WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – The West Liberty University women's soccer team battled Mountain East Conference North Division rival to a scoreless draw here Friday on a frigid night under the lights at the West Family Athletic Complex.
    Coach Barry Christmas's Hilltoppers (0-1-1) nearly pulled out a late win over the division-leading Falcons (1-0-1) in the final two minutes of the second overtime.
    Speedy defender Grace Fodor made a strong run out of the back to find freshman forward Lexie Mullen near midfield. Mullen slipped between two defenders in the middle of the pitch and slid a pass to the left side, springing senior forward Kaelyn Oskin open for a return pass on the right side of the box.
    Oskin wheeled around a defender and launched a drive from 15 yards out that seemed destined for the left side of the cage only to see Fairmont State keeper Taylor Kennedy make a diving save to preserve the dual shutout.
    The Falcons' best scoring chance came in the 86th minute when Kiera Kuzinski banged one off the post.
    Fairmont State had a 14-9 edge in shots but only eight of them were on frame and WLU netminder Olivia Montgomery saved them all. Every one of West Liberty's shot was on target but none got past Kennedy, as she recorded her second shutout in as many starts.
    The Hilltoppers return to the West Family Athletic Complex on March 12 when they host Ohio County rival Wheeling in a 5 p.m. match.
     Fairmont State                 0  0  0  0 – 0
West Liberty                     0  0  0  0 – 0      Shots: Fairmont State 14, West Liberty 9
     Saves: Fairmont State 9 (Taylor Kennedy 9), West Liberty 8 (Olivia Montgomery 8)
     Corners: Fairmont State 3, West Liberty 1