Wheeling, W. Va. – After taking a tough road loss on Wednesday against Fairmont State, the Wheeling University Women's Basketball team (16-7, 11-5) continues their February home schedule on Saturday. They play host to Frostburg State as they look to get back in the win column with tip-off at 2 PM. The Cardinals currently sit one game behind the Mountain East Conference (MEC) leading Falcons and look to keep pace with them over the weekend.

Last time out, it was a battle of the top two teams as Wheeling took the short trip to Fairmont State to battle the Falcons. The first quarter was a quarter of runs, with the Falcons starting things on a 6-0 run The teams would trade three separate runs during the quarter, but Fairmont State would take the advantag, leading 22-16 after one quarter. However, it was the Cardinal's turn to respond in the second quarter, and they would outscore Fairmont State 21-15 and the teams headed into halftime with the game tied at 37-37. However, that would be the only quarter that the Cardinals would outscore the Falcons in and, despite getting as close as 71-69 it wouldn't be enough. Fairmont State scored seven of the final nine points as the Cardinals would fall 78-71.

It was a big game off the bench for Bryana Henderson, who put up a career-high 20 points in the effort, while shooting 53.8% from the floor. Of the team's 30 points off the bench, 20 came courtesy of Henderson as she continues to provide a spark for the Cardinals. She has been electric from three-point range all season long, and continued that effort going 3-5 from beyond the arc against the Falcons. She has made the second most three-pointers on the team this season, with 27, and holds the third highest three-point percentage on the team at 42.6%. As the Cardinals prepare for another run at the MEC Tournament, Henderson looks to continue to provide that shooting spark from the bench.

Also leading the way for the Cardinals was sophomore Kenzie Dalton, who finished with 14 points on the night. It was the highest offensive output for the sophomore since she returned from injury as she continues to lead the Cardinal offense. Along with her 14 points, she also led the defensive game with seven rebounds and the passing game with five assists. Despite missing a few games this season, Dalton still ranks third in the MEC in assists this season with 77 and in assists/game with 3.9. As a team, the Cardinals were efficient in their shooting, posting a 43% mark for the game and never shooting below 41% in any of the four quarters. To supplement their strong defensive play, the offense looks to keep making their shots down the stretch.

As they enter the final five game stretch, the Cardinals now have their sites on clinching the first round bye that they had a season ago. Their magic number to clinch that first round bye sits at 3, meaning any combination of three Cardinal wins or three Concord losses would earn Wheeling the first round bye. The two teams will meet in Wednesdsy',s matchup in Athens, West Virginia, and a win on Saturday would allow the Cardinals to clinch that first round bye in that matchup. The Cardinals are looking to play their best basketball of the season down the final stretch as they prepare for the tournament. With three of those final five games coming at home, the Cardinals look to build off their 9-3 mark on their home floor.

The Matchup

The Cardinals and Bobcats are meeting for the 10th time in program history on Saturday, and the second time during the 2023-2024 season. Wheeling holds the all-time series record at 8-1 against the Bobcats, with their only loss coming on their home floor. The Cardinals are 3-1 against Frostburg State inside the Alma Grace McDonough Center and have averaged 69.33 Points per game across the first nine games of the series.

In their most recent meeting, Wheeling made the trip to Frostburg State and picked up a 68-59 road victory. The Cardinals were led by Graci Fairman, who tied her career high with 20 points off the bench and was one of three Cardinals to hit double digits. Briarley Rogers (11) and Kenzie Dalton (10) each hit double digits in the game while Rachel Wilson led the defensive effort with 11 rebounds.

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.