Edinboro, Pa. - The 2024-2025 season officially began for the Wheeling University Women's Basketball team (0-1, 0-0) as they played day one of the Edinboro Tip-off Classic. The Cardinals drew the host Fighting Scots in their first game and, despite a second quarter comeback that tied things at halftime, it wasn't enough as Wheeling fell 78-62. The Cardinals had three different players end in double figures on the night, as they look to bounce back and split the weekend on Saturday.

As the game tipped-off, the Fighting Scots defense was strong through the first four minutes of play. They forced four Cardinal turnovers during that time, and they took advantage getting out to a 10-0 advantage. As the clock ticked past six minutes, the Cardinal's offense would get their first points courtesy of a jumper by Mah Minthe. The Cardinals had some ground to makeup, and would dig into a good chunk of that with a 6-0 run. Kenzie Dalton and Bryana Henderson would each add two points to complete the run as the Cardinals made it a four-point game. The final five minutes would be back and forth between the two teams as they traded the final seven points. However, the momentum would fall the Cardinal's way as a pair of three-pointers from Emilia Sierra Lacosta and Layal Merriweather would end the half with Edinboro holding a 17-13 lead.

That momentum continued into the second quarter as Minthe added a free throw and the Cardinals trimmed what was a 10-point deficit to three. Sierra Lacosta was at it again with another three-pointer that made it a 19-17 score with 8:47 to go before the half. A 5-0 run by the Fighting Scots made it 24-17, but Sierra Lacosta's third three-pointer of the half stopped the run. The Fighting Scots replied with five straight points again, and this time it was Kristel Rattasepp who stopped the run with a three-pointer that made it 29-23 with 4:25 to play in the half. That three-pointer would get the Cardinals going as they went on their biggest run of the night, scoring 11 straight points, capped by a Henderson three-pointer to make it 31-29 in favor of the Cardinals. A layup for the Fighting Scots would tie things at 31-31, and the teams traded the final four points of the half to head into the break tied at 33-33.

Just as they did in the first half, it was Edinboro that got the momentum as they headed on their biggest run of the day. They scored 15 straight points over the first five minutes of the third quarter, opening it up to a 48-33 game. Rattasepp would break the run with a pair of layups to get the Cardinals going, but the Fighting Scots would just keep scoring. It was efficient shooting that helped Edinboro break things open as they shot 68.75% from the floor, including two three-pointers in the quarter. The Cardinals were limited to just 10 shots in that quarter, and only made three baskets. Wheeling would keep themselves alive from the free throw line, making seven of their 10 attempts from the charity stripe. Wheeling would be outscored 30-13 in the quarter and trailed 63-46 heading into the final 10 minutes.

Like they did in the second quarter, the Cardinals would try to battle back once again, but the damage had already been done. Sierra Lacosta would wrap up what was a big collegiate debut, finishing the final 10 minutes with eight of her team's 16 points in the quarter, including two more three-pointers. It was a quarter for the freshman as Sierra Lacosta, Merriweather, and Rattasepp accounted for 12 of the team's 16 points. Rattasepp and Merriweather each had four points during the final stretch and the Cardinals would reach the 60-pont mark with 1:36 to play and would get the final two points with under a minute to play. It would be Sierra Lacosta who finished things up from the free throw line with a pair of makes and the game would come to its final score of 78-62.

It was a big night off the bench for Emilia Sierra Lacosta as she led the Cardinals with 19 points and added five rebounds in her collegiate debut. She shot 55.5% from the floor and 62.5% from three-point range with each of her five makes on the day coming from beyond the arc. She was one of three Cardinals to finish in double figures on the night, with Rachel Wilson (12) and Kristel Rattasepp (11) each finishing in double figures. For Wilson, she picked up her first double-double of the season, leading the defensive effort with 10 rebounds. Kenzie Dalton rounded out the night leading the way with three assists, while finishing with six points and six rebounds.

The Wheeling University Women's Basketball team returns to action on Saturday, November 9^th, when they take on CAL-U at 3 PM. You can watch that game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.