Led by the duo of Sydney Clayton and Kayla Tibbs, Shepherd will look to get back in the Mountain East Conference with a win Saturday at UVa-Wise. Clayton (17.8 ppg) and Tibbs (17.5 ppg) combine to score over 50 percent of the Rams points. Clayton, the inside portion of the tandem is shooting a team-high 61.6 percent from the field. The number ranks third in the league while Clayton's 17.8 points per game ranks seventh in the league. The 5-foot-11 forward is adding 7.5 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per contest. On the outside, Tibbs has made a league best 48.4 percent of her 3-point attempts while ranking second in the league in made 3-pointers with 44. The guard ranks eighth in the league in scoring and has already compiled six games of at least four made 3-pointers. Shepherd's issue this season has been on the defensive end. The Rams are allowing 77.2 points per game which ranks seventh in the conference; opponents are shooting a league-high 36.9 percent from beyond the 3-point line against Shepherd. Overall, the Rams are allowing 7.2 made 3-pointers per game. Coach Jenna Eckleberry's team may have some difficulty keeping UVa-Wise off the glass; Shepherd is -3.8 in rebounding margin on the season while UVa-Wise is +2.4 in the category.

First-year coach Jamie Cluesman has her team off to a 4-3 start in league and with a win Saturday the program can improve to 5-3 in conference play for just the second time since the program became a NCAA Division II institution. Cluesman will see a familiar foe in the Shepherd Rams, the coach served as an assistant with the Rams over the last four seasons, all with current Shepherd coach Jenna Eckleberry. UVa-Wise has got off to its good start in league play behind strong post play. Most recently, sophomore Ada Stanley recorded a career-high 26 points to propel the Cavaliers to a come from behind 76-61 win over Fairmont State Thursday. It marked the second consecutive game a post player recorded at least 25 points; Cynita Webb scored a career-high 25 points on Monday at Lincoln Memorial University. UVa-Wise used a full court press to flip the script in the second half Thursday by forcing 10 turnovers and holding Fairmont State without a 3-point basket in the final 20 minutes of play.  Following Saturday, the Cavaliers will play five of their next six games on the road.