INSTITUTE, W.Va. – West Virginia State remained at the top of the MEC with a 3-2 victory over West Liberty at Lakin-Ray Field at Dickerson Stadium on Sunday afternoon. In a tightly contested matchup, West Virginia State held off a late push by West Liberty to secure a 3–2 victory. The win improves WVSU's record to 8–3, 8–1 in the Mountain East, while West Liberty falls to 1–10, 0-8 in the MEC.

Maria Alejandra Hernandez Diaz, Ece Lea Evin, and Leila Karam all netted goals for State.

West Virginia State struck first in the 17th minute when Diaz broke through and sent a shot past the keeper for a 1–0 lead.WVSU continued to press and, in the 36th minute, Evin doubled the advantage with an assist from Sharon Freire Omonigho. Just before that goal, West Liberty's Emma Lieu drew a yellow card. 

WVSU largely controlled the tempo in the first half, firing 15 shots and earned 7 corners compared to West Liberty's 2 shots in that period. The Hilltoppers failed to earn a corner kick in the half. 

West Liberty got on the board in the 65th minute when Maya Taggart converted off assists from Corinne Westbrook and Perla Bäckberg, narrowing the deficit to 2–1. WVSU had a chance to extend their lead when Karam was awarded a penalty at 70:52, but the attempt was saved by Cianna Butera. 

In the 79th minute, WVSU struck again: Karam scored her goal with help from Aika Tobaru and Hannah Aneley Nuñez Perreira, restoring a two-goal cushion at 3–1. 

West Liberty refused to go quietly. In the final minute, Taggart once more breached the WVSU defense, pulling the final score to 3–2 and setting up a frantic finish. WVSU goalkeeper Poppy Bastock made several crucial saves down the stretch to preserve the win.

WVSU travels to Bobcat Stadium Wednesday Oct, 15th at 4:30 p.m. to continue their winning streak against the Frostburg State Bobcats.