Sports@DominionPost.com
AMES, Iowa — The West Virginia women’s basketball team travels to Ames, Iowa, Saturday for a 1 p.m. rematch with Iowa State.
The Mountaineers (16-10, 6-9 Big 12) and the Cyclones (15-11, 7-8) meet after WVU won the first meeting this season, 79-71, on Feb. 2, at the WVU Coliseum. Further, West Virginia has won four of the last five meetings against the Cyclones.
West Virginia is coming off a 64-39 loss to No. 2 Baylor on Monday at the Coliseum. Following her three-game absence, redshirt junior guard Kysre Gondrezick returned to the hardwood against the Lady Bears. Gondrezick led the Mountaineers in scoring against B.U., finishing with 13 points. Sophomore forward Kari Niblack paced WVU on the glass, tallying six rebounds, and posting three blocks in the defeat.
Iowa State is coming off a 60-51 loss at Kansas State on Wednesday in Manhattan, Kan.. The Cyclones are riding a three-game losing streak after falling to Kansas State, Texas Tech (77-74) and TCU (82-72). ISU’s last win came on Feb. 12, when the Cyclones defeated Texas, 69-51, in Austin, Texas.
Ashley Joens continues to lead Iowa State in scoring (20.8 points per game) and rebounding (10.6). Joens also is averaging a double-double this season. Joens and Kristin Scott (14.2 ppg) are the only two Cyclones averaging double figures in scoring this season.
Rifle sits in 2nd heading into Day 2 of GARC Championships
On the strength of its 2323 smallbore score, the No. 3-ranked West Virginia rifle team stands in 2nd place after one day of competition at the Great America Rifle Conference (GARC) Championships in Memphis, Tenn.
Kentucky is 1st through day one with a 2326 team score. The Mountaineers are closely followed by Navy, which stands in 3rd place with a score of 2318. Akron is in 4th place (2315), and Nebraska is in 5th place (2313).
Additionally, junior Sarah Osborn placed in the individual smallbore finals with a score of 430.5. Osborn entered the final in a tie for 4th, having shot a team-high 583 (192 kneeling, 197 prone, 194 standing) in the day’s third relay.
Milica Babic (191 kneeling, 199 prone, 192 standing) and David Koenders (196 kneeling, 200 prone, 186 standing) scored matching 582s toward the team scores. Babic and Koenders tied for 6th overall.
Joining the duo on WVU’s counting squad were Morgan Phillips (580), Akihito Shimizu (579) and Verena Zaisberger (576). Phillips tied for 15th overall, while Shimizu and Zaisberger tied for 21st and 32nd, respectively.
Jared Eddy shot 580 and tied for 15th, while Noah Barker finished in a tie for 21st with a career-high matching 579 total. Malori Brown and Calista Smoyer finished in ties for 32nd and 43rd, respectively, with scores of 576 and 571.
The GARC Championships continue Saturday at 9:15 a.m. with the air rifle competition. The air rifle finals are scheduled to begin at 4 p.m.
Men’s soccer spring schedule released
The West Virginia men’s soccer team’s 2020 spring schedule was announced Friday morning, and fans will be happy as four matches are set to take place at Dick Dlesk
Stadium.
The home slate includes the annual Alumni Match on April 24, plus three games against Ohio Valley on March 28, Duquesne on April 4, and Charleston on April 9.
All four home matches are free for all fans.
The 2020 spring slate begins on March 8, when WVU travels to Baltimore, Md., for a match at UMBC. Following three straight home matches, the Mountaineers return to the road to battle Robert Morris on April 18, in Moon Township, Pa., before the Alumni Match concludes the spring campaign.
The reigning Mid-American Conference Tournament champion Mountaineers are coming off a 10-9-2 season in 2019, featuring their second consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament. West Virginia advanced to the NCAA second round for the second straight year and eighth time in program history.
Dan Stratford readies for his first season at the helm in Morgantown following an ultra-successful tenure at Charleston. A two-time United Soccer Coaches National Coach of the Year honoree, Stratford won a pair of Division II National Championships with the Golden Eagles in 2017 and 2019, and amassed a record of 61-4-5 in three seasons as head coach.
TWEET @dompostsports
