WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – The West Liberty University women's basketball team is on the road for the final time in the regular season Wednesday night at Notre Dame College.

THE BASICS
February 22, 2023 | 5:30 pm | Murphy Gymnasium (South Euclid, Ohio)
West Liberty (15-11, 13-7 MEC) at Notre Dame College (6-20, 5-15 MEC)
Live stats and video links will be available here.

THE HILLTOPPERS
West Liberty lost a pair of heartbreakers last week, falling in overtime at Frostburg State after a half court heave sent it to the extra period, then Fairmont State came out on top of a hard-fought, back-and-forth battle at home on Saturday. 10 of the game's 12 lead changes came in the fourth quarter, which also featured three ties, but Fairmont State took a four-point lead nearing one minute to play and held off the Hilltoppers making four straight free throws to end the game. A three-plus minute stretch in the fourth quarter from 5:54-2:44 saw the teams go shot for shot trading leads before the Fighting Falcons edged it out. Arriana Manzay scored 32 points with nine rebounds and shot 14-for-16 while tying a career-high with five blocks. Manzay and Karly McCutcheon both eclipsed 1,000 career points in the game. Grace Faulk finished with 18 points on six three pointers, a tie of her career-high, and Corinne Thomas added five threes for 15 points. McCutcheon rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 points.
 
The Hilltoppers are top-10 in DII in six different statistical categories, ranking second in three point percentage (38.3%), third in assists per game (19.3), fourth in three pointers per game (10.5), sixth scoring offense (80.4), seventh in field goal percentage (46.9 %), and eighth in three-point attempts per game (27.4).
 
12 of WLU's 15 wins have come by double digits. West Liberty leads the conference in field goal percentage, assists per game, three-point percentage, three-pointers per game, and defensive rebounds per game (29.3), then ranks second in three-point defense (27.7%).
 
The Hilltoppers have made 10-plus threes in 13 outings, including in seven of the last eight, and have at least six long balls in all but one game this season. They have outshot their opponents in all but one game from beyond the arc and allowed more than seven threes in a game just once. WLU has held opponents to just one triple eight times along with a shutout of West Virginia Wesleyan beyond the arc on January 28.
 
Manzay, a senior forward, leads the team averaging 19.3 points per game (second in the MEC) and 9.8 rebounds per game (third in the MEC). She has 13 double-doubles on the season and was a rebound away from another on Saturday. All but one double-double has been in conference play and she has had one in 8 of the 14 games since January 7. Manzay ranks third in DII and leads the conference with a 65.6% shooting percentage. She has scored double digits in all but two games with 12 games at 20-plus and had her third 30-point outing on Saturday. The Texas native is a two-time MEC Player of the Week this season. Manzay went over 500 career rebounds and became the 37^th member of the 1,000-point club in the Black and Gold on Saturday.
 
McCutcheon, a sophomore guard in her third season, became the 36^th member of the West Liberty 1,000-point club on Saturday in her 71^st career game. The New Castle, Pa native ranks seventh in DII and second in the MEC averaging 3.12 three pointers per game, while shooting 43.8% from beyond the arc, also ranking second in the MEC and 13^th nationally. She is scoring 17.5 points per game (6^th in the MEC) and has double-digits in all but one outing along with eight games scoring 20-plus and three 30-point games this season. McCutcheon has recorded one double-double off 32 points, 12 rebounds, and eight three pointers at D&E on December 3, and just missed one three other times with nine rebounds twice and then nine assists in her last game on Saturday. McCutcheon has multiple three pointers in all but two games and went 6-for-8 last Wednesday, her second time with six this season. She also is dishing out 3.4 assists per game with multiple in 11 of the last 13 games. On the season, McCutcheon is tied with Sarda for a team-leading 93 assists, after both posted nine assists on Saturday.
 
Reigning first team all-conference player Corinne Thomas is averaging 12.1 points per game over 16 outings this season after battling an early-season injury. She has scored double digits in 10 straight games and had her third 20-point outing with 23 last Wednesday. A season-high seven three-pointers (in nine attempts) and 25 points came at W.Va. Wesleyan on January 28. Thomas has made multiple threes in 15 of her 16 games played including in 12 straight. Last time out she drained five long balls for 15 points versus Fairmont State.
 
