WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – The West Liberty University women's basketball team is coming off a huge road win defeating nationally ranked West Virginia State and will look to keep its momentum going on its home court against Charleston, who is receiving votes in the national polls.

THE BASICS
February 4, 2023 | 2:00 pm | ASRC (West Liberty, W.Va.)
RV Charleston (17-4, 12-3 MEC) vs. West Liberty (13-8, 11-4 MEC)
Live stats and video links will be available here.

NGWSD CELEBRATION
West Liberty will celebrate National Girls & Women in Sports Day at the game recognizing female student athletes and their successes at halftime. The first girls & women in sports attending the game will receive a commemorative WLU team poster, then the women's basketball team will then host a meet and greet after the game. More information click here.

THE HILLTOPPERS
West Liberty took down No. T24 West Virginia State, 101-92, on the road Wednesday night. The Hilltoppers had a 57.8% shooting night and tied a season-best mark of 50% from beyond the arc with 15 three pointers in 30 attempts. Arriana Manzay led with a game-high 26 points, while Grace Faulk and Karly McCutcheon each scored 23 and 21 points respectively. The Hilltoppers set a season high in assists, with 28 of their 37 made baskets being assisted. The team outshot the Yellow Jackets 63.9% to 41% in the first half. The last win over a ranked opponent was in 2010.
 
The Hilltoppers are top-10 in DII in four different statistical categories, ranking third in assists per game (19.1), fifth in fourth pointers per game (10.3), eighth in scoring offense (79.8), and 10^th in field goal percentage (46.3%). 10 of their 13 wins have come by double digits. West Liberty leads the conference in field goal percentage, three pointers per game, assists per game, defensive rebounds per game (28.7), and opponents three-point percentage (25.2%).
 
With 15 threes last game WLU has made double digit triples in three straight outings and nine total games this season. The Hilltoppers have made at least six long balls in every game this season, while not allowing more than seven made threes in a game. They have made more threes than their opponents in every game this season and have held opponents to just one triple eight times along with a shutout of West Virginia Wesleyan beyond the arc last Saturday.
 
Manzay, a senior forward, recorded her 10^th game with 20-plus and as the Hilltoppers leading scorer netting 26 points in the key win on Wednesday. She ranks third in DII and leads the conference with a 67.4% shooting percentage. Manzay is scoring 19.2 points per game and pulling in 9.6 rebounds, good for second and third in the MEC. Manzay has 10 double-doubles on the season and has scored double digits in all but two games with a pair of 30-point outings. The Texas native is a two-time MEC Player of the Week this season. Manzay went over 500 rebounds in her career on Wednesday sitting at 501 entering the matchup.
 
McCutcheon, a sophomore guard, ranks seventh in DII and second in the MEC averaging 3.19 three pointers per game, while shooting 43.8% from beyond the arc. She is scoring 17.4 points per game and has double-digits in all but one outing. Wednesday's 21 points was her seventh game with 20-plus, she also has hit the 30 mark twice this season. McCutcheon posted nine rebounds in the win at West Virginia State, her second time just missing a double-double this season. She has one double-double on the season off a career-best day of 32 points, 12 rebounds, and eight three pointers at D&E. McCutcheon has multiple three pointers in all but one game. McCutcheon also is second on the team dishing out 3.4 assists per game and has multiple eight straight games including six in the win at Wesleyan.
 
Faulk drained five three pointers on Wednesday for her eighth straight game with multiple threes, while scoring a career-high 23 points. She has scored double digits in 11 of the last 12 outings and is averaging 11.9 points per game. Faulk nets 2.90 threes per game, the fourth most in the MEC and is shooting 39.6% from deep.
 
Reigning first team all-conference player Corinne Thomas returned to the lineup in January after an early season injury and is firing on all cylinders. She has scored double digits in five straight games featuring a 25-point, 7-three-pointer outing at W.Va. Wesleyan last Saturday. Thomas has made multiple threes in 10 of her 11 games played including seven straight. She also has a pair of 5-assist games while recording multiple in four consecutive outings.
 
Sonia Sarda has started each of the last three games and has been filling the stat sheets lately. She has scored double digits in three of the last four games, posted multiple assists in five straight and nine of the last 10 games, and has shown her rebounding presence with games of eight and seven last week. Sarda is scoring 7.7 points per game and is second on the team with 17 steals in her first season on the hilltop as a graduate transfer.
 
Sophomore guard Anna Lucarelli leads the team averaging 3.9 assists per game. She has reached her career high (seven assists) four times this season, the most recent last against Alderson Broaddus on January 18. She also leads the team with 18 steals. Lucarelli has been inactive the past three games.
 
West Liberty is 6-3 at home this season. This is the first Saturday home game since January 7, a loss to No. 2 Glenville State (94-87). WLU is 0-3 on Saturday's inside the ASRC this year. A win would make it four straight for the Hilltoppers, tying their longest win streak of the season.

THE GOLDEN EAGLES
Charleston enters on a three game win streak featuring a last second win over Fairmont State last Saturday (73-70). The Golden Eagles are averaging 73.4 points per game and have the best scoring defense in the MEC letting up 64.4 points a game.
 
The Golden Eagles are ninth in DII and atop the conference shooting 37.3% from three, while ranking third in the MEC with an overall field goal percentage of 43.0%. UC averages a +4.2-rebounding margin with 12.1 offensive boards per game and a +1.57-turnover margin surrendering the second least amount of turnovers per game (17.0) in the MEC.
 
Dakota Reeves leads the conference making 3.24 per game with a 45.9% three-point percentage. The senior guard is averaging 12 points per game and has started all 21 games.
 
The only other Golden Eagle to start all 21 games is Trinity Palacio. Palacio, a 5'4" graduate student guard, leads the team netting 15.8 points per game. She also averages a team-high 3.9 assists per game and has swiped 35 steals this season. Palacio ranks third in the MEC with an 84.1% free throw percentage.
 
Senior guard Markyia McCormick is scoring 12.6 points per game to round out three players averaging double digits for UC.
 
In the last meeting, Charleston went just 2-for-11 in the first quarter but heated up and finished shooting 53.4% from the floor. Palacio (17), McCormick (13), and Clarrissa Francis (12) all scored double digits for the Golden Eagles.
 
On the road this season, UC is 7-4.

THE SERIES
Charleston owns a 32-28 all-time advantage dating to 1981-82. The Golden Eagles have won each of the last two meetings including the MEC Tournament semifinal matchup last season and a 78-58 victory in Charleston on December 7. At home, WLU is 8-1 in the last nine matchups against the Golden Eagles.
 
West Liberty started strong but went cold in the second half dropping its first conference loss of the season in the first meeting this season. The Hilltoppers led by 19 points in the second quarter, but Charleston came back outscoring WLU 50-17 in the second half. Karly McCutcheon scored a game-high 19 points for West Liberty and Arriana Manzay scored 16 points with 7 rebounds. The Golden Eagles outscored West Liberty in the paint 40-20, and West Liberty had 24 turnovers leading to 33 points for Charleston.
 
MEC STANDINGS
Charleston: 2
West Liberty: T3
Full Standings here.
 
NEXT UP
West Liberty will take on its third straight team in the national polls on Wednesday battling the defending national champions Glenville State in Glenville. GSU fended off a late Hilltopper run to defeat WLU 94-87 in the first meeting on January 7 in West Liberty.

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