Wheeling, W. Va. - With a young team entering the 2025-2026 season, the Wheeling University Women's Basketball team (6-5, 2-2) has been growing on the court through the first half of the season. On Saturday, the Cardinals tip-off the Mountain East Conference (MEC) stretch run on the road when they travel to West Virginia Wesleyan with tip-off at 2 PM. The Cardinals look to get back over .500 in conference play as they take on a Bobcat team that currently sits tied for second in the conference standings.
Wheeling ended the first half with a triple overtime thriller against Cedarville where they fell 87-82. It was back and forth throughout the night, but it was Cedarville who held an early 14-12 advantage after one quarter. A strong shooting second quarter that saw the Yellow Jackets hit 64% of their shots sent them into the locker room with a 34-29 led, and the Cardinals would have to battle in the second half. They came out of the locker room strong, shooting just over 57% from the floor, and the defense was able to hold them to just 11 points. Wheeling held their first lead since the beginning of the game with a 48-45 advantage, but Cedarville tied the game at 48-48 at the end of regulation. Both teams would go shot for shot with each other in the first two overtime periods, but a 9-2 run over the final three and a half minutes of the third overtime made the difference as Wheeling fell 87-82.
Despite the loss on the scoreboard, it was a breakout day for sophomore Layla Merriweather off the bench. After starting the first 10 games of the season, she came off the bench and set a new career-high with 28 points in the effort. She was shooting with confidence throughout the night, leading the team with a 6-11 (54.5%) mark from three-point range. She finished just two three's shy of the single-game record and two three-point attempts shy from that single game record. For Merriweather, it continued a recent string of success that has seen her hit double digits in three straight games, averaging 16.0 PPG during that stretch. She is shooting 47.3% from the floor and 56.2% from three-point range during that span, and looks to keep shooting with confidence in the second half.
Senior Kenzie Dalton continued her strong showing in 2025-2026, finishing with her second double-double of the season in the effort. She finished with 17 points from the point guard position, while adding 11 assists to round out the effort. She sits in the top 10 in scoring, rebounding, and assists in the conference, with her top mark being a MEC-leading 63 assists. She couples that with sitting ninth in the conference in scoring (14.8 PPG) and ninth in rebounding (7.2 REB/G) as she continues to be a leader on the court. Taking the reigns as the Cardinal's leading scorer is Emilia Sierra Lacosta, who finished the first half with a 12 point effort. She paces the Cardinals, averaging 15.2 PPG this season, putting her as the MEC's seventh leading scorer, while sitting as the conference leader with a 35.6% mark from three-point range.
As they begin the final two-month stretch to the 2026 MEC Tournament, the Cardinals will start things out going through a gauntlet. Of their first four games to start 2026, three of those will come against teams currently sitting in the top five of the conference. The run begins against a West Virginia Wesleyan team that was riding high at the end of the 2025 portion of their schedule. They enter 2026 riding a three-game winning streak that has seen them earn wins over Point Park, Salem, and West Liberty along the way. They enter play Saturday as the MEC's second highest-scoring team, averaging 78.1 PPG, while holding the largest margin of any team at 12.1. Wheeling's top ranked defense, that has allowed just 55.3 PPG, will look to slow down the Bobcats and get in the win column to start 2026.
The Match-up
The Cardinals and Bobcats are meeting for the 41st time in program history on Saturday, with Wheeling leading the all-time series at 23-17. Across the first 40 games, the home team has held the advantage, with Wheeling going 10-11 in Buckhannon, West Virginia compared to a 10-6 record when they host. It has been a series ruled by defense, with Wheeling averaging 65.65 points per game, and they look to bounce back after back-to-back losses at the hands of the Bobcats.
Their last meeting came on February 5th, 2025, in a game that West Virginia Wesleyan would win 57-52. Leading the way was former Cardinal Bryana Henderson, who finished with 20 points in the effort while shooting 63.6% from the floor. Former Cardinal Rachel Wilson added 10 points and 10 rebound for the double-double, while Emilia Sierra Lacosta and former Cardinal Kristel Rattasepp each added 10 points in the effort.
The Details
Tip-off for Saturday's game is scheduled for 2 PM inside the Rockefeller Center on the campus of West Virginia Wesleyan. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
