Behind a three-game winning streak, Terence McCutcheon's Catawba Indians enter Saturday's game at UVA Wise receiving votes in both the D2SIDA and WBCA Polls. Catawba sits atop the South Atlantic Conference Piedmont Division with a 6-1 league mark after recently dismantling previously unbeaten Lenoir-Rhyne 75-58 in Salisbury. The Indians bring one of the nation's top guards to the Prior Center in senior Lyrick Thorne. Thorne ranks second in the SAC in scoring at 19.3 points per game while leading the league and ranking 10th nationally in steals at 3.1 a contest. The 5-foot-6 Thorne has made a living at the charity stripe where she has attempted the most free throws in the league with 79. As a team, Catawba ranks top 20 nationally in free throw attempts per game (22.3), turnover margin (+7.3), and steals per game (13.1)

Like Catawba, UVA Wise enters the game on a three-game winning streak. Last time out, Katlin Burger recorded her second consecutive double-double while scoring over 20 points for the third straight game with a 23-point, 11-rebound performance in a 75-55 win at Mars Hill. Nia Vanzant added 15 points while Josie Hester cashed in a trio of 3-pointers en route to 13 points. Seniors Caitlyn Ross and Leah Kestner also played key roles in the win. Ross dished out 12 assists with Kestner grabbing a season-best 10 rebounds. The 12-assist performance allowed Ross to regain the NCAA Division II lead in assists with 126 and assists per game at 7.9. While the offense was clicking against the Lions, it was the defense that galvanized a fourth-quarter run. UVA Wise held Mars Hill to 2-of-14 shooting in the final period as the team outscored the hosts 22-to-8 in the 10-minute stanza. In a Cavalier victory over the Indians last season, Vanzant was a perfect 8-for-8 from the field as she netted 19 points. In her career, the guard has been lethal against Catawba averaging 18 points per game.