Wheeling, W. Va. – After hitting the road for back-to-back games this past week, the Wheeling University Women's Basketball team (11-4, 6-2) returns home on Saturday looking for a bounce back. They host Concord inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center at 2 PM, where they have had a lot of success, going 6-2. The Cardinals look to keep pace with the top of the conference, sitting one game back of Fairmont State for the top spot.

Last time out, the Cardinals hit the road as they took on the defending 2023 MEC Champion Glenville State Pioneers on Wednesday night. After falling behind in the first quarter 21-12, the Cardinals would have to play from behind throughout the rest of the night. They got things going in the second quarter, putting up a game-high 21 points, but went into halftime trailing 43-33. After shooting under 35% in each of the first two quarters, the Cardinals had their best shooting quarter in the third quarter and outscored the Cardinals 18-14. They shot a game best 56.25% from the floor in the quarter, but they were held to just seven points over the final 10 minutes of play. They ended up falling to the Pioneers 78-58, taking just their second conference loss of the season.

Leading the Cardinals was junior Shamia Strayhorn, who has hit her stride over the last several games. She put up 17 points against Glenville State, marking the third time in the past four games that Strayhorn has scored at least 17 points in a game. During that stretch, the junior is averaging 14.75 points per game and is shooting 39.3% from the floor. During the 2022-2023 campaign, Strayhorn kicked things into high gear at the start of the new year and because of it earned her first ever Honorable Mention All-MEC. This season, she is averaging a career-best 13.8 PPG and is shooting 36.8% from the floor. As they embark on their final 13 game stretch towards the 2024 MEC Tournament, Strayhorn will be looked at as a leader for the Cardinals moving forward.

Behind Strayhorn, the Cardinals have also been getting strong contributions off the bench from sophomore Graci Fairman. Fairman was in double figures for the second straight game and the fourth time in the team's last five games. She put up 13 points in the loss against Fairmont State and, like Strayhorn, has turned it on as of late averaging 12.4 PPG during that stretch. She is averaging 8.9 PPG this season and looks to continue to be a spark off the bench. Despite allowing 78 points against the Pioneers, the Cardinals have been riding the backs for their defense all season long. They are allowing an MEC low 62.9 PPG this season, allowing four less points per game than the next closest team. Head Coach Anna Kowalska stresses the teams defensive efforts and they look to carry that success to the tournament.

As they enter play on Saturday, the Cardinals currently sit one game behind Fairmont State for the top spot in the MEC. Their magic number to clinch a spot in the tournament is just seven, but their goals are loftier. After earning a first round bye a season ago, the Cardinals are looking to take one of the top two spots in the tournament in 2024. They hold a half game lead over Frostburg State and a one game lead over Glenville State, West Virginia State, and Concord. A win on Saturday would help them keep pace with Fairmont State and hold their spot in the top two of the conference as they continue their stretch run to WesBanco Arena.

The Matchup

The Cardinals and Mountain Lions will meet for the 36th time in program history on Saturday, with Wheeling leading the all-time series with a record of 22-13. The Cardinals have been even more dominant on their home floor in the series, going 14-4 compared to 7-8 when they travel to Athens, West Virginia. That was reflected in last year's season series when the two teams split the season series with the home team being victorious each time.

In their most recent meeting, the two teams met in Athens, West Virginia where Concord came away with a 75-68 victory. The Cardinals were led by Shamia Strayhorn, who finished with 18 points while shooting 7-12 from the floor on the day. Graci Fairman finished right behind her with 12 points off the bench while Kenzie Dalton rounded out the scoring effort with nine points.

The Details

Tip-off for Saturday's game is scheduled for 2 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.