Grace Faulk averages 11.6 points per game and makes 2.88 three-pointers per game while shooting 39.7% from deep, both marks good for fourth in the MEC. She posted a career-high 23 points off five threes in the win at West Virginia State on February 1. Faulk has made multiple threes in 11 of the last 13 games and scored double figures 17 times this season with two reaching the 20-point mark. She heated up late in the Fairmont State game and finished with a 6-for-9 effort from deep, her third time this season tying a career-high in three-pointers. Faulk also racked up 11 assists over the last three games and had her fourth game with a season-high eight rebounds last Wednesday.
 
Sonia Sarda has started each of the last eight games and has been filling up the stat sheets. She was near a triple-double on Saturday with seven points, nine rebounds, and nine assists. Sarda is averaging 6.2 assists over the last 10 games and is tied for the team lead on the season with McCutcheon at 93. Sarda tied her career-high in the overtime win over Charleston on February 4 with 25 points and is averaging 8.7 points per game. She has shown her rebounding presence with games of nine, eight, seven, seven, and six in five of the last eight games. Sarda leads the team with 20 steals in her first season on the hilltop as a graduate transfer. She is shooting 86.7% from the free throw line not missing since January 14 at Fairmont State, making each of her last 29 attempts including a 2-for-2 mark on Saturday.
 
West Liberty is 6-6 in away games this season, 6-4 in away conference matchups, and 2-4 in away games on Wednesday. A win would be the Hilltoppers' fifth season-series sweep of the year, also beating Alderson Broaddus, Concord, Davis & Elkins, and West Virginia Wesleyan in all their meetings.

THE FALCONS
Notre Dame has lost four straight games and seven of its last eight entering the regular season home finale. Last time out, the Falcons dropped a 115-67 decision at West Virginia State. Notre Dame is 4-7 on its home court inside Murphy Gymnasium.
 
The Falcons average 62.7 points per game on 38.0% shooting from the floor, 28.6% shooting from three, while allowing 77.9 points per game on 45.9% shooting from the floor and 34.2% shooting from beyond the arc. Fairmont State averages a -9/1-rebounding margin and +0.7-turnover margin.
 
Redshirt sophomore Alana Ellis leads the team averaging 15.6 points per game, while teammates Noel Weathers (11.0) and Marina Adachi (10.6) round out three Falcons in double digits. Weathers, a freshman, leads the team shooting 48.8% from the floor and pulls down 7.0 rebounds per game, while producing three double-doubles recently. Adachi, a senior, paces the outside shooting with 1.69 three pointers per game on 38.9% shooting from deep. She also has a team-best 90% mark from the free throw line. Junior Lizzie Imrie leads the team with 49 assists.
 
Karli Anker led the Falcons with 15 points off the bench in the first meeting, as five players scored in double digits however just seven netted baskets in the game. Ellis and Cencere McDaniel had 12 each, while Lilee Carlson and Weathers scored 10 apiece.

THE SERIES
Notre Dame holds the narrow 11-10 advantage all-time. The teams split the season series last season, while West Liberty has won each of the last two meetings including an early season home win this year. WLU has never won three straight versus the Falcons. On the road, the Hilltoppers are just 2-7 in the all-time series.
 
Earlier this season (Nov. 22 | West Liberty, W.Va): Notre Dame (68) - West Liberty (78)
In the home opener for the Hilltoppers, West Liberty cruised past Notre Dame leading by double digits for nearly the entire second half. The Hilltoppers bolted out to a 20-6 lead, but the Falcons answered to make it a one possession game. A 14-6 run ended the first half and took the WLU lead from two up to 10 and the Hilltoppers never looked back. WLU pushed its lead to as many as 18 points with less than four minutes left in the third quarter. McCutcheon led with a game-high 20 points on 8-for-14 shooting with four three pointers, while Manzay posted a 17-point, 13-rebound double-double. The Hilltoppers shot 76% in the first half and ended the night with a 59.6% mark from the field, while holding the Falcons to 37.3% shooting.
 
MEC STANDINGS
West Liberty: 5
Notre Dame: T9
Full Standings here.
 
A win for the Hilltoppers clinches a top-five seed in the upcoming MEC Tournament (March 1-5 at WesBanco Arena in Wheeling) and will keep them in the hunt for the four seed heading to the regular season finale.
 
NEXT UP
West Liberty will wrap up the regular season with a home contest against crosstown rival Wheeling on Saturday at 2 pm inside the ASRC.

Follow Hilltopper basketball all season online at HilltopperSports.com and on Twitter (@WLU_Hoops | @WLathletics), Instagram (@wlu_wbb | @wlu_athletics), and Facebook.