Wheeling, W. Va. – After battling through the 2024 portion of their Mountain East Conference (MEC) schedule, the Wheeling University Women's Basketball team (6-5, 3-2) has one more test before wrapping up 2024. The team will go on the road for non-conference action on Saturday, taking on Ohio Dominican with tip-off at 2 PM. The Cardinals are looking to head into the break on a high note as they prepare to hit the ground running again in 2025.

Last time out, the Cardinals took on the University of Charleston to finish up the 2024 portion of the conference slate. From the beginning, this game would prove to be a back and forth affair, with the biggest deficit between the two teams being just four points. Both defenses were thriving, with neither team scoring over 30 points in either of the first two quarters, as Wheeling shot just 30% from the floor during that span. The Cardinals would be the ones with the lead at halftime, holding a 28-27 lead, but the back and forth was just beginning. The Cardinals held the lead through the third quarter, holding a 45-42 advantage heading into the final quarter. However, Charleston just kept pushing and eventually overtook the Cardinals, handing them a 63-58 loss to wrap up the day.

After leaning on their young talent throughout the year, the Cardinals would turn to one of their veterans in Bryana Henderson. Henderson was one of two Cardinals to finish in double figures on the day, scoring 10 points, while adding three rebounds and one assist. She was the team's most efficient shooter on the day, going 4-9 (44.4%) from the floor with one of those being a three-pointer. It was the sixth time this season that the graduate student has gotten into double digits this season, and the first time since scoring 14 points against Davis & Elkins on December 4^th. Henderson's scoring average sits at 9.) PPG entering Saturday, and she looks to get back into double figures before hitting the Christmas break.

Continuing her strong freshman season was Kristel Rattasepp, who was once again the Cardinal's leading scorer with 11 points. She scored more than half of that from beyond the arc, where she finished 2-3 on the night, continuing to be one of the team's top three-point shooters. She is shooting 42.9% from beyond the arc and has made at least two threes in each of her last three games. Leading the Cardinal offense was junior Kenzie Dalton, who led the team with three assists while sitting second with six rebounds. She has been a consistent force on offense for the team, leading the Cardinals with 44 assists this season while helping out the defense with a team-high 25 steals. She looks to lead the Cardinals into the break as they try and gain momentum heading into 2025.

As they head into the Christmas break, the Cardinals are sitting right in the middle of the pack in the MEC. They sit in a three-way tie for fourth in the conference with Glenville State and West Liberty, sitting at 3-2, and are two games behind West Virginia Wesleyan for the top spot in the conference. With the first half conference schedule wrapped up, the Cardinals head into the Christmas break with one non-conference game to prepare for the second half of the season. Head Coach Anna Kowalska has seen growth from her team throughout the first half of the season, but feels that the break will be a good reset as they head into the second half.

The Matchup

The Cardinals and Panthers are meeting for the first time in program history on Saturday as they travel to Columbus, Ohio. Ohio Dominican enters Saturday's contest sitting at 4-6 overall and 0-3 in Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) play. The Panthers enter the game having dropped each of their last two games, but they have averaged 65.4 Points Per Game over their first 10 games. The Cardinals are looking to open the all-time series with a win on the road before the Christmas break.
The Details

Tip-off for Saturday's game is scheduled for 2 PM inside Alumni Hall on the campus of Ohio Dominican University. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.