SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Despite a strong overall effort, the Wofford women's basketball team was unable to hold off Chattanooga, falling, 71-61, on Thursday morning at Benjamin Johnson Arena.
 
In front of a season best crowd because of Education Day, the Terriers jumped out to a fast start, leading by as many as nine in the first half. However, the Mocs cut the Wofford lead to just one at the half. In the second half, Chattanooga began to establish an inside presence, taking the lead in the third quarter and holding it the rest of the way.
 
"It was a great atmosphere," head coach Jimmy Garrity said. "It's exciting for our players to play in that type of atmosphere. I felt like we really fed off the crowd. It gave us a lot of energy."
 
Terrier guards Maria Corella and Chloe Wanink each finished with 19 points to lead the team. For Corella, her 19 points were a season high, while her five made three pointers tied a career high. Wanink fell just short of notching her fifth 20 point scoring game of the season. The sophomore guard knocked down three shots from behind the arc in addition to grabbing five rebounds and dishing out a career best five assists.
 
Junior forward Kelsey Lambdin also had an outstanding game, adding 11 points and tying her career high with three made threes on just four attempts.  
 
Wofford led the entire way in the first quarter, taking a 20-16 lead after the first ten minutes. The team made all four of its three point attempts in the period.
 
"I thought we really came out of the gate well," Garrity said. "Knocking down those shots early was huge for us."
 
The Mocs were able to close the gap to just one in the second quarter because of a 58% showing from the floor. The Terriers made two more threes in the second to put them at 6 for 8 from three in the first half.
 
Coming out of halftime, the Mocs were able to take their first lead of the game. However, the Terriers kept within striking distance, taking just a two point deficit to the final quarter. Chattanooga began establishing a presence inside, as Jasmine Joyner, the nation's leader in blocked shots, added three in the third quarter.
 
After Lambind's three pointer cut Chattanooga's lead to 61-58 with just over five minutes remaining in the game, the Mocs scored the next five points and held the Terriers off the board until under a minute remaining. Joyner added three more blocks in the quarter to finish with eight total for the game. She also added 23 points and 15 rebounds in the Mocs' ten point victory.
 
Despite the loss, the Terriers shot 11 of 19 (57.9%) from beyond the arc. The 11 made threes is the second most for the team this year, trailing just the 12 they made in a 116-74 win over Erskine (Nov. 17). Wofford also dished out 16 assists to just 10 turnovers, while limiting Chattanooga to 12 assists and forcing 12 turnovers.
 
Chattanooga's inside and free throw advantage made all the difference, as the Mocs outscored the Terriers, 38-14, in the paint, while winning the rebounding battle, 34-26. They also were a remarkable 18-20 from the free throw line, with the Terriers only earned six free throw attempts for the game.
 
The loss is just the second at home for Wofford this season and was their first loss all season while leading at the half.
 
Up next, the Terriers will host ETSU this Saturday, Jan. 28 at 2 p.m.