WHEELING, W.Va. – Despite the final score showing a 14-point victory, Notre Dame College went toe-to-toe with the seventh seed Wheeling University through three quarters. With the help of "smarter play" in the fourth quarter, along with a combined 51 points from Jada Marone and Seina Adachi, the Falcons earned a 75-61 victory.

The first quarter began one sided as NDC jumped ahead, 16-4, by the 3:40-mark. Wheeling started the game just 1-for-7 from the field and had seven turnovers, while Notre Dame went 7-for-11 (64-percent) from the floor over that same span.

A theme that popped up many times in the game was Wheeling climbing back into the contest, not letting the deficit slip too far. The Cardinals finished the quarter shooting 5-for-8 over the final 3:24. Late in the quarter, a 12-0 run tied the game at 16 with under a minute to go. That run began with back-to-back threes by Taliah Cashwell.

Notre Dame responded as Jessie Stout finished a layup and then stole the ball from Wheeling's Lilly Ritz, which allowed Katie Karalic to finish the quarter with a layup, putting NDC up 20-16. Despite a scoreless drought of three minutes, Notre Dame still finished the first quarter shooting 50-percent. Marone had nine points.

The second quarter was also too close for comfort for the No. 2 seeded Falcons. Wheeling's Khira Burton opened the second with a personal 4-0 run to tie the game at 20. Notre Dame's lead never got higher than four points for the first seven minutes of the second quarter and the game was tied at three different points.

Marone then put her head down and got to the basket on back-to-back possessions. That resulted in her getting fouled and knocking down the and-1 free throw, both times. Notre Dame received the spark they were looking for, going into the half.

As the teams went to the locker rooms, Notre Dame led 42-33. Marone had 17 points and Adachi added 10 points in the first half.

Marone and Adachi combined for Notre Dame's first six points of the second half and the Falcons' lead expanded to 11 points. NDC would need the cushion because they shot just 24-percent in the third stanza. An 8-2 run by Wheeling from the 4:21-mark in the quarter until the 1:45-mark, pulled the Cardinals within four points, 54-50.

Notre Dame began to pull away almost immediately in the fourth quarter. They did not panic, and went on a 10-2 run to open the final 10 minutes.

"Because we've had so many games and we've been in that situation before, we're just able to trust that the girls on the team, on the court, on the bench will come together and dig deep and play a little tougher, play a little smaller and finish the game, finish the quarter," Head Coach Lauren Macer explained.

"I think we took smarter shots in the fourth quarter," Adachi said. "In the third quarter we just jacked up shots and were missing a majority of them. So we played smarter and defense was a game changer."

With 3:57 to play, the Falcons held a comfortable 67-53 lead. Wheeling shot just 29-percent in the quarter, making it nearly impossible for them to respond.

"Definitely a step in the right direction for us," Macer said. "It's the first step that we needed. I was proud that we were able to adjust as they threw out different defenses and different looks. Wheeling went on a couple runs, but we bounced back. I was proud we finished the game strong."

Marone finished with 28 points, on 60-percent shooting from the floor along with an 8-for-10 mark at the free throw line. She also had six rebounds and three steals. Adachi added 23 points, on 69-percent shooting. She had six rebounds along with four steals. Katie Karalic added four points, six rebounds and two assists.

Another major factor in the game were the turnovers. Wheeling ended the game with 24 turnovers, including four turnovers over a stretch of five possessions in the second half. NDC had 15 steals and that helped the Falcons get down the floor quickly for 19 fastbreak points.

"We can get as many turnovers as we want, but it's about converting them into fast break points," Marone said. "I think we did a good job of converting them and that's when we took our lead.

Notre Dame will play the No. 3 seed University of Charleston on March 7, in the MEC Tournament Semifinals. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:15 p.m.