West Liberty University Women's Basketball

Veteran head coach Kyle Cooper enters his ninth season at the helm of the West Liberty University women’s basketball program, having established a winning culture marked by 110 career victories, two 21-win seasons, and an NCAA Division II Tournament appearance. The 2024-25 season was highlighted by the standout performance of junior guard Bailee Smith, who earned First Team All-Mountain East Conference honors. A former MEC Freshman of the Year, Smith ranked second in the conference in three-point field goals made (67) and third in threes per game (2.4). She also finished fifth in MEC scoring, averaging 15.2 points per game. Smith enters the 2025-26 season ranked 12th on WLU’s all-time scoring list with 1,245 career points. As a team, the Hilltoppers led the MEC in three-point shooting percentage, hitting 34-percent of their shots per game while also averaging 9.2 three-point field goals per contest. Under Cooper’s leadership, Hilltopper players have earned 16 All-MEC honors and produced eight 1,000-point scorers, a reflection of the program’s balance of individual development and team success. His players have also garnered 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 history in 2022, setting NCAA Division II records for single-season and career triple-doubles, while also earning All-Region honors and being named the 2022 CoSIDA NCAA Division II Academic All-America Team Member of the Year. Cooper’s teams have also excelled academically. The 2024-25 squad ranked No. 19 nationally in the WBCA Academic Top 25, marking the seventh time his program has earned a spot on the national academic rankings. Before taking over as head coach, Cooper spent four seasons as lead assistant under legendary head coach Lynn Ullom, helping the program to an 82-45 (.646) record, including three 20-win campaigns. That run featured back-to-back MEC championships in 2015 and 2016. The 2016 team set a school record with a 29-5 mark, spent the entire season ranked in the USA Today Top 25, and advanced to the first NCAA “Sweet 16” in program history, finishing at No. 18 nationally. Cooper began his coaching journey at West Virginia University, serving as assistant head manager and basketball camp counselor for Coach John Beilein’s Elite Eight and Sweet 16 teams in 2005 and 2006. From 2007 to 2010, he worked with the WVU women’s basketball program as head student manager and graduate assistant under Coach Mike Carey, contributing to four consecutive postseason appearances, including three NCAA Tournament bids and a WNIT run. In 2010, Cooper became Director of Women’s Basketball Operations at Ohio University under Coach Semeka Randall. He then joined Wheeling Jesuit University as an assistant coach, spending two seasons there before moving on to West Liberty. A Waterford, Pennsylvania native, Cooper graduated summa cum laude from West Virginia University in 2008 with dual bachelor’s degrees in Sport Management and Athletic Coaching Education, along with a minor in Business Administration. He earned his master’s degree in Educational Leadership with a focus on Higher Education from WVU in 2010. Kyle and his wife, Katie Cooper, are proud members of the West Liberty University family. Katie serves as the university’s Vice President for Student Affairs & Enrollment Management. They reside in Wellsburg, 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 West Liberty (8 Seasons): 110-112 .495 87-79 .524    

Associate head coach Cassie Seth Begins her ninth season with the West Liberty women's basketball program as a key member of Kyle Cooper's staff. In addition to her coaching duties, Seth also serves as the university's Senior Woman Administrator (SWA) as well as the Athletics Diversity and Inclusion Deisgnee (ADID).  In her role as the SWA, she draws on her extensive playing, coaching, and administrative experience at multiple institutions to serve as a visible presence as a female role model on the WLU athletics administration staff, allowing her to be a diverse point of conduct for the student-athletes and staff to voice issues or concerns. As the ADID, she is West Liberty's primary contact and conduit for sharing diversity and inclusion-related information from the NCAA and Mountain East Conference with the University's nearly 500 student-athletes.    Highlights of Seth’s first eight seasons on the hilltop include a pair of 21-win campaigns and a 2018-19 NCAA Tournament bid. The Hilltoppers secured their third winning season and second consecutive 15-win conference record a year ago as the Black & Gold ended the 2022-23 season 17-12 overall, and 15-7 in the Mountain East Conference. WLU finished fifth in the league regular season standings before falling to Fairmont State in the MEC Tournament quarterfinals.   West Liberty’s high-powered offense once again ranked top-10 nationally in five statistical categories, ranking second in NCAA Division II in assists per game and 3-point field goal percentage. The Hilltoppers also cracked the top-10 in 3-point field goals per game, scoring offense, and field goal percentage. The 2022-23 season also featured a pair of athletes earning all-conference recognition as Arriana Manzay was named First Team All-MEC and Karly McCutcheon was named Second Team All-MEC.   Seth came to West Liberty off a successful season as an assistant coach at NCAA Division III Baldwin-Wallace University. Working for Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame head coach Cheri Harrer, Seth helped lead the Yellow Jackets to a 21-5 record and a runner-up finish in the Ohio Athletic Conference.   Before breaking into the collegiate ranks at Baldwin-Wallace, Seth spent seven years as a high school head coach in the Cleveland area. Seth guided Medina Highland to its first-ever OHSAA Division I tournament win before moving on to Parma High School, where she was the first coach in more than two decades to post double-digit wins in consecutive seasons.   During her time as a high school coach, Seth developed 32 all-conference players, five all-district selections and one conference player of the year. She was chosen to coach in the 2010 Medina County All-Star Game and the 2016 Greater Cleveland Basketball Coaches Association (GCBCA) All-Star Game.   The Waterford, Pa. native was a four-year standout and 1,000-point scorer during her playing days at Mercyhurst (Pa.). A three-year captain and All-GLIAC honoree, she finished her career ranked among the Lakers’ Top 10 all-time in points and steals. Just as successful in the classroom, Seth was a two-time Dean's List student and earned a spot on the GLIAC’s All-Academic Team.   She holds a bachelor's degree in Business with a concentration in Sport Business Management from Mercyhurst along with a master's degree in Sports Administration from Valparaiso (Ind.). Seth also holds a National Council on Strength & Fitness Certified Strength Coach (NCSF-CSC) credential and is a certified dotFIT fitness professional.   Seth resides in Steubenville, Ohio with her wife, Stephanie and their son Landon.