Wheeling, W. Va. – It was a tale of two seasons for the Wheeling University Women's Golf team as they competed through the 2025-2026 season. In the fall, it was a strong veteran presence leading the way for the team, while the spring welcomed in new recruits who made an immediate impact on the starting lineup. Overall, the Cardinals continued their growth on the course, and look to continue to build on that success into the future of the program.
During the fall season, the Cardinals would hit the course with a veteran group, competing in mostly individual events throughout the year. They started the season with a sixth place finish at the Wheeling Invitational, and added an 18th place finish at the Golden Eagle Open before competing as individuals the rest of the way. It would be highlighted by a tournament win at the Pipesteam classic and the Cardinals headed into the fall MEC Championship event. They would end up taking sixth in the field and headed into the spring with two new recruits headlining the class. They would compete in three tournaments during the spring, with their top performance coming at the MEC Spring Classic. There, they would finish 4th in the field and earned two All-MEC honors to round out their spring season and send the program into the future.
Leading the way throughout the season was senior Ella Keffer, who wrapped up a well decorated Cardinal career. She would take home First Team All-MEC honors for the first time in her career, while being the Cardinal's top golfer throughout the season. In the fall, she would pick up her first-ever collegiate tournament win at the Pipesteam Classic, setting a single-round PR of 72 and putting up a two-round score of 150 for the event. She would finish fall earning a spot on the MEC All-Tournament team, finishing fourth in the field. As the spring came through, Keffer finished out her senior year strong, picking up an 18th place finish to wrap up her First Team All-MEC honors. She would end the gear as the #53 ranked player in the region, and produced a scoring average of 402.7 across 13 rounds of play this season .
The other Cardinal veteran to step up was sophomore Brielle Milhoan, who used a strong spring to earn her first career All-MEC honors. Throughout the fall season she was consistently the Cardinal's #2 golfer behind Keffer, but broke out at the MEC Spring Classic. She would pick up her first top 10 finish of the season, taking 8th overall and propelling herself into the All-MEC conversation. She would end up earning Honorable Mention All-MEC honors for her work, the first All-MEC honor of her career, as she continues her Cardinal career. The Cardinals would bring in two new additions during the spring season, with Ivana Alvarez and Kaily Banal each impacting the starting lineup. Alvarez would be the top performer at the 2026 MEC Spring Classic, where she would shoot a season-best 175 across the two rounds, finishing 22nd in the field.
The Wheeling Women's Golf team now heads into the off-season as they prepare for the 2026-2027 campaign.
