Wofford College Athletics

BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – The Wofford College volleyball team trailed Gardner-Webb 2-1 but won back-to-back sets to win the match 3-2 on Tuesday evening in Boiling Springs, North Carolina. Wofford improves to 7-5 while Gardner-Webb falls to 9-5.
 
Chloe Smith led the team with a match-high 19 kills and 11 digs for her fifth double-double of the season. Bradley Brown followed behind with 16 kills while Taylor Mendez posted a career-high 13 kills. Charlotte Bell had 10 kills on a .350 hitting percentage. Setting up the offense was Taylor Pecht with 31 assists and 11 digs for her fourth double-double of the season. Maddy Frazier dished out 22 assists. Pecht and Makaylee Ruiz led the team with two service aces apiece.
 
Laney Klika had a season-high 35 digs to lead the defense, giving her back-to-back matches with 30 or more digs. The 35 digs were the fifth-most in a match in program history. Ella Coleman followed behind with 22 digs. That is the first time since 2024 Wofford has had two players total 20 or more digs in the same match. Charlotte Bell had five blocks to lead the team, along with three from Bradley Brown. Chloe Smith and Emily Normand had two each.
 
Wofford finished the night with 69 kills on a .197 hitting percentage compared to 51 kills on a .147 percentage from Gardner-Webb. Wofford had seven aces while Gardner-Webb had five. The Runnin' Bulldogs recorded nine blocks to Wofford's eight. The Terriers had 97 digs on the night – the most since the SoCon Championship in 2025 (82).
 
Gardner-Webb started set one with an early 7-5 lead, but Wofford was able to tie the set at 7-7 after back-to-back points from Taylor Mendez and Taylor Pecht. Those two points were the start of an 8-2 run, giving Wofford a 13-9 lead. Gardner-Webb battled back, however, tying the set at 18-all. A 5-1 run at the end of the set from Gardner-Webb handed Wofford a 25-21 set one loss.
 
It was back-and-forth to start set two as both teams traded leads. With Wofford trailing 9-8, the team scored six unanswered points to gain a 13-9 advantage. Gardner-Webb cut the deficit to two points, 17-15, but Wofford was able to deter the comeback. The Terriers eventually went up 24-17 before ultimately earning a 25-19 set two win.
 
Gardner-Webb claimed an 8-5 lead to start set three. It was an 8-1 run from the Runnin' Bulldogs that allowed the team to stretch its lead to 12-6. Wofford later trailed 19-11, but the Terriers were able to bring the set back to one point, 21-20. The comeback fell short, however, with Gardner-Webb taking set three 25-22.
 
The Terriers responded in set four, scoring four unanswered points to start the stanza. Wofford turned those four points into a 9-3 lead. Wofford kept that momentum, taking a 15-9 lead into the media timeout. Gardner-Webb later cut the deficit to two points, 21-19, but three-straight points from Wofford pushed the Terrier lead to 24-19. The team would take set four 25-22.
 
Gardner-Webb started set five with an early lead as Wofford trailed 4-2 early on. With the Terriers trailing 6-5, the team rattled off a 5-0 run to take control of the set with a 10-6 lead. Gardner-Webb cut the Wofford lead to two points multiple times, but the team was able to win the final set 15-11 and the match 3-2 – the first five-set win of the year for Wofford.
 
The Terriers will now look ahead to SoCon action, with a trip to Chattanooga on September 25-26. Both matches can be streamed live on ESPN+.