Wheeling, W. Va. - With no time left in Saturday's game against West Virginia Wesleyan, the Wheeling University Women's Basketball team hit a buzzer beating shot for their second Mountain East Conference (MEC) win of the season. On Wednesday, they look to bring some of that momentum back to the floor as they host West Virginia State, who finished tied for 7th in this week's Atlantic Regional Rankings.
Freshman Shamia Strayhorn is the one who lifted her team to victory last time out, hitting a buzzer beating three-point shot from just around half court. The Cardinals got the ball back with five seconds left on the clock and got the ball in Strayhorn's hands. She launched the ball towards the net, and the shot ended up falling through the net. It gave the Cardinals a 52-51 victory and moved them into a tie for fifth place in the MEC with a record of 2-2 in conference play. It was a great team win for the Cardinals, as they battled through a defensive game to pull out the victory.
Although Strayhorn was the one who hit the winning shot, it was junior Lauren Calhoun who led the team on both sides of the ball. Calhoun scored 20 points on the night, just two shy of her season-high, and grabbed a season-high 23 rebounds in the winning effort. She shot an impressive 64.2% from the floor, and earned the MEC's Women's Basketball Player of the Week for her efforts. Calhoun was one of two Cardinals to finish the day in double figures as fellow junior Jacqui Hinesmon finished the day with 10 points.
As a team, Wheeling played their best defensive game of the season, holding their opponent to a season-low 51 points. In the first two quarters, the Bobcats scored just 12 points each, and they never scored more than 14 points in any quarter during the game. For Wheeling, it was a confidence booster, showing they can not only go point-for-point with a team, like they did against Alderson Broaddus a few weeks ago, but that they can also play a defensive game and pull out a win at the end when they need to.
In terms of their positioning in the conference, Wheeling is off to a good start, sitting in a three-way tie with Concord and the University of Charleston for fifth place in the standings. They currently sit one a half game ahead of their Wednesday night opponent, as the Yellow Jackets sit at 5-2 overall, but just 1-2 in MEC play. It is a chance for the Cardinals to keep their momentum going while showing that they can compete against some of the best that the MEC has to offer. West Virginia State enters the game tied for seventh in the D2SIDA Atlantic Regional rankings, and a win for Wheeling could get them some more attention around the conference.
The Match-up
Since the 2002 season, Wheeling and West Virginia State have matched up 28 times, with Wheeling holding the advantage with a record of 15-13 in those games. Whichever team has been the home team has had the advantage in the series, with Wheeling having a record of 9-4 on their home court and 6-8 when they play in Institute, West Virginia. It has been a rather high scoring series as of late, with each team scoring at least 73 points in each of the last three games.
The last game between the two teams was the highest scoring to date, as Wheeling won in a shootout 104-99. The teams 20 or more points in all but one quarter, and West Virginia State led the game with 33 fourth quarter points. However, a 28-point effort by former Cardinal Lilly Ritz and a 22 point effort from Shanley Woods was enough to lift the team to victory.
The Details
Tip-off for Wednesday night's game is scheduled for 5:30 pm inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
