Wheeling, W. Va. - The Wheeling University Women's Basketball team (11-8, 7-4) came riding high into Wednesday night's game, and the good times kept flowing for the Cardinals. After falling behind early, the Cardinals came storming back with 32 second half points, while allowing just 13, as they went on to beat the University of Charleston 56-48. Wheeling held the Golden Eagles to a 29.7% mark from the floor in the second half, and a big performance from one of their freshman helped them earn the win.
The big performance came courtesy of Kristel Rattasepp, who set a new career-high with 20 points, while adding three rebound and one assist. She was the Cardinal's most efficient shooter on the night, making seven of her 14 shots to go 50% from the floor, and helped the Cardinals hang around early with 12 of her 20 points coming in the first half. She was one of three Cardinals to hit double figures in the game, with Rachel Wilson (13) and Bryana Henderson (10) each hitting the mark. Henderson would also lead the defensive effort, finishing with five rebounds and tied with teammate Graci Fairman for the team lead with two assists. It would be the second time in the last three games that the Cardinals have held the opposition to 50 points or fewer, and they haven't allowed an opponent to reach the 55-point mark in any of those three games.
Coming out of the half, the Cardinals found themselves in a hole, trailing 32-24, and that deficit would grow as Charlesotn scored four of the first six points to make it a 10-point advantage. The Golden eagle advantage would remain at 10 through the media timeout, with Charleston leading 38-28, but a Henderson free throw would get things trending back in the right direction. That free throw would lead the Cardinals on an 8-0 run, with Henderson scoring six of those eight points. Over the final six minutes, the Cardinal's defense allowed just two points and the Cardinals kept adding on. Rachel Wilson hit a layup, followed by a pair of free throws by Dalton, and it was a 41-40 game in favor of the Golden Eagles heading into the final 10 minutes.
Charleston would extend the lead with the fourth quarter's opening shot, but the Cardinals were right back at it. Rattasepp, who was already on fire, kept it going with five straight points and gave the Cardinals a 45-43 lead. It was the start of a 7-0 Wheeling run that had them out to their biggest lead of the night at 47-43. Those two early points for the Golden Eagles were the only two they would score over the first five minutes of the quarter and Wheeling headed into the media timeout with that same lead. The Golden Eagles would briefly battle back, taking a 48-47 lead, but the Cardinals were right back at it. Henderson put the Cardinals back on top with 4:07 to play, and Wheeling would seal the deal, scoring the final nine points of the game. Wheeling would go on to win by the final score of 56-48.
Defense ruled the narrative early, with neither team able to get on the board through the first three minutes of the game. It wasn't until the 7:19 mark that either team broke through when Kristel Rattasepp made her way under the net and hit the layup to make it a 2-0 Cardinal lead. Charleston's first points came a minute later and things would get going before the media timeout. Kenzie Dalton would hit a layup right before the break and the Cardinals would head into the media timeout leading 8-7. The back and forth continued throughout the quarter, and it remained 8-7 at the media timeout. Charleston tied things up with 2:39 to play, but Layla Merriweather and Rattasepp combined for five points to make it a 13-8 Wheeling lead. Charleston added two more points before the quarter ended and When led 13-10 after a quarter.
The Golden Eagles run continued into the second quarter as they extended their run to 9-0 and built a 17-13 lead. Rattasepp would break the run, scoring five straight points including a three-pointer, but the Golden Eagles just kept coming. Another 9-0 Run courtesy of the Golden Eagles made it 26-18 with 4:49 to go before the half. Wilson would help to keep the Cardinals close, scoring the final four points of the half on a pair of layups, but Charleston would put up 22 to head into the locker room with their 32-24 advantage. Head Coach Anna Kowalska and her team made key second half adjustments that led to the come from behind victory, and helped wheeling LeapFrog Charleston in the Mountain East Conference (MEC) standings.
The Wheeling University Women's Basketball team Returns to action on Saturday, February 1st, When they take on West Virginia State with tip off at 2 PM .
