Pierson Named Student-Athlete of the Week

January 18, 2022 01:46 PM | General, Men's Swimming & Diving, Rifle, Women's Basketball, Gymnastics, Women's Swimming & Diving, Track & Field, Wrestling

Varsity Sports Report

By: WVU Communications

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – After pacing the Mountaineers with a pair of event wins in their season-opening quad meet at Towson, junior Abbie Pierson of the West Virginia University gymnastics team has been named the WVU Student-Athlete of the Week, presented by University Apartments.

Pierson won the vault title outright with a mark of 9.825, before going on to share the floor exercise title with sophomore Kiana Lewis. The pair earned matching 9.9 totals, which was just shy of Pierson's career-high mark.

The New Kensington, Pennsylvania, native also competed on balance beam, where she notched a score of 9.775 to finish in a tie for sixth overall.

In the season-opening quad meet against Towson, West Chester and William & Mary, West Virginia (2-1) fought back after a difficult opening rotation to finish second overall with a total score of 194.000, just behind the host Tigers who notched 195.150 points. West Chester was third with 192.600, and William & Mary placed fourth with a 192.010 total.

This Week in Women's Basketball: West Virginia gets set for a pair of Big 12 contests this week … WVU plays host to No. 14 Oklahoma on Wednesday, Jan. 19, at the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown … Wednesday's contest against the Sooners is set for 7 p.m. ET, and will be broadcast on Big 12 Now on ESPN + … the Oklahoma game is 'Hoops & Heroes Night,' which will feature a special, $3 ticket to the contest for all military, first responders, healthcare and teaching professionals who present a valid employee/military I.D. at the WVU Coliseum ticket window … the Mountaineers then travel to Oklahoma State on Saturday, Jan. 22 … tipoff from Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater, Oklahoma, is set for 2 p.m. ET.

Last Week in Women's Basketball: West Virginia (8-6, 1-3 Big 12) split a pair of conference contests last week … the Mountaineers opened the week with a 64-53 win over Texas Tech on Jan. 12, at the WVU Coliseum in Morgantown … WVU was co-led in scoring by junior guard KK Deans and senior guard Madisen Smith, who each tallied 15 points …. additionally, freshman guard JJ Quinerly finished the game with 11 points … junior forward Esmery Martinez paced West Virginia on the glass with seven rebounds … the Mountaineers concluded the week with a 73-57 loss at No. 13/12 Texas, inside the Frank Erwin Center in Austin … West Virginia's scoring efforts were co-led by Deans and Quinerly, who each tallied 19 points in the game … Quinerly's 19 points set a new career high … Martinez tallied five rebounds to pace WVU on the glass for the second consecutive game … Deans and Quinerly accounted for 38 of WVU's 57 points scored at UT.

Notes: West Virginia is now 109-85 all-time against current members of the Big 12 Conference, including 92-74 in regular-season play … the Mountaineers are 22-22 all-time against Oklahoma and Oklahoma State … WVU split the regular-season series with both teams a season ago … West Virginia defeated OU, 90-72, on Jan. 3, 2021, in Norman, and OSU, 67-59, on Jan. 16, 2021, in Morgantown … additionally, WVU and Oklahoma State matched up in the 2021 Big 12 Championship on March 13, 2021 … the Mountaineers defeated the Cowgirls, 59-50, to advance to the conference tournament finale … with 19 points at Texas, Deans has now led WVU in scoring in four consecutive games … in total, the Greensboro, North Carolina, native has led WVU in scoring nine times this season and 17 times during her Mountaineer career … Deans has eclipsed the 200-point plateau in scoring this season, with 216 … during her three years at West Virginia, the junior guard has 743 career points … senior forward Kari Niblack now has 966 points in her WVU career and needs 34 points to become the 38th 1,000-point scorer in program history.

This Week in Wrestling: The Mountaineers are off this week … WVU returns next weekend for a pair of Big 12 duals against South Dakota State on Friday, Jan. 28, at 8 p.m. ET, and North Dakota State at 2 p.m., on Saturday, Jan. 29.

Last Week in Wrestling: WVU's tri-meet scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 16, against No. 4 Oklahoma State and Columbia was canceled.

Notes: West Virginia heads into a bye week of sorts before returning to action for back-to-back Big 12 duals from Jan. 28-29 … overall, the team stands at 5-3 overall … sophomore Peyton Hall stands at 17-1 and ranked No. 11 in the country by both FloWrestling and InterMat at 165 pounds … redshirt senior Killian Cardinale has a 6-0 record and remains No. 5 by InterMat, but slides down to No. 11 in FloWrestling's rankings at 125 pounds … redshirt sophomore Michael Wolfgram rounds out the rankings at No. 22 by both entities with a 14-5 record …Hall, Cardinale, and Wolfgram are all undefeated in dual competition this season … West Virginia placed seventh in its third appearance at the Southern Scuffle (Jan. 1-2), where Cardinale and Hall reached the finals … it was the first time program history that more than one Mountaineer registered an appearance in the finals of the in-season tournament … WVU placed second at the Clarion Open on Sunday, Nov. 7 … the 2022 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships are currently scheduled for March 17-19, in Detroit, Michigan for the first time in NCAA history … it's also the fourth time that the Championships will be held in the state of Michigan, with the last time being in 2007 (Auburn Hills) … additionally, the Big 12 Championship will return to the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, for the sixth consecutive year on March 5-6.

