MORGANTOWN – For four local seniors, Tuesday marked a day they’ve dreamt of for a long time, as they signed their names to continue playing the sport they love this fall after graduation.
Three Morgantown High School seniors secured their short-term futures on Tuesday with a pair of track and field athletes and a basketball state champion celebrating the accomplishment.
Senior Joel Moreland will join the track and field program at UNC Charlotte as a decathlon athlete.
Moreland first competed in the decathlon as a sophomore and fell in love with the competition, making the choice to continue on a no-brainer.
“I was never great at one event, but felt like I did enough things well to compete,” he said. “I decided to give it a shot in my sophomore year and fell in love with it. UNC Charlotte is amazing, and I really enjoyed the facilities and coaches on my visit.”
His track teammate, Audrey Skidmore, will also continue her running career as a sprinter for West Liberty University.
Skidmore is one of five MHS senior-athletes who will be a Hilltopper in the fall.
“The social aspect of track is something I enjoy,” she said. “I enjoy meeting new people and having so many people there I’m familiar with is a huge plus. My best friend and I will be roommates also, and we are looking forward to that.”
Finally, for MHS, 2024 state champion Waylon Colistra inked his name to join the program at Shepard University, where he will join former teammate, Brody Davis.
Colistra, a 2026 Class AAAA First-Team All-State selection, says the Rams are getting a “gym rat”.
“I want to be someone who stays in the gym as long as possible and works as hard as I can to develop myself as a player and teammate,” he said. “Being here at Morgantown, I’ve always had coaches and teammates helping me be the best I can be, and it’s helped me prepare to do the same thing at the next level.”
Across county lines, another senior committed his future to another program as Preston High basketball standout, Easton Hayes, signed with Wheeling University.
Hayes exits his career in Kingwood as the 3rd-highest scorer in program history at 1,018 points. He averaged 15.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.5 steals per game as a senior.
