MACON, Ga. – The Wofford women's basketball team again put forth a hard fight, this time against the Mercer Bears, Saturday afternoon in Hawkins Arena, but an early deficit after the first quarter proved too much to overcome as Wofford's late comeback attempt could not quite close the gap enough. The Terriers fell 79-74 and drop to 15-11 (7-5 SoCon). Mercer improves to 13-16 (7-6 SoCon).
 
Mercer's sharp shooting proved decisive, as the Bears shot 53 percent overall and an even 50 percent from distance. Wofford shot 39 percent and 20 percent beyond the arc. The Bears also won the glass, 41-33, but the Terriers secured more offensive boards, 11-9. The turnover battle again went Wofford's way with only 10 Terrier miscues to 17 Bear giveaways. This led to 18 points off turnovers for Wofford with 10 steals to just three extra points for Mercer.
 
Wofford got a balanced scoring effort with four Terriers in double figures. Rachael Rose led the way with 21 points, her ninth-straight game with 20 or more and her 45^th in a row in double-digits. Rose fell just short of a double-double with eight rebounds while dishing four assists. The junior added a steal and a block.
 
Evangelia Paulk totaled 17 points, one short of her career high. This was aided by four made threes, a new career best. Paulk secured five boards and added four steals with an assist. Annabelle Schultz netted 13 points with a perfect 7-of-7 effort at the charity stripe. Schultz added four rebounds. Maddie Heiss rounds out the double-digit scorers with 11 points. Heiss added a pair of boards with an assist, steal and block.
 
Vitolia Tuilave fell just short of being a fifth Terrier in double figures with her eight points. She added three rebounds with two assists and a block. Ja'Rae Smith and Sara Deidda round out the scoring with two points each. Smith added three steals. Indiya Clarke made her first start of the season, and though scoreless she secured seven rebounds.
 
Mercer opened with the game's first two points before Rachael Rose evened the contest with a paint score. Mercer reclaimed the lead and would ultimately never look back. However, Wofford kept things close early as a Maddie Heiss three made the margin one point, but the Bears would pull away and lead 17-9 after the first quarter of action.
 
The Terriers claimed the first five points of the second quarter to pull within three points (17-14), but Mercer found a rhythm and pulled out to a 15-point (31-16) lead. The Terriers kept fighting, and a three from Evangelia Paulk in the final 30 seconds gave the Terriers some life to enter the break, but Mercer scored the half's final points with a layup in the closing seconds. The Bears led 38-25 at the break.
 
Ready for a comeback, Wofford came out of halftime firing. Rose scored almost immediately, and despite a Mercer score Paulk buried a three. The third quarter proved to be an offensive explosion with both teams tallying over 20 points. Mercer's 23 helped the Bears keep pace with Wofford's 28. A Paulk three with a minute left made the margin 10 points, but the Bears responded with one of their own. However, Paulk went to work defensively with a steal to set up a Rose three at the buzzer, and the Terriers trailed by only 10, 61-51, entering the final frame.
 
Wofford opened the fourth with six-straight points, including a Heiss swipe and score. In total with Rose's three in the third, the nine-point run cut the score to 61-57. The teams began to trade blows as Paulk hit a three before a Bear bucket, and Rose's layup was matched with a jumper. The teams went blow-for-blow for a while until Annabelle Schultz was fouled while making a layup, and she finished off the three-point play at the 3:35 mark to pull Wofford within one (72-71). But Mercer secured four-straight points, and though Schultz knocked down a pair at the stripe, time was running thin. The Terriers had to start fouling, and Mercer made enough free throws. The Terriers still had a chance despite that, but Wofford was unable to convert after securing the board on an intentional free throw miss. The Bears held on to win 79-74.
 
Wofford returns home next week for the final two games of the regular season. The Terriers first host ETSU on Thursday, February 29, with a 7:00 p.m. tip-off. Two days later, Chattanooga comes to town for Senior Day with a start time of 2:00 p.m. Both contests will take place in the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium and will be streamed on ESPN+.