BUCKHANNON, W.Va. (Feb. 23) – Despite junior
Khira Burton (Cincinnati, Ohio/Walnut Hills) putting up 30 points for the Cardinals, the Wheeling Jesuit University women's basketball team was bested 61-59 by West Virginia Wesleyan in a Mountain East Conference (MEC) clash on Saturday afternoon.
The loss drops the Cardinals to 4-22 overall and 2-18 in the MEC, while West Virginia Wesleyan moves to 6-17 overall and 6-13 in league play.
Burton recorded her second-highest scoring tally of her career, outscoring all other players by 17 points or more. This marks her 20th game in double-figures and sixth game with over 20 points. Senior
Chenelle Moore (Westerville, Ohio/Westerville South) led both teams with 11 rebounds.
The Cardinals traded blows with the Bobcats in the opening quarter. Both teams claimed the lead several times, but a jump shot by Burton with eight seconds on the clock tied the game at 8-8.
A layup by freshman
Peyton McCord (Mt. Vernon, Ohio/Mt. Vernon) after three minutes without a point being scored in the second quarter gave the Cardinals some momentum. Burton posted 13 points in the second quarter which increased their advantage. A layup by sophomore
Rya Nelson (Waldorf, Md./Thomas Stone High) followed by two free throws converted by junior Taliah Cashwall (South Charleston, W.Va./South Charleston) in the last two minutes of play put WJU up by 12. The Bobcats answered with two field goals, but the Cardinals stayed up 37-29 going into halftime.
West Virginia Wesleyan held the Cardinals to 10 points in the third quarter, going on an 8-2 run in the final four minutes. The Bobcats were able to inch their way closer to the Cardinals, but WJU outlasted them 47-43.
The Cardinals took initiative in the fourth quarter, starting it off with a layup by Moore. The Bobcats answered with a 14-2 run, putting them ahead 57-51 with two and a half minutes left in the game. Burton helped WJU clawed back within two, scoring the team's last eight points. However, the Bobcats kept their lead to edge out Wheeling Jesuit in the end.
West Virginia Wesleyan's 20 points off turnovers and 32 bench points were difference makers in the contest.
Wheeling Jesuit comes back to the McDonough Center to face Urbana in another MEC matchup on Wednesday, February 27 at 5:30 p.m.
