ELKINS, W.Va. – The West Liberty University women's soccer team scored in the opening minute and never looked back here Wednesday in cruising to a 2-0 shutout of Davis & Elkins at Nuttall Field.
    It was the second win in the last three matches for Coach Barry Christmas's resurgent Hilltoppers (4-9-4, 4-6-4) while the Senators (7-7-2, 6-6-1) slipped back to the .500 mark with their third loss in the last four outings.
    Nikki Lolua put the Black and Gold ahead to stay just 42 seconds into the match when she corralled a long through ball from Claire Kelly and tucked a ball into the bottom right corner of the cage for a 1-0 lead.
    That turned out to be all the offense the Hilltoppers needed as goalkeeper Olivia Montgomery backed a solid performance by the WLU back line with 6 saves to earn the shutout.
    Alyssa Rhinaman gave West Liberty some breathing room in the 79th minute when she gathered a loose ball just outside the box and hammered it home from distance for a 2-0 final score.
    The Hilltoppers close out the 2019 season on the road Sunday with a 4 p.m. match at Wheeling.
  West Liberty            1  1 – 2
Davis & Elkins          0  0 – 0      WLU: Nicole Lolua (Claire Kelly), :42      WLU: Alyssa Rhinaman (unassisted), 78:56      Shots: West Liberty 8, Davis & Elkins 9
     Saves: West Liberty 6 (Olivia Montgomery 6), Davis & Elkins 4 (Katie Clarke 4)
     Corners: West Liberty 2, Davis & Elkins 1