This Week in Gymnastics: West Virginia prepares to open its home and conference seasons as it welcomes defending Big 12 Conference champion Denver to Morgantown on Friday, Jan. 21 … action inside the WVU Coliseum is set for 7 p.m. ET.

Last Week in Gymnastics: WVU placed second in its season-opening quad meet at Towson with West Chester and William & Mary in Towson, Maryland, on Jan. 14 … the Mountaineers (2-1) opened the meet on the uneven bars and were forced to count a trio of falls … the squad fought back from there to earn eight scores of 9.8 or higher and record a total score of 194.000 to top West Chester (192.600) and William & Mary (192.010), while the host Tigers claimed the top spot with 194.150 … senior Rachel Hornung paced WVU on balance beam, notching a 9.85, just shy of her career high, to place third overall on the event … junior Abbie Pierson and sophomore Kiana Lewis paced the Mountaineers on floor exercise, tallying matching 9.9s to tie for first place at the event … Hornung (9.8), freshman Anna Leigh (9.875) and senior Kendra Combs (9.85) all recorded scores of 9.8 or better to help WVU sweep the top-five spots in the final standings on floor … in the squad's final rotation on vault, West Virginia hit six-of-six routines, as Pierson topped the podium with a 9.825 … Hornung and Combs competed in the all-around, as Hornung claimed the top spot with a 39.100.

Notes: The Mountaineers claimed 11 total podium finishes on the night, including event wins from Hornung on the all-around, Pierson on vault and floor exercise and Lewis, who tied for first with Pierson on floor … WVU shined on floor exercise at Towson, as five-of-six gymnasts scored above a 9.8 and a pair earned event-winning scores of 9.9 … Pierson's score of 9.9 on floor was just shy of her career high, while the total matched Lewis' career-best mark … Leigh and classmate Brooke Alban made their Mountaineer debuts at Towson on Friday, while Combs tallied her career debut on vault and in the all-around … additionally, sophomore Agatha Handono's score of 9.65 on beam marked her new career-best on the event ... WVU debuted in the top 25 on two events in this week's Road to Nationals rankings … the Mountaineers are tied with Big 12 foe Oklahoma for No. 4 on floor exercise, while the squad is tied with Kentucky for No. 18 on beam … WVU's No. 4 ranking on floor exercise marks the team's highest since at least 1998 in the Road to Nationals rankings … the last time West Virginia appeared inside the organization's top five was on March 19, 2001, when the squad was ranked No. 5 nationally on floor … additionally, WVU's appearance at No. 18 in this week's beam rankings is the squad's highest since ranking No. 19 on Jan. 25, 2021.

This Week in Swimming & Diving: WVU plays host to Iowa State and Villanova on Saturday, Jan. 22, at the Aquatic Center at Mylan Park … the tri-meet will begin at 11 a.m. E.T. … West Virginia will recognize their 13 seniors prior to the meet.

Last Week in Swimming & Diving: West Virginia's meet scheduled for Monday, Jan. 17, against Pitt was canceled.

Notes: The Mountaineers opened their 2021 fall circuit on Oct. 8, when they hosted the West Virginia State Games … WVU wrapped up the fall campaign with the WVU Invitational on Nov. 18-20 … fifth-year senior Ana Zortea broke the program record in the woman's 100-yard backstroke at the invite, touching the wall in 53.41 … the Mountaineers also had seven divers earn an NCAA Zones-qualifying score during the winter invite … freshman Sarah Krusinski (281.95), junior Marian Tiemeier (271.00) and senior Camille Burt (269.45) swept the women's 1-meter and earned their Zones-qualifying scores … Krusinski's score of 281.95 topped her previous Zones-qualifying score on 1-meter of 269.85 (vs. PSU) … senior Nick Cover topped his previous qualifying score (300.83) by recording a 349.90 at the WVU Invite, just shy of a personal best … on men's platform, senior PJ Lenz (332.95), Cover (306.75) and freshman Glenn Eloriaga (305.40) all recorded Zones-qualifying scores at the mid-season meet ... sophomore Abby Reardon swam a personal best to claim the women's 200 free (1:48.87) … the men recorded WVU's second sweep on Nov. 19, led by sophomore Roanoke Shirk in the 200 free (1:38.66) … sophomore Logan McFadden (2nd – 1:40.01) and fifth-year Max Gustafson (3rd – 1:40.31) rounded out the sweep … the 200 butterfly finals highlighted Saturday's, Nov. 20, final night of competition, as freshman Mia Walters (2:02.59) and fifth-year David Dixon (1:44.72) handed WVU victories in the men's and women's events.

