ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The Southern Conference Tournament semifinal matchup between the Wofford Terriers and Furman Paladins came down to the wire Friday night, with the Paladins winning the back-and-forth tilt 64-59. Wofford's women's basketball team was paced by three double-digit scorers, but rebounds and free throws were the difference in the contest with the Paladins holding too much of an edge in both. The Terriers drop to 17-13 (11-3 SoCon) with the result, while Furman improves to 18-11 (10-4 SoCon).
 
"It was a fantastic basketball game. It was a great college basketball game," said head coach Jimmy Garrity of the semifinal matchup. "The biggest lead was five by them, four by us. Nine lead changes, six ties. Really proud of our players. Just an unbelievable year that we've had. Great coaches in our league, great players. I reminded our girls that they are a source of pride in our community and our college, and I just appreciate who they are as people. Congratulations to Furman. It doesn't really take away anything that we've done this year, and it was just a really good basketball game. At the end, they made a few more plays than we did."
 
The Terriers shot slightly better overall, 39.1 percent to 38.6 percent of Furman. However, the Paladins held the edge from distance, 36.0 percent to 20.8 percent, and from the free throw line, 68.8 percent to 44.4 percent. The Terriers missed five free throws (4-of-9) in the contest that was a five-point game. Furman's strength all season has been rebounding, and the Paladins won the glass again, 47-30. With 17 offensive boards, the Paladins secured 19 second chance points to Wofford's nine. The Terriers continued to play well in the paint, scoring 34 points down low to 20 for Furman. The Terriers also won the turnover battle, forcing 19 and committing 14.
 
"Our players play hard, and I told them in the locker room that all I really care about is their togetherness, and they played really, really hard for each other," said Garrity of the team's effort. "And that's been our thing day in and day out: great teammates to one another. I think Furman is one of the top rebounding teams in the country, and it got us there at the end. Seventeen offensive rebounds and 19 second-chance points was tough to overcome. We didn't shoot as well as we normally do, but I'll give Furman credit for that. They are really good defensively."
 
The game was tight the entire way, with neither team able to pull away or truly take control. Though Furman led the majority of the affair, 28:16 to 8:25 for Wofford, it was never comfortable for the Paladins. Furman's biggest lead of the game was only five points, and Wofford's largest edge was just four. There were six ties and nine lead changes in the matchup between the rivals. Wofford was able to pull ahead with 2:38 remaining in the game, but Furman responded to retake the lead and hold off the Terriers down the stretch.
 
"The girls have a lot to be proud about," said associate head coach Mike Merrill. "It was a tough one down the stretch. We felt like we got the momentum back there shortly, and then we just couldn't quite get enough rebounds down the stretch. Give Furman credit. They hit some big-time shots, and they made the plays."
 
Alexis Tomlin paced the Terriers for a second-straight game, netting 14 points with five boards. She swiped three of Wofford's nine steals to lead the team.
 
Reagan Rapert contributed 13 points. The freshman point guard continued to run the offense well after a tremendous rookie season, dishing a team-leading four assists. She added two steals, including a clutch swipe in the final minutes of the game to help lead Wofford's comeback efforts.
 
"It's been pretty awesome, all the history we made this year, and my teammates have been right there alongside me all the time," said Rapert of her freshman campaign. "They kept pushing me to be better, and I kept pushing them to be better, so it's been a fun ride."
 
Lilly Hatton bounced back after yesterday's game to score 11 points. She has posted double figures in seven of the last eight games. With a career-high-tying and team-leading 12 boards, the junior recorded her second double-double of the season (fifth career). It is the 11^th double-double by a Terrier this season, and this was the third consecutive game in which a Terrier recorded one. Defensively, she swatted four of Wofford's six blocks, tying her career-best.
 
Jackie Carman tallied eight points, and Annabelle Schultz was close behind with seven. Rounding out the scoring, Niyah Lutz totaled four while Abbey Crawford scored two.
 
Wofford won the opening tip, and Alexis Tomlin immediately scored a layup to give Wofford the early lead. 48 seconds later, Furman scored a three-pointer for its first lead. Jackie Carman buried one of her own at the 5:31 mark, and Tomlin followed suit with a layup to put Wofford back ahead and set a tone for the rest of the see-saw of a game. Lilly Hatton tied the score with a paint bucket near the end of the quarter, but Furman put home a layup in the closing seconds to lead 13-11 after the first 10 minutes.
 
The Paladins held a five-point advantage with 8:57 remaining in the second quarter, but the Terriers immediately responded with a nine-point run to go back up. Alexis Tomlin started it off with back-to-back layups before Lilly Hatton drained a trey. Annabelle Schultz capped it off with a jumper, and Wofford's lead stood at 22-18 at the 5:45 mark. Furman rallied back, though, going on a 10-2 run to end the half holding a 28-24 lead.
 
After the teams traded blows out of the break, a Reagan Rapert lay-in leveled the score at 33 apiece with 5:41 left. The Paladins immediately pulled back ahead with a three-pointer, but seven-straight Terrier points put Wofford back in front. Rapert scored once more to kick it off, and Niyah Lutz followed with a three-ball. Lilly Hatton finished the run with a layup, and Wofford's lead stood at four (40-36) with 2:56 remaining. Furman, however, went on its own run of eight points to pull out to a 44-40 advantage heading into the final quarter.
 
The squads were trading blows throughout the final frame, with neither side willing to give an inch. Annabelle Schultz dropped in a huge triple with 4:04 remaining to cut the deficit to two points (52-50) and give the Terriers some life. After a pair of Paladin free throws, Schultz again scored, this time in the paint, to cut the deficit back to two. After trading a free throw each, Wofford got to work. Lilly Hatton cleaned up a miss for a board and bucket to tie things up at 55 all, 2:41 left. On the ensuing inbound, Reagan Rapert swiped a steal and drew a foul, going to the charity stripe to sink both foul shots and put the Terriers in front at the 2:38 mark. Wofford seemed to have all the momentum, but the Paladins again had an answer, rattling off a seven-point run to pull back ahead by five with 14 seconds left. With the pressure on, Alexis Tomlin came through in the clutch to put home a layup with seven seconds left to pull Wofford within three. The Terriers fouled on the ensuing inbound, hoping for a pair of misses to have a chance. Unfortunately for Wofford, both shots were good, finalizing the game. Furman held on to win 64-59.
 
After a historic season, the Wofford women's basketball team is hopeful for its first taste of postseason action. The Terriers await Selection Sunday on March 13 to find out if their season will continue.