On Saturday, Feb. 15, 2024, Wesleyan women’s basketball wrapped up their 41st season on the court. Looking back, it was a rocky few months for the short-handed Cardinals, who battled injuries and finished the season with only 11 rostered players. 

The Red and Black kicked off the season in November with a two-day tournament in St. Mary’s City, Md. After falling 59–75 to No. 16 Catholic University of America, the Cards rallied the following day to defeat St. Mary’s College 88–78, recording their highest offensive output of the season. The high-flying victory was especially impressive given that the Cards were down captain and forward Tori DaCosta ’25, who was sidelined with a broken nose.

A week later, the Cards were back in action for the Hampton Inn Holiday Classic in Springfield, Mass. Playing closer to home, the Red and Black saw success right out of the gate with a 20-point third quarter against SUNY Geneseo, whom they defeated 61–55. The next day, the Cards took on Western New England University. Down by 17 with eight minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, the Red and Black made a staggering comeback, coming within four points of the Golden Bears in the final minutes of the game. Ultimately, the effort was not enough. The Cards fell 67–74, bringing their season record to 2–2.

After beating Clark University 69–64 on Nov. 26, the Cardinals squared off against Amherst. First-year guard Meghan Kirck ’28 was an offensive catalyst for the Red and Black, recording 14 points and dominating first- and second-quarter play. By halftime, the Cards were trailing by double digits. In the third quarter, the Mammoths turned on the jets, keeping Wesleyan to a 1–11 shooting performance and forcing five turnovers. After a brief fourth-quarter push headed by guard Olivia Quinn ’28, guard Felicia Fongemie ’27, and Kirck, the Cards lost 52–69.

Headed into winter break, the team competed in two back-to-back local tournaments. On Dec. 6, the Cards beat Utica University 66–48, with DaCosta pouring in 18 points at home. Meanwhile, Kirck posted 12 points in her first career start.

Kirck said being tapped to start was an honor that made her work harder during the game.

“It was awesome that people trusted in me to take that starting role, and I was very honored to do so,” Kirck said. “But I was just out there with my teammates, trying to do my best.”

The Red and Black followed up their victory over Utica with a string of relatively close non-conference losses to Salve Regina University, Roger Williams University, and Oswego State University.

Determined to turn the momentum around, the Cards took on Williams in a home game after the break. But something wasn’t gelling in the Jan. 4 game, and Wesleyan committed 29 turnovers over the course of the game, with 18 in the first half alone.

Although the Cards failed to get anything going in the first half, they emerged after halftime with renewed energy, briefly tying the game 25–25 thanks to a prolific third quarter. Despite this effort, a late run put the Ephs ahead, where they remained until the end of the game.

DaCosta put up 14 points in the 44–60 loss, with eight of those points coming in the third quarter. Fongemie added 12, while Kirck—in her fifth career start—drained the Cards’ only three-pointer. 

The Cardinals got the chance to rebuild their confidence only two days after the Williams loss, ending their losing streak by steamrolling John Jay University 84–47. Four days later, they faced off against Williams once again, this time in a NESCAC-sanctioned game.

DaCosta noted that, heading into the game, her team was motivated by their recent loss to the Ephs.

“We wanted to do everything we could to make sure that didn’t happen again,” DaCosta said.

The Cards got off to a fiery start, recording 20 points in the first quarter, with Kirck and Quinn each burying a pair of triples. With a minute left in the first half, the Cards held a decisive 31–23 lead.

Both teams experienced an offensive drought in the third quarter. By the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Cards’ lead had narrowed to 41–39, before a late run from Williams rocked the Cards back on their heels. The Ephs went on to miss a series of free throws in the final minute, which put the score at 55–56 in Williams’s favor. Fongemie soon capitalized on another missed Williams free throw, sending the game to overtime. Although Kirck had a shot at a game-winning three toward the end of the overtime period, the Ephs secured a five-point overtime win, effectively foreclosing Wesleyan’s hopes of a revenge tour.

Still, Kirck said the Cards saw the game as a success.

“We had a lot of turnovers the first game, so [the second game] was more of understanding how to break [Williams’s] pressure, because they were very up tight against us,” Kirck said. “Just fixing small mistakes and seeing the ball go through the basket really helped us.”

Six days later, the Cards fell to Middlebury 66–82, even after draining 10 three-pointers for a season-high single-game three-point shooting percentage of 47.6%. Despite the loss, DaCosta came up big for the Red and Black, recording seven rebounds and two blocks in her 28 minutes of play.

