MORGANTOWN — The West Virginia University women’s basketball team recently completed another memorable season, as the Mountaineers improved to 50-16 in two seasons under Mark Kellogg.
J.J. Quinerly wrapped up one of the most decorated careers in WVU’s history, and the Mountaineers advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament for the second straight season.
It was a season filled with memorable moments, but where does the 2024-25 campaign — and Kellogg’s first the previous year, for that matter — rank among the best seasons in program history?
No. 10: 2011-12
West Virginia’s final season in the Big East was a memorable one under the guidance of coach Mike Carey. The schedule was anything but forgiving, with 11 ranked foes on the slate, but the Mountaineers won five of those, including an impressive run from Feb. 4-15, when they knocked off No. 14 Louisville, No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 21 Rutgers in succession.
Led by 12.1 points per game from Asya Bussie, WVU earned a No. 8 seed in the NCAA tournament and took down No. 9 Texas in the opening round before falling to top-seeded Stanford. Carey’s club finished the year 24-10.
No. 9: 2024-25
Returning the main components from a team that finished 25-8 and nearly took down Iowa the year before, expectations were high, and Kellogg spoke openly about his desire to earn a top-four seed and host the opening two rounds. Disappointing road losses to Colorado, Arizona and Baylor spoiled those plans, and WVU finished the year 5-6 on the road.
There were some great moments, though, including a 16-0 record at home and a pair of victories over Kansas State, ranked No. 12 and No. 20 at the time of the contests.WVU, led by 20.4 points per game from Quinerly, fell to TCU in the Big 12 tournament semifinals, and after taking down Columbia in the opening round of the NCAA tournament, the road woes reappeared as the Mountaineers fell to North Carolina on the Tar Heels’ home floor.
No. 8: 2023-24
This season was completely unexpected as Kellogg took over for Dawn Plitzuweit, who was one-and-done in Morgantown. There weren’t many expectations when the season began, but a 13-0 start changed that.
Even after being blown out by No. 10 Texas to end the win streak, WVU was able to pick up some big victories, including one over No. 23 Oklahoma.
The way it ended, though, might be what defined the season. The Mountaineers knocked off Princeton in the opening round of the NCAA tournament and had No. 2 Iowa and college basketball legend Caitlin Clark on the ropes before the Hawkeyes prevailed.
No. 7: 2020-21
After a 17-12 season the year before, Carey proved he had plenty more left in the tank. A win over No. 17 Texas was part of a 16-2 start for the Mountaineers, who rose to No. 19 in the country. Losses to Oklahoma, Iowa State and Baylor down the stretch took away some of the excitement, but WVU picked it up when it traveled to Kansas City for the Big 12 tournament, taking down Kansas State and Oklahoma State to advance to the championship game.
The Mountaineers, led by 19.5 points per game from Kysre Gondrezick, didn’t have enough to defeat Baylor, but they earned a No. 4 seed in the NCAA tournament. Carey’s group easily dispatched of Lehigh in the opener but fell to fifth-seeded Georgia Tech in the second round. WVU finished 22-7 and ranked No. 20 nationally.
No. 6: 2007-08
Much like the recently completed season, WVU dominated at home during the 2007-08 campaign, finishing 11-1 overall inside the Coliseum thanks to fantastic seasons from Olayinka Sanni (16.2 ppg) and Meg Bulger (12.7 ppg). That record included impressive wins over No. 14 Notre Dame, No. 4 Rutgers and No. 18 Pitt.
The Mountaineers rose to No. 11 in the national polls and entered the Big East Tournament ranked No. 14. A loss to No. 23 Louisville ended that tourney run, but WVU opened the NCAA tournament by taking down New Mexico on its home floor. That earned the Mountaineers a meeting with No. 21 Vanderbilt, but they didn’t put forth their best showing, bowing out in the second round. The season record was 25-8, and WVU was No. 17 in the final poll.
No. 5: 1988-89
Arguably the first truly elite season in WVU women’s basketball history came in 1988-89, 15 years after the program started. Kittie Blakemore, who began the program in 1974, was coaching with Scott Harrelson, and the Mountaineers jumped out to a hot start, winning nine of their first 10 games, including an upset of No. 15 Western Kentucky.
