SPARTANBURG, S.C. – A late scoring surge led the Wofford women's basketball team to a 55-48 win over Big South foe Charleston Southern in the Terriers' home opener on Saturday night at the Benjamin Johnson Arena.
Wofford (1-2) made a vital 14-6 run with 10 minutes left on the clock. Senior Lauren Kirby sparked the run, knocking down six of the first eight points, with two post plays and a pair of free throws. Junior Jordan Frazier then snagged one of her team-high five steals, taking it coast-to-coast for another Wofford bucket.
Charleston Southern (2-1) fought back, bringing the game back to a two point margin on a 10-2 surge powered by sophomore Tatum Jarvis. Jarvis netted six of her team-high 14 points during the run, but couldn't will the visiting Buccaneers to victory.
"In the first half our defense sustained us when our offense couldn't," said eleventh-year head coach Edgar I. Farmer, Jr. "We were stingy and held them under 30 percent shooting, but coming out of the locker room we knew we needed to get the ball in the basket. I'm proud of the way we came together and played as a unit. We hit some important free throws late in the game which was crucial to our success as well."
"We have a lot to build off of moving forward."
Three Terriers ended the evening scoring double digits. Frazier led the team off the bench, netting 12 in the contest. She shot 4-of-11 from the field while going a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe. Guards Chanel Stokes (4-7 FG, 3-8 FT) and Maria Corella (3-6 FG, 4-4 FT) added 11 points apiece. Junior guard Ashton Fleming added nine points while grabbing a team-high seven boards.
Jarvis was Charleston Southern's only player to earn more than 10 points. Rochelle Brophy added a second-best eight off of the bench, while Natasha Lebedeva scored seven. Alise Karlsone and Monique Maximilien each grabbed six rebounds for the Bucs.
Both teams struggled from the field in the first half, with the Terriers shooting 6-of-17 (35.3 pct.), while the Buccaneers were held to 26.1 percent – just 6-of-23. Wofford's offensive production jumped in the second half, with the Terriers sinking 50 percent of their shots, making 14 field goals and adding 12 points from the free throw line. The Terriers made havoc on the defensive end, forcing the Buccaneers into 27 turnovers, scoring 18 off of the mistakes. Charleston Southern's size helped them edge Wofford in rebounds (32-31) and second chance points (8-6). Despite Frazier's production, Charleston Southern outscored Wofford's bench points, putting up 26 to the Terriers' 16.
Both sides put up just four points each in the opening 10 minutes. Quick layups from Alecia Hardy and Karlsone gave the Bucs a brief advantage, before an Ashton Fleming jumper followed by a shot and two free throws from Corella gave the Terriers a 10-8 edge with just over seven minutes remaining in the first. The two sides traded buckets the rest of the half – Frazier and Fleming scoring for Wofford, while Lebedeva and Brophy netted two's for the Bucs to send the sides into the locker rooms at 14-12.
After Jarvis pulled the game within two points late in the second half, Wofford snuck ahead by eight. Corella drained a crucial three with 1:47 remaining in the game. A turnover by Brophy then led to a Kirby layup to give the Terriers a 51-44 advantage. Stokes knocked down a free throw to give Wofford 52 before the Bucs would respond. Charleston Southern had too little, too late, and were forced to foul the Terriers to try and catch up, eventually dropping the seven-point game.
Wofford will hit the road once again on Monday, travelling down to Jacksonville, Alabama, where they will face Jacksonville State on Tuesday evening. The Terriers and the Gamecocks clash at 6:30 p.m.
