Wheeling, W. Va. - After taking time off for the Thanksgiving break, the Wheeling University Women's Basketball team (5-0, 1-0) returns to the hardwood on Wednesday night. They wrap up a stretch that has seen them play five of their first six games inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center when thy host Davis & Elkins with tip-off at 5:30 PM. A win would equal their best start to a season since the 2005-06 season, when the team won their first six games on the way to a 27-5 season. 

The Cardinals continued their roll before the Thanksgiving break when they hosted non-conference opponent Salem. The two teams battled back and forth early on, with the lead changing hands three times over the first six minutes of play. However, a Shamia Strayhorn three-pointer with 30 seconds left in the quarter sparked the Cardinals to their biggest run of the night. They would score seven of the next nine points to get out to a 20-15 lead and added a 14-0 run that spanned just under three minutes. The Cardinals would head into halftime with a 44-24 lead and just kept rolling through the second half. They added another 26-point effort in the fourth quarter, with 11 of those points coming from Graci Fairman as they sealed the deal on the 85-56 victory to move their streak to five straight games. 

Leading the charge for the fourth time in the first five games was junior Shamia Strayhorn, who set a career-high with 23 points, while shooting 10-19 (52.6%) from the floor, including a 2-4 mark from three-point range. It was the fourth time in the first five games that the junior has gone over the 16-point mark, and the second time she has gotten into the 20-point range. Strayhorn has established herself as one of the top scorers in the conference, entering play on Wednesday sitting fifth in the Mountain East Conference (MEC) with 15.8 Points Per game. She also ranks top 10 in the conference in field goal percentage (9th, 39.5%), Field Goals Made (8th, 30), Free Throws Made (8th, 15), and points (8th, 79).  

Following right behind her was sophomore Graci Fairman, who set a new career-high of her own with 20 points on the night. As Salem began to battle back to within five points with 7:34 to go, Fairman came up big to seal the deal with 11 of her 20 points coming as part of the 26-point fourth quarter. It was the second time this season that Fairman has gone into double-digits and brought her season scoring average to 9.0 points per game. Helping to make the offense run was fellow sophomore Kenzie Dalton, who finished with a team-high six assists on the night, bringing her average to 4.4 per game. She currently sits fourth in the MEC with 22 assists and is just three off the pace of West Virginia State's Zakorrah Russell for the conference lead. 

Coming out of the break, the Cardinals are jumping head first into MEC play as they wrap up the 2023 portion of their conference schedule. Each of their next four games come against conference opponents, with two of those at home and two on the road. Entering play on Wednesday, the Cardinals are one of just two undefeated teams in the conference, sitting tied with Fairmont State at 5-0. The Cardinals are looking to separate themselves from the pack down the stretch, with all four of their opponents sitting in the bottom half of the conference in the early going. The Cardinals remain focused on one game at a time and look to use that mentality to continue their early season success. 

The Matchup 

The Cardinals and Senators will be meeting for the 24th time in program history, with Wheeling leading the all-time series at 17-6. Of those 17 previous wins, 10 of them have come on their home court, where they hold a 10-4 advantage over Davis & Elkins. It has been a high-scoring series as of late, with the Cardinals scoring 75+ points in three of the last four meetings, while averaging 69.3 points per game in the all-time series. 

Last season, the Cardinals swept the season series between the two teams, with their most recent win coming in an 81-73 victory at Davis & Elkins. The Cardinals were led by former Cardinal Lauren Calhoun, who finished with a double-double at 20 points and 12 rebounds. She was followed by former Cardinal Shanley Woods with 16 points and former Cardinal Hannah Archer with 15 points to round out the day's scoring. 

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. 

Wheeling, W. Va. - After taking time off for the Thanksgiving break, the Wheeling University Women's Basketball team (5-0, 1-0) returns to the hardwood on Wednesday night. They wrap up a stretch that has seen them play five of their first six games inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center when thy host Davis & Elkins with tip-off at 5:30 PM. A win would equal their best start to a season since the 2005-06 season, when the team won their first six games on the way to a 27-5 season. 

The Cardinals continued their roll before the Thanksgiving break when they hosted non-conference opponent Salem. The two teams battled back and forth early on, with the lead changing hands three times over the first six minutes of play. However, a Shamia Strayhorn three-pointer with 30 seconds left in the quarter sparked the Cardinals to their biggest run of the night. They would score seven of the next nine points to get out to a 20-15 lead and added a 14-0 run that spanned just under three minutes. The Cardinals would head into halftime with a 44-24 lead and just kept rolling through the second half. They added another 26-point effort in the fourth quarter, with 11 of those points coming from Graci Fairman as they sealed the deal on the 85-56 victory to move their streak to five straight games. 

Leading the charge for the fourth time in the first five games was junior Shamia Strayhorn, who set a career-high with 23 points, while shooting 10-19 (52.6%) from the floor, including a 2-4 mark from three-point range. It was the fourth time in the first five games that the junior has gone over the 16-point mark, and the second time she has gotten into the 20-point range. Strayhorn has established herself as one of the top scorers in the conference, entering play on Wednesday sitting fifth in the Mountain East Conference (MEC) with 15.8 Points Per game. She also ranks top 10 in the conference in field goal percentage (9th, 39.5%), Field Goals Made (8th, 30), Free Throws Made (8th, 15), and points (8th, 79).  

Following right behind her was sophomore Graci Fairman, who set a new career-high of her own with 20 points on the night. As Salem began to battle back to within five points with 7:34 to go, Fairman came up big to seal the deal with 11 of her 20 points coming as part of the 26-point fourth quarter. It was the second time this season that Fairman has gone into double-digits and brought her season scoring average to 9.0 points per game. Helping to make the offense run was fellow sophomore Kenzie Dalton, who finished with a team-high six assists on the night, bringing her average to 4.4 per game. She currently sits fourth in the MEC with 22 assists and is just three off the pace of West Virginia State's Zakorrah Russell for the conference lead. 

Coming out of the break, the Cardinals are jumping head first into MEC play as they wrap up the 2023 portion of their conference schedule. Each of their next four games come against conference opponents, with two of those at home and two on the road. Entering play on Wednesday, the Cardinals are one of just two undefeated teams in the conference, sitting tied with Fairmont State at 5-0. The Cardinals are looking to separate themselves from the pack down the stretch, with all four of their opponents sitting in the bottom half of the conference in the early going. The Cardinals remain focused on one game at a time and look to use that mentality to continue their early season success. 

The Matchup 

The Cardinals and Senators will be meeting for the 24th time in program history, with Wheeling leading the all-time series at 17-6. Of those 17 previous wins, 10 of them have come on their home court, where they hold a 10-4 advantage over Davis & Elkins. It has been a high-scoring series as of late, with the Cardinals scoring 75+ points in three of the last four meetings, while averaging 69.3 points per game in the all-time series. 

Last season, the Cardinals swept the season series between the two teams, with their most recent win coming in an 81-73 victory at Davis & Elkins. The Cardinals were led by former Cardinal Lauren Calhoun, who finished with a double-double at 20 points and 12 rebounds. She was followed by former Cardinal Shanley Woods with 16 points and former Cardinal Hannah Archer with 15 points to round out the day's scoring. 

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.