Buckhannon, W. Va. - On Saturday, the Wheeling University Women's Soccer (5-11-1, 5-9-1)  entered play with hopes of clinching their first ever MEC playoff berth. However, that will have to wait another game as the Cardinals fell to West Virginia Wesleyan 5-2. Wheeling got the lead early but they were unable to stop the high-powered Bobcats offense, as they set up a big showdown in "The Battle for Wheeling" this Saturday..

Through the first 17 minutes of the game West Virginia Wesleyan controlled the ball taking four of the first six shots. Wheeling's two shots came courtesy of Braydenn Porter and Talynn DeBartolo but both were saved by the Bobcats goalkeeper. However, in the game's 17th minute Mary DiFonzo brought the ball up field and set up the offense. She found an open Bailey Walker in front of the net and got her the ball. Walker would not disappoint as she snuck it past the keeper for her first collegiate goal to give Wheeling a 1-0 lead. It was a big moment for Walker and gave Wheeling some much-needed momentum in the early going.

Wheeling would hold the lead for the next 27 minutes until West Virginia Wesleyan got going. Mikayla Yarwood had made five big saves in the early going but in the 34th minute she was unable to stop the bobcat shot as they tied the game at 1-1. The goal shifted the momentum back to West Virginia Wesleyan and, although they did not score another goal in the half It set them up for later in the game. The teams went into half time with that same 1-1 score as Wheeling would try again to get on the board. They're offense has shown an ability to come out strong and they were looking to channel that in the second half.

After a bit of a lull to start the second half The Cardinals would do just that as Kenadee Burgoyne got the ball in the 59th minute and made some moves to get up the field. She found the net for her first goal of the game and gave wheeling a 2-1 lead. With the lead on their side wheeling just had to hold On for the games final 31 minutes to seal their playoff fate. However, West Virginia Wesleyan had other plans as in the 71st minute they notched back-to-back goals to take a 3-2 lead. The Bobcats persistence at shooting the ball early finally paid off as they added on two more goals over the game's final 20 minutes and ended up winning 5-2. The Cardinals would only get off one more shot during that time as Bailey Walker put a shot on net but it was saved as the Cardinals dropped to 5-9-1 in MEC play.

Kenadee Burgoyne led the Cardinals taking four shots, three of which on goal, and ending with a goal. The other goal came courtesy of Bailey Walker, the first of her collegiate career, and she finished with two shots both on goal. Talynn DeBartolo added two shots, one on goal, and Braden Porter added three shots, two on goal. With the loss it sets up a big showdown on Saturday as Wheeling gets set to take on their rival West Liberty. In order to clinch their spot in the MEC playoffs, Wheeling just has to make sure that they don't lose by more than three goals. A wheeling loss would tie the two teams in the conference standings, but Wheeling has a tiebreaker with a +3 gold differential. As long as the Cardinals do not lose by three goals or more they will hold on to their number four seed heading into the playoffs.

The Wheeling University Women's Soccer team returns to action on Saturday, October 29th, when they take on West Liberty with kickoff at 3:30 p.m.