This Week in Track and Field: West Virginia travels to the Youngstown Invitational in Youngstown, Ohio, on Friday, Jan. 21 … the meet will take place at Watson and Tressel Training Site, and is set to begin at 12:30 p.m. ET.

Last Week in Track and Field: The Mountaineers were off last week.

Notes: WVU opened the 2021 indoor season on Friday, Dec. 3, with the annual WVU Open at the WVU Shell Building … additionally, redshirt sophomore Ceili McCabe was the lone Mountaineer who participated in the Sharon Colyera-Danville Season Opener, in Boston, Massachusetts, on Saturday, Dec. 4 … West Virginia earned four first-place finishes and 11 top-five finishes on Dec. 3 … the morning field session started with the women's high jump, where Williams took first with a mark of 1.60 meters … in pole vault, redshirt junior Ellie Gardner finished first with a mark of 3.50 meters … senior Sada Wright placed first in the weight throw competition and finished with a mark of 17.52 meters … on the track, sophomore Emily Oiler opened with a first-place finish in the 400-meter dash in a time of 1:00.78 … on Dec. 4, McCabe broke another program record in the women's 3,000-meter run … the Vancouver, BC, Canada native completed the race in a program-record time of 8:52.52 to finish in first place … two freshmen made their Mountaineer debuts on Dec. 3, including Eden Williams and Ghamani Hogue … Megan Metcalfe previously set the 3,000-meter program record in 2005 with an 8:58.17 time ... Metcalfe won the NCAA Championships 5,000-meter run the same year … the Mountaineers last hosted an indoor home track meet in 2019 with the WVU Open … at the 2021 Big 12 Indoor Championships, the squad finished ninth as a team and registered eight All-Big 12 indoor performances … WVU earned a first-place finish in the women's distance medley relay, as the team of junior Hayley Jackson, junior Tessa Constantine, redshirt freshman Ceili McCabe and freshman Jo-Lauren Keane crossed the finish line in a time of 11:21.35.

This Week in Rifle: West Virginia begins its spring season on Saturday, Jan. 22, against No. 10 Navy in Annapolis, Maryland … Saturday's match against the Midshipmen is set for 9 a.m. ET … the contest at Navy is one of three regular-season matches scheduled for this spring.

Last Fall in Rifle: The Mountaineers opened up the season with a 9-0 record, including a 5-0 mark in the Great American Rifle Conference (GARC) … WVU picked up six wins over top-10 opponents and two top-five victories in the fall … additionally, every one of West Virginia's wins came over a top-12 opponent … the Mountaineers' season-high in team aggregate score came at Ole Miss on Oct. 2, when it shot a 4733 … WVU also shot a season-high 2385 in air rifle at Ole Miss, and matched that same score a month later vs. TCU on Nov. 6 … West Virginia's season-high smallbore score came at Murray State on Oct. 3 (2351) … in the TCU match at the X Count in Fort Wayne, Indiana, sophomore Molly McGhin tied the WVU and NCAA record after shooting a 600 in air rifle … the Griffin, Georgia, native is the sixth shooter in school history to accomplish the feat.

Notes: West Virginia last opened a season 9-0 in 2019-20, when they finished the regular season with a record of 9-1 after falling to Kentucky in team's final contest … WVU ranks No. 2 nationally in average team aggregate score (4723.571), average team smallbore score (2345) and is No. 3 in the country in average team air rifle score (2378.571) … McGhin leads the team in average aggregate score this year (1182.6) and also ranks 6th nationally in the category … the sophomore also leads the team in average air rifle score (595.8), good for No. 8 in the nation … senior Verena Zaisberger leads the Mountaineers in average smallbore score (587.571) and ranks 8th in the country in the discipline.

This Week in Tennis: WVU resumes competition on Friday, Jan. 21, 2022 as they travel to University Park, Pennsylvania for their first dual-match of the spring season against Penn State ... the match is set to begin at 4 p.m. E.T.

Last Week in Tennis: The Mountaineers were off last week.

Notes: WVU opened their 2021 fall circuit as they co-hosted Thunder in the Mountains, alongside Marshall, from September 24-26 … after hosting their annual Martha Thorn Invitational, the Mountaineers traveled to Charlottesville, Virginia to compete at ITA Super Regionals … Nagato and Hsieh's appeared in the ITA Atlantic Super Regional quarterfinal round, which marks WVU's first time since Kat Lyman and Anne-Sophie Courteau in 2019 … the 2021 fall circuit concluded Nov. 5-7 at the Big 12 Fall Invite in Stillwater, Oklahoma … Kucharova lead the team with the highest record (14-4) as they wrapped up the fall campaign, including a 9-1 singles record and a 5-3 doubles record.