This was the Golden Bears' first win over the Cardinals in 12 meetings dating back to 1989.
Junior guard Jon Godbout (Bristol, CT) contributed 17 points and no turnovers in 38 minutes as Western New England College improved its record to 2-1.
Sternstein, who missed last year with a shoulder injury, also pulled down four rebounds and had three assists with two blocks.
WNEC led 32-30 at half-time before Wesleyan came back to take a couple of short leads, including a 45-43 advantage following two free throws by junior center Robert Kelly (Springfield, MA) with 11:03 remaining in the game. Kelly finished with a double- double scoring 18 points and pulling down a game high 14 rebounds.
Western New England College extended its lead down the stretch taking it biggest lead at 66-52 following two Sternstein charity shots with 1:27 remaining in the game.
Senior guard Tim Holland (East Williston, NY) contributed 17 points, seven rebounds, and three steals for the Cardinals while freshman forward Nick Pelletier (Amherst, NH) had eight points and 10 rebounds off the bench.
Wesleyan (1-3) out-rebounded WNEC by a 55-37 margin, but shot only 31.3% from the field.