Kyle Cooper

Title

Head Women's Basketball Coach
Email

kyle.cooper@westliberty.edu
Phone

304-336-8320

Veteran head coach Kyle Cooper enters his 10th season at the helm of the West Liberty University women's basketball program in 2026-27, having established a culture centered on competitive excellence, player development and academic achievement. Cooper has guided the Hilltoppers to 121 victories, two 21-win seasons and an NCAA Division II Tournament appearance during his head coaching tenure.

West Liberty finished the 2025-26 season with an 11-19 overall record and a 6-14 mark in Mountain East Conference play. The Hilltoppers advanced to the MEC Tournament quarterfinals after defeating West Virginia State, 78-72, in the opening round before falling to Glenville State, 85-74.

The 2025-26 campaign featured a record-setting performance from guard Olivia Baker, who led NCAA Division II with 88 three-pointers made. Baker averaged 13.8 points per game and earned All-MEC Second Team recognition. She also received College Sports Communicators Academic All-District honors for the second consecutive year and was selected as an Academic All-America finalist.

Senior guard Anna Lucarelli also earned All-MEC Second Team honors after averaging 16.4 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game. A three-time CSC Academic All-District selection, Lucarelli surpassed 300 career assists during her senior campaign while providing leadership and versatility on both ends of the floor.

The Hilltoppers continued their tradition of academic excellence in 2025-26, posting a 3.591 team GPA to earn Women's Basketball Coaches Association Academic Top 25 Special Mention recognition. West Liberty was the highest-ranked Mountain East Conference program recognized by the WBCA. The honor marked the program's 11th WBCA academic recognition since the 2001-02 season and its third consecutive year receiving national recognition. Eight of those recognitions have come during Cooper's nine completed seasons as head coach.

Three Hilltoppers — Baker, Lucarelli and Ana-Isabel Andersson — also earned CSC Academic All-District recognition in 2026, further demonstrating the program's commitment to excellence in the classroom.

Under Cooper's leadership, West Liberty players have earned 18 All-MEC selections or honors and produced eight 1,000-point scorers, continuing a tradition of individual achievement within a team-oriented program. His players have also earned significant regional and national recognition.

Marissa Brown was a two-time All-American and All-Atlantic Region selection, earning 2019 Atlantic Region Player of the Year honors. Audrey Tingle made NCAA Division II history in 2022 by setting the national records for single-season and career triple-doubles. Tingle also earned All-Region recognition and was named the 2022 CoSIDA NCAA Division II Academic All-America Team Member of the Year.

Before becoming head coach, Cooper spent four seasons as lead assistant under legendary West Liberty coach Lynn Ullom, helping the Hilltoppers compile an 82-45 (.646) record that included three 20-win seasons. The program captured consecutive Mountain East Conference championships in 2015 and 2016.

The 2016 team established a school record with a 29-5 record, spent the entire season ranked in the USA Today Top 25 and advanced to the NCAA Division II Atlantic Region championship game, reaching the program's first NCAA Sweet 16. West Liberty finished the season ranked No. 18 nationally. Cooper was part of that coaching staff as an assistant.

Cooper began his coaching career at West Virginia University, serving as assistant head manager and basketball camp counselor for Coach John Beilein's men's teams that reached the Elite Eight in 2005 and the Sweet 16 in 2006.

From 2007 to 2010, Cooper worked with the WVU women's basketball program as head student manager and graduate assistant under Coach Mike Carey. During his four seasons with the Mountaineers, the program made four consecutive postseason appearances, including three NCAA Tournament bids and a Women's National Invitation Tournament appearance.

In 2010, Cooper became Director of Women's Basketball Operations at Ohio University under Coach Semeka Randall. He later joined Wheeling Jesuit University as an assistant coach, spending two seasons there before returning to West Liberty as a member of Ullom's staff.

A native of Waterford, Pennsylvania, Cooper graduated summa cum laude from West Virginia University in 2008 with dual bachelor's degrees in Sport Management and Athletic Coaching Education and a minor in Business Administration. He earned his master's degree in Educational Leadership, with a focus on Higher Education, from WVU in 2010.

Cooper and his wife, Katie, reside in Wheeling, West Virginia, with their two children, Brody and Cali.

HEAD COACHING RECORD
Season	Team	Overall	Pct.	Conference	Pct.	Conference Finish	Postseason
West Liberty Hilltoppers (MEC)
2017-18	West Liberty	13-16	.448	12-10	.545	4th	MEC Tournament Quarterfinals
2018-19	West Liberty	21-10	.677	17-5	.773	T-3rd	MEC Tournament Semifinals / NCAA Division II Tournament First Round
2019-20	West Liberty	12-17	.414	8-14	.364	8th	MEC Tournament First Round
2020-21	West Liberty	8-9	.471	8-8	.500	T-2nd (North Division)	MEC Tournament Quarterfinals
2021-22	West Liberty	21-9	.700	15-7	.682	3rd	MEC Tournament Semifinals
2022-23	West Liberty	17-12	.586	15-7	.682	5th	MEC Tournament Quarterfinals
2023-24	West Liberty	9-20	.310	6-14	.300	8th	MEC Tournament Quarterfinals
2024-25	West Liberty	9-20	.310	6-14	.300	10th	MEC Tournament Quarterfinals
2025-26	West Liberty	11-19	.366	6-14	.330	9th	MEC Tournament Quarterfinals
West Liberty (9 Seasons):		121-131	.480	93-93	.500