Buckhannon, W.Va- The ball dropped just two days ago to signal a fresh start for everyone around the globe. The Wheeling University Women's Basketball team (6-6), (2-3) was no exception. With a win against a top Mountain East Conference (MEC) opponent, they could kick off 2026 with a bang. The Cardinals played a great first half, however; the West Virginia Wesleyan Bobcats came back in the second half with depth scoring and a strong paint performance to defend its home court by defeating the Cardinals 72-67.
The two schools practically went point-for-point in the first quarter. It took Graci Fairman 12 seconds to accrue the first Cardinal bucket of the new year. 20 seconds later, Wesleyan tied it up. When the Bobcats nailed its first three-pointer, Emilia Sierra Lacosta answered back quick with a deep shot to make it a 5-5 ballgame with 8:38 remaining in the opening frame. Then, Wheeling would see Kenzie Dalton prosper over the next two and a half minutes. She dropped in five points while Layla Merriweather contributed the other two points for a 7-2 run. The Bobcats caught fire immediately after and added eight points to their side of the scoreboard to retake the lead by one, 15-14. The defenses for both squads persisted before and after the media timeout, but the action picked back up in the final minute and a half. Dalton and Merriweather made their shots from downtown to close out the first up 20-19.
A steal from Merriweather allowed Lacosta to drill a three-pointer to start the second quarter off right. Wesleyan cut it back to a one possession game, but a Bobcat foul gave Fairman the opportunity to add two points to make it 25-21 with 7:57 left in the half. Rebounds and missed chances became the theme as the defenses prevailed until Lacosta answered the bell to keep her team ahead 27-23. Coming out of the brief stoppage in play following the five-minute media timeout, the Cardinals went on an 8-3 run courtesy of back-to-back opportunities from Emma Reynolds, a jumper from Lacosta, and Elena Marin Dawid kissing a shot off the glass. With under two minutes to go, Reynolds came up with a steal and fed it over to Fairman to give Wheeling its first double-digit lead of the afternoon, 37-27. However, Wesleyan closed out the half with six unanswered points, and the Cardinals took a 37-33 lead into the locker room.
After a successful free throw attempt from Merriweather, the Bobcats battled back to make it a 38-37 game. Merriweather made her layup, but Wesleyan went down by one again with a layup of their own and tied it at 40 with a trip to the free throw line. Dalton gave the Cardinals the lead again, but defensive stops from the Cardinals and Bobcats ticked the clock down to 3:58. Merriweather continued to show out and made it 44-40, but Wesleyan responded with another run of six unanswered points to retake the lead, 46-44. The two traded the lead to end the third quarter, but it was the Bobcats who were on top, 50-49.
Wesleyan opened the scoring this time, but a deep ball from Lacosta tied the game at 52. The Bobcats took advantage of defensive rebounds and a turnover to put them out front 58-52, and it forced Wheeling to call a timeout at the 7:24 mark of the fourth quarter. After the breather, the Cardinals kept pace with the Bobcats as Dawid sunk her free throws and Merriweather hit a jumper inside the arc, but they still trailed 62-56 and only had six minutes left. Both teams went on a cold streak where it seemed as if no one could make their shots despite many shots and offensive rebounds. Following the final media timeout, Wesleyan kept a distance of no more than five points between themselves and Wheeling with successful free throws after every Wheeling basket across the final four minutes as the Cardinals fell to the Bobcats 72-67.
In the loss, Emilia Sierra Lacosta led the Cardinals with 18 points. Layla Merriweather finished with 16 and Kenzie Dalton recorded 15 points, six rebounds, and three steals. Graci Fairman, Emma Reynolds, and Elena Marin Dawid all ended with six points.
The Wheeling University Women's Basketball team returns to the Alma Grace McDonough Center on Wednesday, January 7th, 2026, to host the Fairmont State Fighting Falcons. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