The Cards’ Jan. 17 matchup against Hamilton also resulted in a loss (61–68), but a much closer one. Buoyed by Fongemie’s 16 points and 5 assists, the Cards stormed back from an early 18-point deficit to force a one-possession game with less than two minutes remaining. In the end, a number of made free throws by the Continentals put the game away and handed the Cardinals their third straight loss.

But change was afoot. The very next day, the Cards took on Amherst, hoping to make up for their earlier loss. After a thrilling back-and-forth game that went to overtime, the Red and Black delivered, toppling the Mammoths in a 70–65 victory that relied heavily on DaCosta’s career-best 24 points and 18 rebounds. Guard Aviva Schnitzer ’28, in her first career start, contributed critical minutes in overtime, kicking off the scoring and knocking down a pair of clutch free throws.

DaCosta attributed her dominant performance to the entire team’s relaxed mindset.

“Honestly, it was just the carefree attitude we were taking,” DaCosta said. “Several people had gotten injured [prior to the game] and we were just like, ‘You know what? We’re gonna go out there and just do everything we can,’ and that’s what I decided to do, and it worked out really well for us that game.”

Fongemie, who led the team in minutes played this season, added that the Amherst game showcased the Cards’ strategic mindset. 

“Oh my God, that was amazing,” Fongemie said. “Any time we could beat a NESCAC opponent, it’s the best feeling ever, but especially Amherst…it says a lot about us and our game planning. We stuck to the scouting report really, really well.”

Riding the high of the Amherst game, the Red and Black toppled Worcester State University on Jan. 20 before suffering a 50–63 loss to Trinity five days later. Then, facing Tufts on Jan. 31, the Cards went down early. They never recovered, ultimately taking a 42–76 beating.

But there was no time to dwell on the loss. The next day, the Cards took on Conn. College, eking out a 65–59 win. Fongemie, who racked up 15 of her 17 total points in the second half, said the game was messy but satisfying.

“It wasn’t pretty,” Fongemie said. “I [wouldn’t] say that. But we got it done, which is fun. Ugly wins are still wins.”

Unfortunately, the win against Conn. College was the Red and Black’s final victory of the season. They ended with a string of losses: the first against Westfield State University, with three more following against NESCAC opponents Bates (50–64), No. 3 Bowdoin (49–70), and Colby (49–65).

In the midst of the losses, Quinn said she was proud of the performance her team put up against Bowdoin, who finished the regular season undefeated. 

“I think we [had] that same mentality: ‘Let’s just have fun and see what happens,’” Quinn said. “We were obviously not favored to win, so I think just going after it with less pressure, more ‘stick to the game plan and see what happens.’…I feel like we made them take tough shots that weren’t as comfortable for them. We limited their transition, and it worked.”

The Cards’ final game of the season was their senior night at home against Colby, during which the team honored DaCosta and her teammate Maggie Smith ’25. Quinn said the night was one to remember.

“[It’s] just really mesmerizing to watch your amazing teammates be celebrated,” Quinn said. “I know we didn’t win the game, but it doesn’t matter. We celebrated our awesome seniors, and that’s all I care about.”

For her part, DaCosta said it was both difficult and meaningful to experience her last game as a Wesleyan basketball player. 

“It was really fulfilling, and it was a really beautiful and sad moment all wrapped up into one,” DaCosta said. “I wouldn’t have wanted to end my season with a better group of girls.”

For the majority of the season, the Cards avoided getting ahead of themselves, using Head Coach of Women’s Basketball Kate Mullen’s “next play” mentality to take it one game at a time. But with the 2024–25 season officially in the rearview mirror, Quinn said that the Red and Black are finally letting themselves anticipate next year. 

“We have another fresh group of four [first-years] coming in, so really bringing them into what it means to be on the Wesleyan women’s basketball team, teaching them our culture and just building our ‘bird family,’ as we call it,” Quinn said. “Hopefully [we’ll] get some wins. Beating Williams next year would be awesome.” 

Meanwhile, DaCosta shared her own hopes for the program after she departs.

“I just want them to go out there and kick some ass,” DaCosta said. “They are all so talented and so special. I believe that there’s no other group of girls that’s gonna do it. It’s this group.”

Audrey Nelson can be reached at aanelson@wesleyan.edu.