West Liberty, W.Va. – Following their second overtime win of the young season, the West Liberty University women's basketball team will return to the hilltop on Tuesday night as they open MEC play against Notre Dame prior to the Thanksgiving break. The Hilltoppers and Falcons are set for 5:30 p.m. tip-off inside the ASRC.

GAME DETAILS

• Location: West Liberty, W.Va. (Academic Sports & Recreation Complex "ASRC")
• Tip-Off: 5:30 P.M.

WEST LIBERTY STORYLINES

• West Liberty enters Tuesday's game with a record of 2-2 on the year following a 74-68 overtime victory at Salem on Saturday afternoon. The Hilltoppers improved to 2-0 in overtime games this season with the win.
• Through four games, the Hilltoppers are averaging 71.8 points, 42.8 rebounds, 16.0 assists, 9.5 steals, and 2.5 blocks per game, while shooting the ball 32.6 percent from the field, 31.8 percent from 3-point range, and 69.8 percent from the free throw line.
• The Hilltoppers are led by a pair of players who are averaging double figures as Corinne Thomas has averaged 17.8 points and Karly McCutcheon adds 13.3 points per game.
• WLU ranks third in NCAA Division II with 10.5 3-pointers per game, and Thomas also ranks third nationally in both 16 total 3-pointers made and an average of 4.00 3-pointers made per game. McCutcheon ranks 25^th and 36^th respectively in DII, making 12 shots from beyond the arc and averaging 3.00 3-pointers per game. Thomas is shooting the ball 34.8 percent from deep while McCutcheon is 31.6 percent.
• Thomas has led the team in scoring in back-to-back games with 20 and 23 points respectively against Kentucky State and Salem, hitting four 3-pointers against the Thorobreds and six against the Tigers. McCutcheon has one 20 point outing as she knocked down four 3-pointers against Mercyhurst, she also hit five 3-pointers in the game against Kentucky State.
• Thomas and McCutcheon are tied as the top rebounders on the team, averaging 6.3 rebounds per game. Paige Julian set a career-high of nine rebounds against the Thorobreds and matched it once again on Saturday against the Tigers, bringing her season average to 6.0 boards per game.
• Bailee Smith has continued to be the floor general and lead the offense through the first four games of the season, averaging a team-high 4.0 assists while recording an assist/turnover ratio of 1.33. Thomas has added 3.3 assists per game.
• Thomas and Anna Lucarelli have made their presence known on the defense side of the ball as they have collected 2.8 and 1.8 steals per game respectively while McCutcheon and Julian have made it difficult for the opponents to get shots off by both averaging 0.8 blocks per game.
• Kyle Cooper is in his seventh season as the head coach at West Liberty with a career record of 94-75 with the Hilltoppers.

NOTRE DAME STORYLINES

• Notre Dame enters Tuesday's game with a record of 1-3 on the year following a 70-57 home loss to Wheeling on Saturday afternoon.
• Through four games the Falcons are averaging 69.5 points, 35.3 rebounds, 12.0 assists, 9.3 steals, and 3.3 blocks per game while shooting the ball 39.0 percent from the field, 31.7 percent from 3-point range, and 63.3 percent from the free throw line.
• The Falcons are led by four players who average double figures in scoring with Lilee Carlson averaging a team-high 13.0 points while Kennadi Harris adds 11.8 points, Noel Weathers averages 11.5 points, and Rachel Richardson scores 10.5 points per game.
• Harris is the team's top 3-point shooter, knocking down nine shots from beyond the arc at a 52.9 percent clip. She is also the team's assists leader, dishing out an average of 2.3 per game.
• Weathers, who has posted games of 12 and 15 rebounds already this season, is averaging a team-best for NDC with 9.5 boards per game. She also adds 1.3 assists, 1.3 steals, and 0.8 blocks per game.
• On the defensive side of the ball Mallory Hullinger averages a team-leading 2.0 steals per game, while the trio of Weathers McDaniel, and Karli Anker each average 1.3 steals. The Duo of Weathers and Harris have made shots difficult for opponents as they both average 0.8 blocks per game apiece.
• Lauren Macer begins her second stint as the head coach at Notre Dame this season following a two year stretch as an assistant coach at Purdue-Fort Wayne, she holds a career record of 79-35 in her fifth season as the head coach of the Falcons.

SERIES HISTORY

• The teams have split 22 meetings in the all-time series as the record stands at 11-11.
• West Liberty won their third straight in the series in the last meeting on February 22, 2023, as they earned a 78-61 road win in South Euclid, Ohio.