Football | 11/7/2019 12:00:00 PM

    WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – The West Liberty University football team will be looking to get back to the .500 mark on Saturday when WLU closes out the road portion of its 2019 slate at West Virginia Wesleyan.
    Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. on the artificial turf at historic Cebe Ross Field.
    Coach Roger Waialae's Hilltoppers (4-5, 3-5) saw a second half surge fall short against regionally ranked Urbana on Thursday as a late Blue Knight TD foiled West Liberty's comeback for a 35-17 final. Concord scored the game-winning touchdown with just 1:01 left on Saturday to hand the Bobcats (1-8, 1-7) a 28-24 loss.
    With just two games remaining, the Hilltoppers know they have to close out the season with back-to-back victories in order to finish with a winning record but Waialae and his squad aren't looking too far ahead.
    "Winning records are important every year and this team has a lot of pride so that's certainly a goal," Waialae said, "but we have to focus on being 1-0 this week. We can't get to 6-5 if we don't get to 5-5 first."
    That figures to easier said than done as Waialae believes Wesleyan's record doesn't tell the whole story of a team that has been coming on of last after some early season struggles.
    Three of the Bobcats' losses have come on the game's final possession – including a 39-36 setback at regionally ranked West Virginia State two weeks ago in which the Yellow Jackets came from behind with 25 fourth-quarter points, capped by a game-winning TD pass just 10 seconds before the final horn.
    "They have been hanging a lot of points on people the last few weeks," Waialae said, adding that the Bobcats had more than 500 yards of total offense in last week's loss at Concord. "They some playmakers on offense and they run a lot of RPO (run-pass option) which limits what you can do defensively.
    "They give you problems on defense, as well, switching back and forth between a 4-2-5 and a 3-3 stack. I've seen some 3-4 looks from them, too, so our quarterbacks really have to sharp in terms of making the calls and getting us into the right plays at the line."
    The Hilltoppers got some good news on the quarterback front this week as senior QB Zach Phillips was able to begin throwing again on Sunday after missing the last two weeks with an injury to his non-throwing wrist. In addition, TB Quincy Wimbish – who left the Urbana game early in the second half with an injury – appears to be back at full speed. Senior DB Logan Deri hopes to return after missing all but a few snaps last week with an ankle injury.
    "We'll know more about Zach as the week goes on," Waialae said, "but it's probably going to be a game-time decision. Quincy was running well before he got hurt last week but he looks OK now. Logan's a senior who really wants to play and is doing everything he can to get that ankle ready to go."
    West Liberty returns home next week for the Nov. 16 season finale against Charleston in the annual Hall of Fame Game. It will also be Senior Day for the Black and Gold with kickoff set for 1 p.m. at West Family Stadium.