for the News-Tribune

KEYSER — Rebecca Durst, the second female chosen to serve as the Mountaineer mascot in the history of West Virginia University, will be on hand to help Potomac State College of WVU celebrate the 80th anniversary of its mascot — the Catamount — this Saturday, Sept. 26.
The “Celebration of the Catamount” will take place at the entrance of the College at the Catamount statue. Individuals are invited to bring their cameras and have their pictures taken with the new WVU Mountaineer and the new PSC Catamount mascot beginning at 4:30 p.m.
The celebration ceremony will begin at 5 p.m. 
There is no charge and the public is invited to attend.
Durst is a pre-nursing major from Point Pleasant, W.Va.
In order to achieve appointment as the Mountaineer mascot, she endured rigorous physical tests and competed in a cheer-off, vying with 15 other individuals for the position.
“I’ve always been athletic and I guess my dad actually helped me prepare for this by teaching me gun safety and how to load and shoot a musket when I was very young,” said Durst.  
She is the daughter of Ron Durst Jr. and Jody Durst.  
The first female to serve as the Mountaineer was in 1990 and was Natalie Tennant, currently serving as West Virginia's secretary of state.