Thursday, Nov. 10, when the Mountaineers play host to USC Upstate at the WVU Coliseum … tipoff against the Spartans is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET, and will be broadcast on Big 12 Now, with Nick Farrell and Warren Baker on the call … Thursday is WVU’s Veterans Day Game … the first 250 fans in attendance will receive a Veterans Day-themed hat … additionally, fans can pick up a copy of the 2022-23 WVU women’s basketball schedule poster and a poster to commemorate coach Dawn Plitzuweit … redshirt sophomore guard Kyah Watson will be available for postgame autographs.

Last Week in Women’s Basketball: The Mountaineers were off last week.

Notes: West Virginia returns seven players from last year’s squad, including Smith, who is in her fifth season with the Mountaineers … additionally, six newcomers join the team this year to make up WVU’s 13-woman squad … Smith and Quinerly were honorable mention selections on this year’s Preseason All-Big 12 Team … a native of Greenville, South Carolina, Smith has played in 112 games, including a team-best 107 starts, in her career … during her first four seasons at WVU, she has amassed 885 points, 429 assists, 255 rebounds and 125 steals … she also has finished in double figures 37 times in four years … in all-time program history, Smith is No. 10 in assists and is tied for No. 10 in starts … she also ranks in the top 15 in program history in minutes played and is the only Mountaineer with multiple 50-minute games in their career … a native of Norfolk, Virginia, Quinerly averaged 8.8 points, 2.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.3 steals per game in 2021-22 … she was one of four Mountaineers to play in all 30 games, earning 12 starts, a year ago … she also racked up a team-high 68 steals a season ago, the most by a Mountaineer freshman since Maria Tchobanova tallied 74 during the 1995-96 season.

This Week in Wrestling: The Mountaineers travel to compete at the 13th annual Jonathan Kaloust Bearcat Open, hosted by Binghamton University, on Sunday, Nov. 13. The event is set to begin at 9:30 a.m., ET, inside the Events Center in Vestal, New York.

Last Week in Wrestling: The West Virginia University wresting team captured three individual titles to close out its season opener at the 2022 Southeast Open on Saturday … redshirt junior Anthony Carman, ranked in FloWrestling’s top 30 at 184 pounds, scored a 7-3 decision over Virginia Tech’s Samuel Fisher to win the tournament crown after Fisher knocked off No. 10 Gavin Kane of North Carolina, 2-1 … he recorded a 4-0 record and outscored his opponents 45-8 … sophomore Michael Dolan (141) and freshman Brody Conley (174) came out on top of their respective weight classes after both went 5-0 in the sophomore/freshman division … twelve other Mountaineers claimed a spot in the top six of their respective weight classes … redshirt junior Michael Wolfgram (HWT), juniors Caleb Dowling (157) and newcomer Sam Hillegas (149), and redshirt sophomore Austin Cooley (197) were runners-up, redshirt senior Alex Hornfeck (157) claimed third, junior Peyton Hall (165) defaulted to fourth, sophomore Nathan Wickersham (197) placed fifth, redshirt freshman Jace Schafer (125) came in sixth … sophomore newcomer Dylan Kohn at 174 pounds (fifth) and sophomore Tristan Kemp at heavyweight (sixth) secured spots competing unattached … Brayden Ivy (149) and Brian Finnerty (184) joined Conley in making their collegiate debuts … both earned second place finishes in the sophomore/freshman division … freshmen Nick Cicciarelli (157) and Leonardo Muzika (HWT) also made their first appearances wrestling in the Gold and Blue.

Notes: West Virginia received seven votes in the first NWCA Division I Preseason Wrestling Coaches’ poll … the Mountaineers return seven starters from a season ago ... for the third straight year, WVU has signed one of the nation’s top prospects according to FloWrestling … freshman Brody Conley ranked No. 19 in the class of 2022, as he followed in the footsteps of redshirt freshman Jordan Titus (No. 25 – 2021) and junior Peyton Hall (No. 31 – 2020) … National Signing Day is this Wednesday, Nov. 9, as the Mountaineers set out to sign more national prospects.