The Mountain Lions (14-4, 11-3) seemed to have things well in hand after Jolysa Brown hit 1-of-2 free throws with 17 seconds remaining to put the hosts up by a 79-75 tally.

But the Hilltoppers (11-8, 8-5) quickly found Kayla Ayers for a clutch 3-pointer, cutting the lead to 79-78, and WLU head coach Lynn Ullom called timeout with 11 seconds left to set up the West Liberty press.

The visitors forced a turnover on the in-bounds pass and Ullom called another timeout after Concord had knocked the ball out of bounds along the sidelines with just 7 ticks remaining.

Hillary Southworth popped wide open off a pair of staggered screens and laid in a perfectly-thrown in-bounds pass from Erica Hershberger to put the Hilltoppers on top. The Mountain Lions got off a desperation shot as time expired but it failed to draw iron.

The frantic final seconds were a fitting conclusion to a tense struggle that featured 5 ties and 9 lead changes in the final 6 minutes alone. 

West Liberty featured a balanced attack with 5 Hilltoppers hitting double figures. Southworth led the way with 18 points while Ayers added 16 points and 6 rebounds. Chelsea Bradley came off the bench with 14 points and a team-high 7 rebounds and Emily Blevins added 11 points and 5 assists.

Hershberger turned in an outstanding performance, tossing in 10 of her career-high 13 points in the second half while handing out 6 assists, grabbing 5 rebounds and even tossing in a pair of steals. The senior point guard didn't miss a shot all day, going 5-for-5 from the floor – including a 2-for-2 showing from behind the 3-point arc – and making her only free throw.

Concord, which saw its 4-game winning streak go by the boards, got 28 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists from senior post Jolysa Brown. Andrea Bertrand added 18 points while Amanda Smith finished with a dozen.

The Hilltoppers return home to host Shepherd on Wednesday. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m. at the ASRC.

GAME NOTES

X Saturday's win completed a season sweep of the series for West Liberty, which had squeezed out a 56-54 victory against Concord in a mutual WVIAC opener on Nov. 19 at the ASRC

X The Hilltoppers have now won 24 of the last 25 meetings between the two schools

X West Liberty didn't miss a free throw (7-of-7) for the second time this season. The Hilltoppers were 12-of-12 from the line in a loss at Glenville State earlier this month