Charleston, W. Va. – The month of January came to an end on Wednesday night as the Wheeling University Women's Basketball team (14-6, 9-3) hit the road. They traveled down to Charleston, West Virginia for a battle with the Golden Eagles as they looked to creep closer to clinching a Mountain East Conference (MEC) playoff spot. They battled throughout the game, but ended up falling just short as the Cardinals fell 62-56.

After a minute and a half of play, the Cardinals would start the scoring with a Rachel Wilson layup. Things would go the Cardinal's way over those first five minutes of play and by the first media timeout it was an 11-3 Cardinal advantage. Briarley Rogers began her big day leading the Cardinals with five points during the run before Charleston's Clarissa Francis would break the run with a layup. Rogers was quick to get back on the board with a pair of layups as the Cardinals increased their advantage to 15-7 with 2:33 to play in the quarter. Despite the Golden Eagles tallying the final four points of the quarter, the Cardinals would hold a 15-11 advantage after the first quarter. It was the fourth straight game in which the Cardinals had led after the first quarter and they looked to keep that momentum going.

However, it was Charleston who got things started with a three-pointer by Taylor Austin as the Cardinals advantage was cut to one. Rogers would add a three-pointer at the 7:29 mark of the quarter to extend Wheeling's lead to 18-14, but Charleston would overtake the Cardinals with a 12-0 run. The run spanned nearly three minutes and pushed Charleston to a 26-18 advantage with 4:46 to go before the half. It was Bryana Henderson who would break the run with a layup and the Cardinals got half the effort back with a 6-0 run of their own. It made it a 26-24 game with 2:14 to play, but a pair of Charleston threes at the end of the quarter would give Charleston a 32-24 lead heading into the halftime break. After shooting 53% in the first quarter, the Cardinals shot 33% in the second half as Charleston battled back.

As they entered the third quarter, the Cardinals would get back to their efficiency. A pair of Wilson free throws would start the new half as the Cardinals would score four of the first six points to make it a 37-28 score at the 8:54 mark. Charleston would continue to hold their lead over the next three minutes and by the media timeout the Golden Eagles were staked to a 41-34 advantage. Shamia Strayhorn came out of the break with a layup to get the Cardinals back on the board and added another a minute later to cut the deficit to 43-39. With under a minute to play, Henderson would add a driving layup to cut the deficit to 45-41, but a pair of free throws would make it a 47-41 lead after three quarters. The Cardinals once again shot 53% from the floor in the third quarter and would try to battle back over the final 10 minutes.

Wilson and Strayhorn would get the quarter started with a layup each in the first minute as they cut the lead to 47-45. Those would be the only two points for the Cardinals over the first six minutes of the quarter and Charleston would score nine unanswered to go up 54-45 with 4:25 to play. Jacqui Hinesmon would hit a free throw to break the run and the Cardinals got back on the board to make it 59-50 with a minute to play. Rogers would add a layup and Strayhorn posted four points during the final run, but the Golden Eagles got it done from the free throw line. Wheeling would take just their third conference loss of the year, falling 62-56, and their magic number remains at two to clinch an MEC Playoff spot.

The Cardinals were led on the day by junior Briarley Rogers, who put up 18 points in the effort. She put together a strong 57.1% shooting percentage from the floor and added a 2-4 mark from behind the arc. It was the most points Rogers has put up in a game since December 19th when she scored an identical 18 points against Ursuline. Rogers would also lead the defensive effort, finishing with a team high six rebounds to round out her strong day. The other two Cardinals to reach double figures were Shamia Strayhorn (13) and Rachel Wilson (12) to round out the scoring effort. Strayhorn would lead the passing game with three assists on the night as the Cardinals prepare for a month where they will be home more often than not for the stretch run.

The Wheeling University Women's Basketball team returns to action on Saturday, February 3rd, when they host West Virginia State University with tip-off at 2 PM.