Down Goes Penn State; Mountaineers Stay Undefeated

Dec 5, 2023

MORGANTOWN, WV–The Mountaineer Women’s basketball team (8-0) got its first-ranked victory of the season over No. 25 Penn State 83-65 Monday night at the WVU Coliseum. The win over Penn State (7-2) is the first for WVU since 1989. It’s also the 56th time the Mountaineers defeated a ranked opponent and the 29th at the Coliseum.

WVU Coach Mark Kellogg used a high intensity defensive effort to win the game. The Nittany Lions came into the game with the sixth-best scoring offense in the country, averaging 85.3 points a game. WVU held the Lady Lions well below their average.

The Mountaineers forced Penn State into 26 turnovers that resulted into 18 WVU steals and 31 points off Penn State mistakes. The Mountaineers added a season high 82.6 percent (19 of 23) from the foul line. WVU guard JJ Quinerly scored 22 points. It marks the third straight game Quinerly has reached the 20 point mark. She also added four rebounds, three steals and two assists.

Sophomore guard Jordan Harrison finished with 14 points, nine assists and six steals. Redshirt junior guard Kyah Watson paced the squad with eight rebounds and 15 points. Fifth year seniors Lauren Fields and Tavy Diggs finished with 12 and 10 points respectively.

Penn State opened the game with a 9-5 lead but an 8-0 Mountaineer run gave WVU its first lead of the night at 13-9 with 3 minutes on the clock. Penn State used two 3’s on its final possesion to take an 18-16 lead after the first quarter. The Mountaineers took a 41-31 lead into halftime.

WVU’s defense in the final quarter forced 9 Penn State turnovers and held Penn State to just 9 shots.

It must be noted that WVU’s perfect 8-0 start is just the sixth time in history. It’s the best start to a season since 2018 when the Mountaineers opened the season 13-0.

WVU stays home to face Delaware State Sunday December 10 for a 2 p.m. tip off at the Coliseum.