All schools in Upshur County will close at 1 p.m. today. All B-UHS sporting events today are canceled.

B-U swimmers celebrate Senior Day by winning 10 of 22 events at quad meet

B-UHS Senior Swimmers: Owen Caynor, Alayna Whitehair, Preston Bennett, Cadence Vincent and Reis Leonard (Submitted Photo)

BUCKHANNON — The Buckhannon-Upshur High School swim teams honored their five seniors on Saturday by winning nearly half of the 22 events in a four-team meet hosted at West Virginia Wesleyan College.

Preston Bennett, Owen Caynor, Reis Leonard, Cadence Vincent and Alayna Whitehair were recognized during the Senior Day ceremony. The Buccaneers and Lady Bucs then went on to claim victories in the 200-year medley relays, with Rylee Yardley, Whitehair, Vincent and Sammie Shay winning the girls event (2:07.52) and Bennett, Leonard, Carter Zuliani and Caynor claiming the boys race (1:48.52).

The same group of boys also won the 200-yard free relay (1:37.87), while the girls placed second in that event (1:54.87).

Winfield, Philip Barbour and Robert C. Byrd also competed in Saturday’s meet.

In the individual events, the Buccaneers claimed four gold medals: Bennett won the 200-yard IM (2:07.07) and 100-yard backstroke (54.51) — breaking his own 2022 school record of 55.69 seconds in the latter event.

Carter Zuliani won the 50 free (23.56), while Caynor took third (25.76). Leonard claimed gold in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:08.51), and in the 100-yard free, Zuliani placed second (55.31) and Leonard third (56.27).

For the B-U girls, Vincent won the 100-yard backstroke (57.34) and 100-yard free (51.37). In the latter event, Chole Blonn placed fifth (1:09.81) and Savannah Lashmit took ninth (1:27.97). Alayna Whitehair claimed B-U’s other individual gold, winning the 100-yard breaststroke (1:13.42), while Shay took fourth in that event (1:36.49).

Whitehair placed second in the 100 fly (1:04.26), while Cate O’Neill and Shay finished third (7:36.79) and fourth (7:38.25) respectively in the 500-yard freestyle. Yardley also took third in the 200 free (2:42.28).

Rounding out the girls team, Blonn finished fourth (32.04) in the 50 free, while Lashmit finished seventh (38.56) in that event.

Both B-U swim teams are scheduled to be back in action on Wednesday when they will host a home quad at the WVWC pool, with the events scheduled to start at 6 p.m.

Share this story:

Local Businesses

RECENT Stories

Man arrested for DUI after February crash on Route 33 causes juvenile to suffer brain bleed

A 39-year-old man was arrested last week in relation to a February incident where he allegedly rear-ended a vehicle stopped at a red light, causing a juvenile passenger to be flown to Ruby Memorial with a brain bleed.

WVWC launches BobcAT Early Assurance Program for future athletic trainers

West Virginia Wesleyan College is offering high school students a new pathway to earn a Master of Athletic Training degree in just five years.

Buckhannon Community Theatre brings holiday magic to stage with Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer JR

Holiday magic hits the Colonial Arts Center this weekend as Buckhannon Community Theatre presents the 60-minute, family-friendly Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer JR, celebrating the joy of being uniquely you.

Carpenter Crunch Time Week 15: The end is here

The new four-class setup delivered a lopsided West Virginia high school football semifinals, and Duane breaks down why as he previews this weekend’s championships. He also reacts to WVU and Marshall missing bowls and shares Week 15 picks plus a readers’ contest update.

Three Bucs earn Big 10 All-Conference Football honors

Three Buckhannon-Upshur players — senior utility quarterback Dawson Tenney, junior lineman Greyson Wyland and junior linebacker Kadyn Baisden — were named to the 2025 Big 10 All-Conference Blue Division team.
Fred Eberle Technical Center

Fred W. Eberle Technical Center Administrative Council to meet December 9

The Fred W. Eberle Technical Center Administrative Council will hold a regular meeting on Tuesday, December 9, 2025, at 2 p.m. at the center, 208 Morton Avenue in Buckhannon.

Lentz looking to build confidence with young Lady Buc basketball team in 2025-26 season

Buckhannon-Upshur coach Alicia Lentz says her 12-player Lady Buc roster must build confidence and develop quickly through a tough nonconference and Big 10 schedule to find success in the 2025-26 season.

Westfall has team-high 21 points but Wesleyan loses high scoring affair to Frostburg State, 109-95

Despite a 21-point effort from Jaden Westfall and strong contributions from Isaiah Baker and Stephen Ovia, West Virginia Wesleyan fell 109-95 to Frostburg State as the visitors’ hot perimeter shooting and turnovers decided the game.

Wesleyan women cruise past Frostburg State in home opener, 89-58

West Virginia Wesleyan overwhelmed Frostburg State 89–58 in the home opener, paced by Ana Young’s 25 points, Emma Witt’s 17 and a season-high 27 assists as the Lady Bobcats dominated the second half.