Strayhorn's 20-Point Effort Leads Women's Basketball to Season Opening Win
Wheeling, W. Va. - The Wheeling University Women's Basketball team (1-0, 0-0) opened the 2023-2024 season with some new faces but the same expectations as they opened the season inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center. The offense started out strong as they took down Edinboro 74-61 to win their season opener for the second year in a row. It was a big day for junior Shamia Strayhorn, as she put up a team-high 20 to get her season started off strong.
After the Fighting Scots scored the first three points of the afternoon, the Cardinals going when Strayhorn hit a pair of free throws to start the night. It started a 15-0 run for the Cardinals as they turned a 3-0 deficit into a 15-3 Cardinal lead as they took charge early. Rachel Wilson led the run with four points while four different Cardinals got on the board as Wheeling battled their way out front. It was a quarter of runs as Edinboro responded with eight consecutive points as they got back into it to make it 15-11 with 2:02 left in the quarter. The Cardinals would get back on the horse with a pair of free throws from Bryana Henderson and after one quarter the Cardinals found themselves in front 21-13.
As they headed into the second quarter, the Fighting Scots hit a pair of free throws before Briarley Rogers hit a three-pointer to get Wheeling back in front 24-15. Kadie Colebank added her first career collegiate bucket, and a pair of Strayhorn free throws would make it a 28-17 Cardinal advantage. Another Rogers three-pointer with five minutes left in the half brought the score to 35-19 as they reached the media timeout. Edinboro came out of the timeout with five consecutive points, before both defenses tightened up over the next four minutes. A Fighting Scot layup broke the run at the 53 second mark and a Rogers three-pointer sent the Cardinals into the half ahead 38-26. Rogers had a big first half, leading the way with 12 points and the Cardinals looked to keep their momentum going into the second half.
The third quarter media timeout came just 20 seconds into the new half, and Hinesmon would get the scoring started with a layup that made it 40-26. The Cardinals would maintain their lead throughout the third quarter, but Edinboro continued to chip away. As they reached the media timeout, Wheeling maintained a 47-32 lead and were looking to pull away. As the clock reached the three-minute mark, Rogers once again got the Cardinals going with a three-pointer to make it 50-34. Strayhorn would finish the quarter with a pair of layups and the score sat at 54-40 heading into the final quarter. The Fighting Scots had found an opening, but Wheeling was looking to stop the comeback.
They took the momentum to start the fourth as Graci Fairman hit a layup and Strayhorn added two more free throws to make it 58-40 lead. The Cardinal's defense stepped up throughout the quarter, allowing just four points over the first five minutes of the quarter. Edinboro got the momentum back with a three-pointer that made it 66-47 with 4:56 to play. Wheeling pushed their lead to 20 points over the final five minutes of play and held it for the rest of the night. A pair of Jacqui Hinesmon free throws got the Cardinals to the 74-point mark and an Edinboro layup brought the game to its final score of 74-61.
Leading the way for the Cardinals was junior Shamia Strayhorn, who finished with 20 points and seven rebounds to start the year. It was her biggest showing since she put up 22 points against Frostburg State back on February 18th, 2023, as she started her season with a bang. She was one of three double digit scorers for the Cardinals as Briarley Rogers (16) and Rachel Wilson (14) each finished in double digits on the day. Wilson picked up the first Cardinal double-double of the season, leading the way with 12 rebounds while Kenzie Dalton started her year strong with eight assists.
The Wheeling University Women's Basketball team returns to action on Saturday, November 11th, when they host Mercyhurst with tip-off at 2 PM. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
