Wheeling, W. Va. - In the two years since they have come back from their hiatus, the Wheeling University Women's Lacrosse team has proven themselves as a regular contender in the Mountain East Conference (MEC). In 2026, they made it back to the semifinal round of the annual MEC Women's Lacrosse Tournament, continuing their success from their return season. The Cardinals also improved their win total both in conference play and overall and have continued to build a strong foundation for winning now and into the future.
With a roster featuring more experience, Head Coach Faith Flanagan wanted to challenge her group right from the start with a tough non-conference schedule. They would open with Gannon in an offensive battle that saw them fall 15-11, and followed that up by falling 20-4 to Shippensburg and 21-6 to Shepherd. The Cardinals were looking for a bounce back, and did just that with a 16-9 win over Chestnut Hill and got back to 2-3 with a 25-2 win over Lake Erie. They would end up splitting their final two non-conference games and entered their MEC stretch sitting at 3-4. They would open the conference run with their inaugural battle with Point Park, picking up an 18-8 win, and followed that with a 14-9 win over Davis & Elkins. They would battle with the top dogs, Charleston and Frostburg State, but fell to both to move to 2-2 in MEC play.
As they entered the second half of their conference schedule, the Cardinals would start things strong with two wins via forfeits from West Virginia Wesleyan. The rest of the second time through the conference went the same way as the first, with the Cardinals beating Davis & Elkins and Point Park, and falling to Charleston and Frostburg State. The Cardinals were able to grab the conference's #4 seed and, for the second year in a row, would host the MEC play-in game. They welcomed in Davis & Elkins to Bishop Schmitt Field in a game that was back and forth throughout. The two teams traded the first four goals before the Cardinals ran away and picked up a 14-11 win. It would earn them a return trip to Frostburg State for the MEC Semifinals, where they ended up falling 17-9 to end their season.
Along with the overall and conference win totals improving, the Cardinals also had a big showing in the postseason awards. Leading the way for the team for the second year in a row was Trinity Rose, who not only earned her second straight First Team All-MEC honor, but was also named the MEC Midfielder of the Year. Rose led the Cardinals in goals (52), points (72), ground balls (49), and caused turnovers (36), while sitting second in draw controls (48) and third in assists (20). The junior would score at least one goal in 15 of the 17 games she played, including 12 multi-goal efforts on the season. She ended the year on a five-game multi-goal streak, scoring five or more goals in each of her last four games. She finished the year as the conference's third-leading scorer, third in caused turnovers, and fourth in draw controls to round out a big year.
The Cardinals' other "Of The Year" award winner was sophomore Giavonna Perkins, who earned the MEC's Goalie of the Year award. After starting the year with an injury, Perkins would come back strong, appearing in 17 games while making 173 saves and holding a .474 save percentage. Her 173 saves were the most in the MEC this season, while her save percentage sat as the third highest in the conference. She would earn First Team All-MEC honors for the first time in her career, leading the defensive effort. The final First Team All-MEC honoree for the Cardinals was Sophia Cirone, who led the Cardinals passing game with 29 assists. She sat second on the team with 40 goals and 69 points, while holding the highest shot-on-goal percentage for the team at .769.
The Wheeling University Women's Lacrosse team now heads to the off-season as they look to come back even stronger for the 2027 season.
