West Liberty, W.Va. – The West Liberty University women's soccer team will host Wheeling as part of homecoming weekend on Sunday afternoon at the West Family Athletic Complex. The Hilltoppers and Cardinals are set for a 1 p.m. kickoff.

GAME DETAILS

• Location: West Liberty, W.Va. (West Family Athletic Complex)
• Kickoff: 1 P.M.

WEST LIBERTY STORYLINES

• West Liberty enters Sunday's match with a record of 2-3-1 (1-2 MEC) on the season and are fourth in the North Division of the Mountain East Conference standings with three points.
• The Black & Gold saw their two game win streak come to an end on Wednesday evening, falling at (RV) Frostburg State 3-0.
• Amelia Compston, Asia Espiritu, and Morgan Kost are all tied for seventh in the MEC with three goals this season, while Katie Farley, Mia Zecca, and Ellie Cunningham have each found the back of the net twice. Kost is tied for the league lead with two game-winning goals this season.
• Compston is tied for third in the conference with three assists this season, while Farley and Zecca are tied for sixth in the MEC with two assists on the year.
• With three goals and three assists, Compston leads the team with nine points through six matches and ranks third in the MEC. Farley and Zecca both have two goals and two assists for six points and Espiritu and Kost both have three goals for six points to all tie for second on the team in points.
• Zara Wickert started the last four games in goal for West Liberty and has made five appearances on the season, totaling 381 minutes of playing time while making 29 saves on 71 shots faced. Wickert has posted a .879 save percentage and a 0.94 goals against average. She currently ranks second in save percentage and total saves and is third in saves per game in the MEC.
• Following back-to-back shutouts against Notre Dame and Salem last week, Wickert was named the Mountain East Conference Defensive Player of the Week last Monday for the first time in her career. She recorded her second career double digit save game with ten against the Falcons.
• As a team WLU is tied for second in the MEC in goals scored (19) and scoring average (3.167).
• Through five matches West Liberty has held the advantage over their opponents in goals (19-9), assists (13-6), shots-on-goal (49-48), and saves (39-30) while their opponents hold the edge in shots (98-87) and corner kicks (26-24).

WHEELING STORYLINES

• Wheeling enters Sunday's match with a record of 2-4 (0-3 MEC) on the season and is fifth in the North Division of the Mountain East Conference standings.
• The Cardinals have lost three consecutive games in the last week and a half, falling to Fairmont State (1-0), Frostburg State (3-1), and Notre Dame (2-1).
• With four goals, Nyah Smith is tied for the league lead, while Mary DiFonzo is tied for seventh in the conference with three.
• Bailey Walker has tallied the lone assist of the season for the Cardinals, occurring in a loss to Notre Dame.
• Smith has totaled eight points on the season with her four goals, leading WU and tying for fourth in the MEC.
• Olivia Kqira has started five matches in goal while making six appearances on the season, playing 405 minutes for Wheeling. She has made a league-high 38 saves on 83 shots faced, posting a .809 save percentage and a 2.00 goals against average.
• The Cardinals are second in the conference with 42 saves and 36 corner kicks while also tying for second with 94 shot attempts this year.
• Through six matches this season Wheeling has held the advantage in shots (94-92), corner kicks (36-32), and saves (42-34), while the Cardinal's opponents hold the edge in goals (11-9), assists (12-1), and shots-on-goal (53-44).
• Emmanuel Awotula is in his second season as the head coach at Wheeling with a record of 8-15-1 during his time with the Cardinals. Awotula spent the eight previous seasons at Oakland City and Lincoln (Pa.) to make his career record 33-96-3 in his tenth season as a collegiate head coach.

SERIES HISTORY

• West Liberty leads the all-time series 13-7-1.
• The Cardinals extended their win streak to three in the series with a 3-0 win in Wheeling on September 21, 2022, and a 3-2 win in West Liberty on October 29, 2022.