WACO, Texas – The Wofford volleyball team left it all on the court Thursday night in the Ferrell Center in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, but the Terriers fell in three sets (11-25, 11-25, 18-25) to the No.4 seeded Baylor Bears. The Terriers conclude their historic season at 23-9 while Baylor improves to 23-7.
 
"It was a great experience to make the NCAA Tournament," said head coach Lynze Roos. "I feel like it's an honor to compete in December. It's an honor to be in this tournament. I feel like I'm really proud of our girls, proud of the careers of [Mary Emily Morgan and Sarah MacLean] and our program for just being here to compete. I think Baylor's a great team. They came out to get things done today. We're going to be cheering them on through the next round. Hopefully, they advance, and we can say we lost to the champions."
 
Wofford was making its second-straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament after claiming a second consecutive Southern Conference Championship.
 
"Obviously, winning last year was a really big deal for our school and our program, so doing that back-to-back was huge," said senior Mary Emily Morgan. "It just sets the standard moving forward that we want to keep going. Also, we have a lot of young players, so getting to experience Baylor and getting to do all the things that go along with the NCAA Tournament was just really impactful for them as well."
 
The Terriers played plenty of long, hard-fought rallies with 40 digs on the night. However, Baylor claimed its biggest advantages on the serve and at the net with 10 aces and six blocks. Efficiency proved to be a great divider as the Bears hit .340 with the Terriers hitting .047.
 
Sarah MacLean led the way for Wofford with eight kills, hitting .412 with just a single error in 17 attacks. Bradley Brown posted five kills, and Anemarie Rakoski added four kills. Taylor Pecht quarterbacked the offense with 13 assists, and Maddy Fraizer contributed seven helpers.
 
"I just think that every player that I played with during my career has made me a better person and a better player," said the senior MacLean of her Terrier career. "I also had a great coaching staff all four years of being here. I think there's a lot of potential for the coming years to just set higher standards for us."
 
Laney Klika anchored the defense with 14 digs, and Bri Mahoney joined her in double figures with 10 digs. Mahoney and Frazier each sent home an ace, and Brown recorded the lone Wofford block of the night.
 
Baylor claimed the first point of the match, but Bri Mahoney struck back with a kill, However, the Bears won four in a row for an early 5-1 advantage. Down later 10-3, Wofford put together back-to-back kills from Bradley Brown, but the Bears would respond. The Terriers would notch kills from Sarah MacLean and Annemarie Rakoski to pull within 15-9. However, Baylor hit a groove and would go on to claim the set 25-11.
 
The Bears won the first two points of set two, but Wofford responded with a five-point run that began with a MacLean kill. After two Bear errors, Rakoski and MacLean struck for a 5-2 Wofford lead. Baylor would take the next three points to pull level, but MacLean struck once more for a 6-5 edge. However, Baylor won the next five points for a 10-6 advantage, and the Bears later pulled ahead 13-7. However, Mary Emily Morgan added a kill as Wofford tried to push back. But much like set one, the Bears found a rhythm and pulled away to win the set 25-11.
 
Though Baylor won the opening four points of set three, the Terriers pushed back with four-straight points of their own. Mahoney took charge with a kill and ace to sandwich a Baylor error, and MacLean capped the run with a kill. Rakoski followed a Baylor kill with one of her own to tie the set, but the Bears won the next five points. Baylor would pull ahead 20-13, but Wofford refused to quit. After a Bear error, Chloe Smith notched a kill before Maddy Frazier sent home an ace. A Smith kill followed a Baylor point for a 21-17 score. But the Bears won four of the next five points to claim the set and the match.
 
Despite the loss, Wofford put forth its best season in program history in 2024. The Terriers tied their Division I era record for wins with 23 and claimed the program's second-ever SoCon title alongside consecutive postseason appearances. Wofford set a new program record for digs in a season as Laney Klika improved to second on Wofford's single-season digs leaderboard with 615. She owns the most in program history under head coach Lynze Roos. With a win over No. 15 Tennessee back in September, Wofford added its first-ever victory over a ranked opponent. Wofford's senior trio of Sarah MacLean, Mary Emily Morgan, and Mad Wilson accrued 79 total wins over their accredited four-year careers, the most by a four-year class in program history.
 
"I'm so proud of these two [Sarah MacLean and Mary Emily Morgan] and the journey they've been on as volleyball players at Wofford," said Roos. "Coming in, I can look back in my mind and see these two walking into preseason. To be sitting here today with you guys is exactly what you dream of as a coach. The people that you are and the things you're going to do next is exactly what you hope for as a parent, as a coach, and as young people in this world. I think these are two of the finest young women you'll find playing in this tournament. When we walk out of this room, there are no regrets in the things they've accomplished and things that they can hang their hat on. Not just in the record books but sitting up here with two all-conference performers that when you recruit them as freshmen, you can see into the crystal ball of what they can be. When they accomplish it and we're sitting here seven states away, you earned all the things you've received this year. Yes, it's bittersweet to leave the way we are, but so much pride in these two and the impact they've had on Wofford."
 
Wofford will return to the court next season in the fall of 2025 looking to build upon another historic campaign.