WHEELING — Seventh-seeded Frostburg State used an impressive 26-0 run over the final three minutes of the second quarter and the first 3:30 of the third period to wipe out a six-point deficit and roll to a 78-68 victory over 10th-seeded Point Park here Wednesday afternoon in the opening round of the annual Mountain East Conference Women’s Basketball Tournament at WesBanco Arena.

The win improved Frostburg to 15-14 overall and puts the Bobcats in Thursday’s quarterfinals against second-seeded West Virginia Wesleyan (18-6) at noon.

Point Park finished its season at 8-19.

Trailing 31-25 with 3:45 to play in the second quarter, the Bobcats went to work. Led by Sophie Nichols and Laekyn Flynn, Frostburg closed the first half with a 14-0 spurt to take a 39-31 lead into the locker room.

Nichols finished the game with 16 points, while Flynn added 10. Together they combined for 10 of the Bobcats’ 14 points on the game-changing second-quarter burst.

In the third quarter the Bobcats’ Julie Spinelli drained a 3-pointer on her team’s first possession to ignite a 12-0 run which pushed Frostburg’s lead to 20 at 51-31. Spinelli, who shook off an early ankle injury in the game, scored seven of her team’s 12 points during that span.

The Pioneers went a total of 8:52 in the contest without scoring between the end of the second quarter and the midway point of the third. Offensive lulls have been a problem for Point Park all season and unfortunately it was again Wednesday afternoon.

The Pioneers, who lost for the third time this season to Frostburg, were led offensively by Alexis Giles’ game-high 22 points. Point Park also got 13 points from both Camille Fultz and Lucia Hervia and 12 points from Elizabeth Boyd.

West Liberty 78

West Virginia State 72

WHEELING — It certainly wasn’t easy but for the first time since 2022 West Liberty’s women’s basketball team garnered a victory in the annual Mountain East Conference Tournament here Wednesday afternoon at WesBanco Arena.

The ninth-seeded Hilltoppers held off a furious fourth-quarter rally by eighth-seeded West Virginia State to record a hard-fought 78-72 win.

The victory improved West Liberty to 11-18 on the year and puts the Hilltoppers in Thursday’s quarterfinals against top-seeded Glenville State at 6 p.m.

Thirty minutes into Wednesday’s contest West Liberty appeared in control leading State by 13 with 10 minutes to play. The Yellow Jackets, however, had other plans. State opened the final quarter with a quick 10-0 run in a span of just 2:18 to close the Hilltoppers’ lead to a mere three points at 56-53.

On this day, though, West Liberty had the answers and those answers in the fourth quarter were mostly in the form of free throws. The Yellow Jackets put West Liberty at the foul line 26 times in the game’s final 7:20 and the Hilltoppers made good on 18 of those 26 chances to help keep State at bay. West Liberty only made two field goals in the final quarter.

The catalyst for the Hilltoppers in the fourth quarter was senior guard Anna Lucarelli who scored 10 of the her team’s final 22 points, including an 8-of-10 showing at the line in the fourth quarter. Lucarelli finished with 20 points and eight rebounds.

Joining Lucarelli in double figures for West Liberty were Reagan Vinskovich, Ana-Isabel Andersson and Kaleigh Norrus. Vinskovich, who has only played in 17 games this season, made a huge impact Wednesday. She finished with a game-high 24 points and eight rebounds, while Andersson chipped in 15 points and Norris added 10.

West Virginia State, which finishes its season at 12-16, was led by Baylee Goins’ 23 points and six boards. Goins scored 14 of her points in the final two quarters, including 10 in the fourth.

The Yellow Jackets also got 21 points and seven rebounds from Imani Hickman, 14 points and eight boards from Emily Anthony and 11 points from Latisha Parris. Hickman, Anthony and Goins all fouled out of the game in the fourth quarter.

The loss marks the first time since 2021 that West Virginia State has not made it to the tournament quarterfinals.