Wheeling, W.Va- The Wheeling University Women's Basketball team (5-4), (1-2) started Mountain East Conference (MEC) play off on the right foot with a 67-53 win over Point Park on December 3rd. However, the Cardinals have been defeated by West Virginia State and now Charleston in consecutive games. Despite the skid, Wheeling will have an excellent chance to level out its conference record when they welcome Davis & Elkins tomorrow evening for its final conference game of the 2025.
Charleston would start out strong in the first half of play by taking a 31-16 lead into the locker room on the back of large runs and quick scoring. Wheeling kept in touch with UC by the end of the third quarter and made a furious comeback in the fourth, outscoring the Golden Eagles 22-15. However, the Cardinals' shots were unable to land late and would result in their second straight conference loss, 56-51.
With her 18-point performance on Saturday, Emilia Sierra Lacosta is now the team's leading point scorer with 135 and is averaging 15.0 points per game. Both of those numbers place her ninth in the MEC in scoring as the Argentina native continues to impress and develop. Lacosta's 37.3% from downtown is the best in the conference while also averaging another conference high of 2.8 three-pointers per game. The sophomore has been on fire since the start of the season. She has recorded eight double-digit point finishes and is currently on a four-game streak where she has finished with 10 or more points.
Kenzie Dalton continues to be the team's defensive anchor. In her last two outings against Charleston and West Virginia State, she has accumulated 15 rebounds and seven steals. The senior from Marietta, Ohio leads the MEC with a total of 28 steals and is averaging 3.1 steals a game. Offensively, Dalton has been in a little bit of slump, which is unusual, especially when looking at her totals over the first seven games of the season.Moreover, it is still very early in the season and there is still time for her to get back into her groove.
While the last two games have not ended in wins, Wheeling remains the best defensive team in the conference and in Division II. They are in a three-way tie with Indiana University of Pennsylvania and Johnson C. Smith University (North Carolina) for the 12th best scoring defense in the country with an average of 52.3. The Cardinals also remain one of the best teams in the country at defending the three-ball. They sit first in the MEC and sixth in the nation with a percentage of 20.6%.
The Matchup
The Senators of Davis & Elkins College have struggled mightily in the beginning parts of the 2025-26 season with a 1-10 record, and they have lost all three of their conference contests. The Senators last saw action against a Division I school, Kent State University, and the Golden Flashes dominated with a 117-37 win.
Jahniya Marion is the undisputed star player on this team. Against Kent State, she managed 16 points while making six of her 14 attempts from the field and sinking two of four shots from deep. Marion is a top 15 shooter in the conference, making good on 31.4% of her shots from the field.
All time, Wheeling is 23-6 over Davis & Elkins and the Cardinals have won the previous six meetings, including a 71-43 win back on February 8th, 2025, which was the last time these two played against one another. Former Cardinal Rachel Wilson racked up 20 points and 12 rebounds while Lacosta was responsible for 14 points. For the Senators, Marion put up seven points as a freshman.
The Details
The Wheeling University Women's Basketball team will host the Davis & Elkins Senators inside the McDonough Center tomorrow, December 17th, 2025. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. The game will be live streamed on the Mountain East Digital Network HERE and LiveStats will be available to view HERE.
