West Liberty, W. Va. - It came down to the final game of the regular season for the Wheeling University Women's Soccer team (5-12-1, 3-10-1) as they headed up Route 88 for "The Battle for Wheeling." There was a flurry of goals in the first four minutes of play, but in the end it wasn't enough for the Cardinals as they fell to West Liberty 2-1. With the loss, the Cardinals claimed the #4 seed in the Mountain East Conference (MEC) North Division and will hit the road to face the #1 seed from the MEC South Charleston in the 2024 MEC Tournament. 

With the #3 seed in the MEC North on the line, both teams were fired up and the offenses were put on display early. West Liberty would attempt a corner kick at the 1:45 mark, and 25 seconds later, Morgan Stauver would get them on the board to make it 1-0 Hilltoppers. They tried to put together an immediate response two minutes later, but Olivia Kqira would make the stop and keep it a 1-0 game. Kqira would then send the ball back up field to the offense, and Nyah Smith would take the ball near midfield. She made her move down the far side of the field, and beat the Hilltopper defense to find the net and tie the game at 1-1. There were three shots taken over the first four minutes of play, and both defenses would lock down for the rest of the half. 

Wheeling would hold the shot advantage in the first half, outshooting the Hilltoppers 8-3 in the first 45 minutes, and Wheeling would make a push late in the half. In the 35th minute Olivia Hoban would take a shot towards the bottom left corner of the net and West Liberty's Cianna Butera would make the save. Hoban would get the ricochet and took another shot 19 seconds later, but Butera would deny her once again. West Liberty took their shot at the lead three minutes later as Morgan Kost took a shot, but Kqira's second save of the half kept it tied at 1-1. Wheeling would wake one more push in the 39th minute, this time courtesy of Maira Alevato, but another Butera save would end the half and the teams headed into the locker room with the score sitting even at 1-1. 

With seeding at stake, the push was on as both teams were looking for a crucial win heading into the MEC Tournament. West Liberty took the first shot of the new half in the 46th minute, and another Kqira save would keep it tied at 1-1. Like the first half, the shots came fast and furious as Wheeling's Lily Hanna and West Liberty's Isabella Aperfine each took shots in the first four minutes, with both missing net. Hanna would come back 10 minutes later, putting a shot on net, but Butera would make the save and it remained 1-1. It would be a big half for Kqira, who made four of her six saves, as her offense tried to reward her efforts. Mary DiFonzo nearly gave the Cardinals the lead in the 84th minute, but Butera made the save to keep it tied. In the 85th minute, the Hilltoppers officially broke through as Mia Zecca would score and the Cardinals would fall 2-1. 

Leading the way for the Cardinals was sophomore Nyah Smith, who got the Cardinals on the board early with her lone goal of the game. Smith would take two shots on the night, putting both on net, while she got on the board for the fourth time this season. The Cardinal's leading shot taker was Mary DiFonzo, who finished with four shots and one on net, while Lily Hanna added three shots, with one on net. Olivia Kqira made her first start in net since suffering an injury against West Virginia Wesleyan, and made six saves on eight shots faced in the effort. With the loss, the Cardinals are now locked into the #4 seed in the MEC North Division and will hit the road to face #1 Charleston in the first round of the MEC tournament. 

The Wheeling University Women's Soccer team returns to action on Sunday, November 10th, when they hit the road to face #1 Charleston in the MEC Semifinals, with kick-off time to be determined.