FAIRMONT, W.Va. – A hot-shooting Fairmont State team took advantage of two West Liberty scoring droughts and held on down the stretch to hand the No. 1-ranked Hilltoppers their first loss of the season, 99-83, Saturday afternoon at Joe Retton Arena.

The Falcons (10-6, 7-3) snapped a 15-15 tie with a 15-0 run to take control midway through the first half and opened the second half with an 11-0 spurt to take what proved to be an insurmountable 59-33 lead less than three minutes into the final period.

West Liberty (14-1, 9-1), playing without ailing shooting guard Devin Hoehn (16.6 ppg.), didn't go away quietly.

The Hilltoppers began chipping away at the margin and cut it to 11 points, 67-56, on a Seger Bonifant 3-pointer with 9:44 remaining but Fairmont's Nick Harney tipped in his own missed shot and added a free throw to stop the bleeding and maintain the double-digit lead.

The last best chance for Coach Jim Crutchfield's visitors came in the final three minutes when a C.J. Hester basket and two Indiana Faithfull free throws once more got the margin down to 11 points, 86-75, with 2:39 still to play.

West Liberty got the ball back with a chance to close within single digits but a crucial turnover resulted in a runout dunk for Fairmont's Thomas Wimbush and the Hilltoppers never threatened again.

Bonifant led West Liberty with a game-high 26 points while also clearing a team-high 7 rebounds but Hoehn's production was missed as Hester (15 points) and Joe Lococo (12 points) were the only other double-figure scorers for the Hilltoppers.

Harney, a senior transfer from the University of Akron, and Wimbush, last season's MEC Freshman of the Year, paced Fairmont with 20 points each while Jamel Morris weighed in with 18. Chase Morgan had 15 points with 12 of them coming on four 3-point baskets.

West Liberty will try to get back in the winner's circle on Thursday when the Hilltoppers host Ohio County rival Wheeling Jesuit in a 7:30 p.m. game at the ASRC.

GAME NOTES

X Fairmont's 48-33 halftime lead was bolstered by a 26-0 advantage in points off the bench

X This was West Liberty's second straight loss at Joe Retton Arena. The Falcons prevailed by a 93-81 count in last year's game

X Despite Saturday's loss, Jim Crutchfield still holds a 23-3 edge in games against Fairmont State

X West Liberty retained sole possession of first place in the MEC as Notre Dame upset second-place Glenville State, 75-66, on Saturday