That was just the beginning of even more impressive things to come, as WVU went 8-3 inside the Coliseum and 10-4 on the road behind the play of Jenny Hillen, Judy Eaton and Donna Abbott. The Mountaineers took down Penn State, Saint Joseph’s and Temple to win the Atlantic 10 tournament and secure the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history.
They weren’t finished yet. WVU knocked off the Hilltoppers a second time and advanced to play Virginia in the second round. The Cavaliers brought the Mountaineers’ season to an end, but history was made during that 24-8 campaign.
No. 4: 2009-10
Behind the play of Liz Repella and Asya Bussie, WVU finished with a perfect 17-0 home record and rose to No. 7 in the national polls. No. 16 Georgetown was among the victims for a Carey team that won 16 in a row during one exciting stretch of the season.
The postseason saw WVU knock off DePaul and Rutgers at the Big East tournament before running into Connecticut, the No. 1 team in the land. A loss to the Huskies did little to quiet the momentum. The Mountaineers earned a No. 3 seed and traveled to Austin, Texas, where they took down Lamar in the opening game.
WVU actually caught a break when No. 11-seed San Diego State downed Texas in the opening round, meaning the Mountaineers wouldn’t have to face the Longhorns on their home floor. But San Diego State stayed hot, ending WVU’s season in the second round. The final record was 29-6, and the Mountaineers were No. 10 in the final poll of the season.
No. 3: 2016-17
Overall, a 24-11 season might not have been one of West Virginia’s best, at least until March. In fact, when the Mountaineers left for the Big 12 tournament in Oklahoma City, they had lost two of their last four and may have been on the bubble for the NCAA tournament.
Tynice Martin, Teana Muldrow and company, though, removed all doubt, downing No. 19 Oklahoma, No. 12 Texas and No. 2 Baylor over a span of three days to win the conference tournament and punch the automatic ticket to the Big Dance.
A No. 6 seed in the NCAAs, WVU stayed hot by taking down Elon, but it couldn’t handle No. 3 Maryland on the Terps’ home floor, as the magical run came to an end in the second round.
No. 2: 2013-14
WVU set a school record with 30 wins behind stellar play from Asya Bussie, Christal Caldwell, Bria Holmes and others. The Mountaineers were 13-2 at home and 11-2 on the road, and they finished tied with Baylor with a 16-2 conference record, winning the Big 12 regular-season championship for the first time.
No. 11 Oklahoma State, No. 13 Iowa State and No. 6 Baylor all fell victim to the Mountaineers, who found themselves ranked No. 7 in the country when they made the trip to the Big 12 tournament. The Mountaineers won their first two there, taking down TCU and Texas to climb to No. 5 in the polls, but Baylor avenged an earlier loss in the championship game, winning 74-71.
Still, West Virginia entered the NCAA tournament with plenty of hype and a No. 2 seed. After beating Albany in the opener, however, WVU had to play seventh-seeded LSU in Baton Rouge. The atmosphere proved too much, as the Mountaineers fell 76-67, ending the season in the top 10 of the polls but well short of a tournament run.
No. 1: 1991-92
The most fantastic individual season in school history also led to the best season ever for the Mountaineers. WVU Sports Hall of Famer Rosemary Kosiorek averaged 24.3 points and 3.9 rebounds per game on her way to Kodak First-Team All-America honors. She was the Francis Pomeroy Naismith Player of the Year, setting a WVU record with 730 points that season and 2,061 for her career.
With the Baltimore native’s individual success came plenty of team glory. After falling to No. 2 Virginia and No. 13 Western Kentucky early in the regular season, West Virginia won 22 straight games, including two over a highly ranked George Washington club.
The Mountaineers were No. 11 in the country when the regular season wrapped up, and that was good enough for a No. 4 seed in the tournament, which at the time included just 48 teams.
After getting a bye into the second round, West Virginia took down Clemson in dramatic fashion, 73-72, before a crowd of 8,268 at the WVU Coliseum to advance to the Mountaineers’ only Sweet 16. There the Mountaineers met No. 1 Virginia, which included senior guard Dawn Staley and junior twins Heather and Heidi Burge. The Cavs were too much, 103-81, as WVU’s 26-4 season came to an end.
