SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. (Nov. 10) – The Wheeling University women's basketball team held on for a 68-64 win over East Stroudsburg Saturday afternoon on the final day of the Mountain East Conference (MEC) vs. Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Challenge hosted by Shippensburg University.
 
The Cardinals improve to 1-1 overall, while the Warriors fall to 1-1 on the season.
 
Senior guard Taliah Cashwell (South Charleston, W.Va./South Charleston) led the team with 23 points on 7-of-11 shooting. She made all four of her three-point attempts and added a trio of rebounds. 
 
Sophomore forward Lilly Ritz (Cambridge, Ohio/Cambridge) registered a double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds (six offensive), while senior guard Khira Burton (Cincinnati, Ohio/Walnut Hills) added 16 points in the win.
 
The score was tied at 10 seven minutes into the game, before the Cardinals went on a 7-2 spurt to close out the first quarter and take a 17-12 lead.
 
Wheeling led 24-16 two minutes into the second quarter when East Stroudsburg began to make a run. The Warriors closed the gap to two, 26-24, with 6:22 to play until halftime. The Cardinals responded with their best stretch of the night. The team scored 11-straight points to build up a 37-24 lead at the 2:58-mark of the second quarter. Wheeling eventually headed into the locker rooms with a 40-26 lead when Cashwell knocked down a trey in the final 30 seconds of the half.
 
East Stroudsburg cut into the deficit in the third quarter and got as close as four, 50-46, in the final minute of the period. Cashwell once again converted from long range in the final 30 seconds of the quarter to help Wheeling take a seven-point lead into the final period.
 
The Cardinals maintained the lead, but a blocked shot that led to a fast break layup with 3:46 to play in the game brought the Warriors all the back to within one, 60-59. Wheeling answered back with consecutive baskets by Ritz to rebuild the lead to five with just over two minutes left on the clock.
 
East Stroudsburg came back within one point, 65-64, with 39 seconds to play in the game. Burton missed a jump shot to try and extend the lead, but the Cardinals got the ball back on the rebound out-of-bounds.
 
After Ritz split a pair of shots at the free-throw line, the Warriors missed a potential game-tying jumper on their end of the court. The Cardinals got the ball back and Cashwell knocked down both free throws to help the team secure the win.
 
Wheeling shot 47 percent from the field (25-of-56) and was 5-of-10 from beyond the arc. The Cardinals also held a 36-to-34 edge on the glass.
 
Tiffany Lapotsky led East Stroudsburg with 20 points and nine boards in the loss.
 
Wheeling continues its road trip to open the season when it travels to Pitt.-Johnstown for a non-conference game on Saturday, November 16 at 2 p.m.