Morgantown’s Irene Riggs and University’s Larry Josh Edwards claimed first in their respective races at Wheeling Park’s Saturday invitational, pushing their teams to first-place finishes and setting course records.
The Morgantown girls team took the top spot with a score of 42, edging their rival University which finished with 46 points. Preston finished fourth with 105 points.
Riggs first-place finish was uncontested down the stretch clocking 18:20.41, beating second-place finisher Ripley’s Ellie Hosaflook by 32 seconds. Further, Riggs was one of four MHS runners to finish in the top 10, joined by Amelia Summers (5th, 20:28.22), Jennifer O’Palko (8th, 21:05.09) and Anna Lester (10th, 21:06.71). University had three top-10 placements with senior Caroline Kirby taking third place with a time of 19:38.97. Mia Morris finished in fourth place (20:10.24) and Shelby Davis finished in ninth (21:05.69). The Knights had two top-10 finishers with Abby Nolan taking sixth (20:33) and Allie Martin taking seventh (20:49.57).
University’s boys’ squad handily won their race, securing the top spot with 27 points. Morgantown took second with 58 points, and Preston tallied 116 points to land in fourth.
The Hawks claimed the top-3 spots, with Edwards winning easily at 16:02.05, 28 seconds ahead of his teammate Rocco DeVincent (16:30.31). Jordan Thomas claimed third two seconds later at 16:32.16. Ryan Blohm was the final Hawk to place in the top 10, taking the final spot with a time of 17:19.93. Morgantown had two finish in the top-10, Quinn Jacquez (4th, 16:39.19) and Landon Young (9th, 17:17.66). Lowell Cerrbone was the lone Knight to place in the top 10, taking seventh at 17:13.62.
Soccer
Anna Iquinto’s hat trick leads Morgantown over Parkersburg
Anna Iquinto pulled off a hat trick to lead help lead the Morgantown girls’ soccer team over Parkersburg 4-0 on the road.
Chloe Ratliff was the other scorer, putting in the insurance goal to pad the Mohigans’ lead. Michaela August logged three assists in the win, while Amanda Weaver picked up one.
Iquinto has been a major force for MHS (3-0) this season, and now has five goals since Monongalia County teams were allowed to return to play.
Morgantown returns to action Monday at Preston High. Kick is set for 5:30 p.m.
University defeats Ripley 4-1 at home
Playing their fourth game in five days, the Hawks (4-2-0) got goals from four different players to defeat the Vikings (6-5-0) in a hard-fought match at Mylan Pharmaceuticals Stadium.
Tristen Bright got UHS on the board early when she lobbed a cleared corner kick over the keeper and into the back of the net. Freshman Chloe Downs doubled the lead in the 25th minute with the first goal of her high school career, slotting home a shot from 12 yards out after a cross from Emily Lattea. Lattea gave the Hawks a 3-0 halftime lead on a free kick into the top of the net with just 5 seconds remaining on the clock.
Morgan Ryan added a fourth early in the second, hitting a left-footed half-volley from 15 yards out after a Bright free kick, but the Vikings’ Zoe Casto gave Ripley some hope with a long shot over UHS keeper Lizzy Edwards’ head with 30 minutes to play. However, Edwards made an excellent one-on-one save soon after, and the Hawks’ defense held firm the rest of the way.
“I’m just glad we got through the week,” UHS coach Graham Peace said. “The effort from the team was outstanding today, given the circumstances. The defense bent but didn’t break, and we generated chances off of set pieces. It was a great team effort, and I’m glad we’re playing again, but we’re all looking forward to a day off tomorrow.”
UHS gets a short break before returning to action against Fairmont Senior on Tuesday.
Volleyball
Morgantown volleyball splits with Parkersburg Catholic, University
The Morgantown volleyball team split with Parkersburg Catholic and University in the Saturday tri, falling to the Crusaders in two sets and beating UHS in two sets.
Alayna Corwin registered 13 kills, four aces and 15 digs between the two matches. Issy Grushecky added five kills and three blocks, Grace Washburn had five kills and Ella Voorhees logged 22 digs.
For University, Olivia Kaddar and Sierra Lanham led with seven kills each, while Norah Chase added six kills. Further, Payton Foulks logged 11 assists and Anna Virus had 22 digs.
