Wednesday night marks the 2021-22 men's and women's basketball home openers.  Head Coach Mike Drahos's women's squad will take on DII SIDA Atlantic Region No. 10 West Virginia State at 5:30 p.m. in the Sports Center, before Head Coach Bob Rukavina's Mountain Cat men host 14^th-ranked West Liberty at 7:30 p.m.
 
      Ninth-year Coach Drahos' Pitt-Johnstown women's squad split a pair of games to open the season at last weekend's Frostburg State (MD) Jim Crawley Conference Challenge.  On Friday, Pitt-Johnstown earned a 60-55 win over the hosts.  Peyton Alazaus' scored a game-high 26 points, including 6-12 shooting from behind the 3-point line, in her collegiate debut, while Cassidy Crawford added 17 points and a team-high nine rebounds in her Mountain Cat debut.  On Saturday, Pitt-Johnstown suffered a 76-57 loss to Davis & Elkins (WV).  Olivia Fasick scored 21 points, and Makalyn Clapper and Ashley Norling chipped-in nine points apiece.
      West Virginia State, 2-0 and tied for 10^th in this week's DII SIDA Atlantic Region Poll under sixth-year Coach Charles Marshall, hosted the Atlantic Region Tip-Off Challenge last weekend and came away with a 69-65 win over Fayetteville State (NC) in Saturday's opener, before defeating Slippery Rock, 84-71, on Sunday.  Hannah Shriver's double-double of 20 points and 12 rebounds and Charity Shears' 16 points led the Yellow Jackets against Fayetteville State.  Shears then added a game-high 23 points, while Shriver and Shelby Harmeyer scored 14 and 13 points, respectively in the victory over the Rock.
      Pitt-Johnstown and West Virginia State first met in 2005, but the teams have not played since 2013. Pitt-Johnstown holds an 8-3 advantage in the series that saw most games being played while being members of the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC).  In the last meeting on January 21, 2013, the Mountain Cats came away with a 75-64 victory in Institute, W.Va. behind Kaitlynn Fratz's career-high 34 points and Rachel Johnson's double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds. Kashauna Cook's 16 points and game-high 14 rebounds paced three Yellow Jackets who scored in double figures.
      Pitt-Johnstown will host a non-conference game against Bloomsburg on Saturday at 3 p.m. in the Sports Center, before visiting Glenville State (WV) for a non-conference game on November 29.
 
 
     Coach Rukavina's (33^rd season), ranked sixth in the D2SIDA Atlantic Region Rankings, opened the 2021-22 season with a pair of wins at last weekend's Indiana (PA) IRMC/Hilton Garden Inn Classic.  PSAC West Defensive Player of the Week John Paul Kromka scored a game-high 26 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, and blocked five shots to lead four Pitt-Johnstown double-figure scorers in a 96-91, overtime victory over Concord (WV) on Friday.  Drew Magestro (19 pts.), Fred Mulbah (16 pts., 11 rebs., 8 assts.), and Caiden Landis (15 pts., 9 rebs.) also scored in double figures.  On Saturday, Kromka collected 15 points, a game-high 14 rebounds, and three more blocks in a 77-49 win over West Virginia Wesleyan.  Joe Batt had 15 points, Ryan Smith scored 14 points, and Landis had 11 points.
    With his efforts last weekend, Kromka moved into 15^th-place on the Pitt-Johnstown All-Time Rebounding List with 513.  He also enters the game 41 points shy of becoming Pitt-Johnstown's 32^nd 1,000-point scorer, while Fred Mulbah ranks 10^th on the Mountain Cat All-Time Assists List with 364 assists.
     Fifth-year Head Coach Ben Howlett's No. 14-ranked West Liberty Hilltoppers are 2-0 after a 104-82 win over Winston-Salem State (NC) and a 108-93 win over East Stroudsburg at last weekend's West Liberty Atlantic Region Crossover.  Pat Robinson's 22 points and six rebounds led five Hilltoppers who scored in double figures on Friday, before Robinson added 30 points and Bryce Butler scored 20 points in Saturday's win over the warriors.
     West Liberty holds a 10-3 advantage in the series that dates back to the 2005 season.  Most matchups came while both schools were members of the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC), including the last on Feb. 28, 2013 when the Hilltoppers dealt the Mountain Cats a 78-66 setback in the WVIAC Tournament Quarterfinals.  Jordan Miller (19 points), Nick Novak (16 points), and Andrew Cressler (15 points) all scored in double figures for Pitt-Johnstown, while Shawn Dyer finished with a game-high 21 points and Alex Falk and Bubby Goodwin each added 14 points to pace West Liberty.
    The Mountain Cats will take on Salem (WV) and Virginia State at the IUP Thanksgiving Classic on Nov. 26-27, before opening PSAC-Crossover play with road games at West Chester on Dec. 3 and at Millersville on Dec. 4.  Pitt-Johnstown returns home to begin a three-game home stand beginning with Shepherd (WV) on Dec. 14.