Hall Named Student Athlete of the Week – West Virginia University Athletics

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Following an undefeated performance at the 43rd annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, fifth-year senior Peyton Hall of the West Virginia University wrestling team has been WVU Student-Athletes of the Week, presented by University Apartments.
 
Ranked No. 4 at 165 pounds, Hall went 5-0 at the annual showcase on this way to capturing the title and becoming the first Mountaineer to take home the crown since three-time national champion Greg Jones took home the title at 174 pounds in 2002, as well as the first to reach the finals since fifth-year senior Dustin Rogers finished runner-up at heavyweight in 2007.
 
Hall improved to 13-0 and 4-0 against ranked opponents after taking down No. 33 Mac Church of Virginia Tech in the second round, No. 12 Nicco Ruiz of Arizona State in the quarterfinals, No. 6 Hunter Garvin of Stanford in the semifinals and No. 9 Cameron Amine of Big 12 foe Oklahoma State in the finals to secure the championship.
 
West Virginia returns home for its first Big 12 matchup of the season, where WVU will battle Cal Baptist in a special off-campus dual at Oak Glen High.
 
This Week in Women’s Basketball: The Mountaineers are set to close out nonconference action this week as they play in their first true road contest of the season against Temple … the game is set to be played at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on Dec. 15 … tipoff is set for 2 p.m. ET.
 
Last Week in Women’s Basketball: The Mountaineers moved to 9-1 on the season with their final home nonconference win of the season … WVU defeated East Tennessee State, 85-40, on education day at the WVU Coliseum … Junior guard Sydney Shaw finished with 15 points and added a game-high six steals… Junior guard Jordan Harrison scored her 1,000th career point, with a team-leading 17 points and added five assists and five rebounds … Fifth-year forward Kylee Blacksten and senior guard Kyah Watson each managed 11 points … Watson added a team-leading eight boards and added four steals. It is the eighth time this season that the Rapid City, S.D. native has led the Mountaineers’ rebounding effort.
 
Notes: WVU returns eight student-athletes to the floor this season, including four of five starters from an NCAA Tournament team a season ago … All-Big 12 First Team and Defensive Team selection JJ Quinerly highlights the returners … She was also named to the Preseason All-Big 12 team and was named to the Naismith College Women’s Basketball Player of the Year, the 2025 Ann Meyers Drysdale Shooting Guard of the Year Watchlist and the Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 Watchlist … Jordan Harrison was named to the Nancy Lieberman Point Guard of the Year watchlist … Quinerly has eclipsed 1,500 points in her career this season as Harrison and Zya Nugent have broken the 1,000-point mark.
 
This Week in Wrestling: No. 18 West Virginia returns home for its first Big 12 matchup of the season, where WVU will battle Cal Baptist in a special off-campus dual at Oak Glen High School on Sunday, Dec. 15, at 4 p.m. ET.
 
Last Week in Wrestling: For the first time since 2017, the West Virginia University wrestling team sent nine Mountaineers to compete at the 43rd annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational in Las Vegas, Nevada … the Mountaineers closed out the event in 11th place with 40. 5 team points, which marked the highest finish for the program since the 2007 squad wrapped up its performance in 12th … top-seeded Peyton Hall won the 165-pound championship after recording a 12-7 decision over No. 4-seed Hunter Garvin in the semifinals and then a 4-1 sudden victory over No. 6-seed Cameron Amine of Oklahoma State in the finals … at 184 pounds, redshirt senior Dennis Robin added a seventh-place finish at the midseason tournament, following a 4-2 decision over No. 6-seed Jaden Bullock of Michigan.
 
Notes: Coming off the championship run at the Cliff Keen Invitational, Hall became the first Mountaineer to win their bracket at the CKLV since three-time national champion Greg Jones took home the title at 174 pounds in 2002, as well as the first to reach the finals since fifth-year senior Dustin Rogers finished runner-up at heavyweight in 2007 … WVU enters its first Big 12 matchup against California Baptist with a 3-0 record … they have jumped out to a 3-0 start in three consecutive seasons post-World War II for just the second time program history and since 1962-1964 … this dual also marks the first meeting between the two programs in history.

This Week in Track and Field: West Virginia is off from competition until Jan. 17, when they will compete at the YSU Collegiate Invitational in Youngstown, Ohio at the Watson and Tressel Training Site.

 

Last Week in Track and Field: The Mountaineers sent split squads to the YSU Icebreaker on Dec. 6 in Youngstown, Ohio and the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Open on Dec. 7 in Boston, Massachusetts to open the 2024-25 indoor season … Saturday’s meet in Boston was highlighted by graduate student Ceili McCabe who earned a personal and program record time of 8:45.67 in the women’s 3,000 meters … with the time, McCabe earned a third place finish … additionally, graduate student Sarah Tait placed herself at third on the 3,000 meters all-time list, crossing the finish line in 9:03.78.