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No. 6 Furman, No. 4 Wofford advance to the SoCon Semifinals
Paladins upset Bucs, 64-58; Wofford battles to a 58-56 victory over the Bulldogs
No. 6 Furman 64, No. 3 East Tennessee State 58
ASHEVILLE - The third time was the charm for Furman against No. 3 seed East Tennessee State on Thursday as the Paladins fought off a pesky Buccaneers team, 64-58, in the quarterfinals of the Ingles South Conference Women's basketball Championship Tournament at Harrash's Cherokee Center. Despite losing to ETSU last Saturday for the second time this season, the No. 6 seeded Paladins earned a berth in the SoCons semifinals and will play No. 2 seed Chattanooga on Friday.
The teams battled to a 30-30 tie by intermission as Furman ended the half on a 13-6 run to erase a 24-17 deficit. The spurt was led by Jaclyn Acker, who made a pair of threes during the final minutes. ETSU trailed 30-28 before a basket by Kendall Folley with 22 seconds left tied the score. Acker, who scored nine points in the half, led a surge by the Furman reserves, who outscored the Buccaneers bench players 21-7 in the opening half. Meghan Downing opened the second-half scoring with a three-pointer to give the Bucs a 33-30 lead. Furman, though, went on a 13-1 run to open a 43-34 advantage with 4:35 remaining in the quarter. ETSU battled back and cut the deficit to 52-48, but Sydney Ryan's second three-pointer of the period gave Furman a 55-48 lead just before the end of the quarter. Courtney Moore's fastbreak layup created off a Furman turnover pulled the Mocs to 61-58 with 1:41 remaining. But those were their final points. They missed a three-point attempt that would have tied it with 2 seconds left. Furman scored its final three points on free throws to secure the victory. Jada Sessions scored 13 points, and Tate Walters added 10 for Furman. ETSU's Downing led all scorers with 16 points, and Folley finished with 15. Records: Furman 16-15, ETSU 17-13.
STATS TO KNOW
- Furman's bench outscored ETSU's reserves 27-9.
- There were five lead changes and five ties during the game.
- Furman outscored ETSU in the paint 32-26.
No. 4 Wofford 58, No. 5 Samford 56
ASHEVILLE --Wofford sophomore Evangelia Paulk had a triumphant return home, scoring the winning basket with 10.8 seconds left to give the No. 4 seeded Terriers a 58-56 win over Samford No. 5 Samford in the final quarterfinal game of the Ingles Southern Conference Women's basketball Championship Tournament at Harrah's Cherokee Center Thursday night. Paulk, a graduate of Asheville High who recently was named the SoCon Player of the year, took a pass from Maddie Heiss and scored a layup with a defender on her to break the tie and send the Terriers into Friday's semifinals, where they will play No. 1 seed UNC Greensboro. The Bulldogs had a chance to send the game into overtime, but guard Kennedy Langham missed a short shot as time expired. Paulk, who came into the game with a 13.2 scoring average, finished with just 7 points, although five of those came in the final quarter. Helen Matthews led Wofford with 20 points. Claire Johnson and Alonya Waldon had 19 and 17, respectively, for the Bulldogs. Paulk had a three-point play that gave Woffiord a 50-45 lead with 8:44 remaining. Forward Queen Ikhiuwu later followed with a basket that stretched the Wofford lead to seven, 54-47. Samford rallied and tied the game, 56-56. on a basket by Johnson with 2:33 remaining. Wofford had a shot clock violation with 39.8 seconds left, but Samford gave the ball right back when Sierra Godbolt was charged with an offensive foul with 31 seconds remaining. The Terriers called time and set up the play that won the game.
The first quarter went back and forth before Samford ended the quarter on top, 18-16, after a three-point basket with 15 seconds remaining. The Bulldogs, led by Waldon's four points, took a 24-16 lead, but Wofford responded, and Matthews knocked down a three with 38 seconds left that pulled the Terriers within four at 29-25. Samford scored the first five points of the third quarter to take a 34-25 lead, but the Terriers battled back and tied the game on a three-pointer by Matthews, 37-37 midway through the period. The quarter ended with a basket by Sadie Stetson that gave the Terriers a 45-43 lead.
STATS TO KNOW
- Samford committed 14 turnovers and had just seven assists. Wofford had 12 assists and 12 turnovers.
- Wofford made all nine of its free throws, and Samford made 11 of 15.
- Wofford received 17 points from its bench, compared to seven for Samford.
ASHEVILLE - The third time was the charm for Furman against No. 3 seed East Tennessee State on Thursday as the Paladins fought off a pesky Buccaneers team, 64-58, in the quarterfinals of the Ingles South Conference Women's basketball Championship Tournament at Harrash's Cherokee Center. Despite losing to ETSU last Saturday for the second time this season, the No. 6 seeded Paladins earned a berth in the SoCons semifinals and will play No. 2 seed Chattanooga on Friday.
The teams battled to a 30-30 tie by intermission as Furman ended the half on a 13-6 run to erase a 24-17 deficit. The spurt was led by Jaclyn Acker, who made a pair of threes during the final minutes. ETSU trailed 30-28 before a basket by Kendall Folley with 22 seconds left tied the score. Acker, who scored nine points in the half, led a surge by the Furman reserves, who outscored the Buccaneers bench players 21-7 in the opening half. Meghan Downing opened the second-half scoring with a three-pointer to give the Bucs a 33-30 lead. Furman, though, went on a 13-1 run to open a 43-34 advantage with 4:35 remaining in the quarter. ETSU battled back and cut the deficit to 52-48, but Sydney Ryan's second three-pointer of the period gave Furman a 55-48 lead just before the end of the quarter. Courtney Moore's fastbreak layup created off a Furman turnover pulled the Mocs to 61-58 with 1:41 remaining. But those were their final points. They missed a three-point attempt that would have tied it with 2 seconds left. Furman scored its final three points on free throws to secure the victory. Jada Sessions scored 13 points, and Tate Walters added 10 for Furman. ETSU's Downing led all scorers with 16 points, and Folley finished with 15. Records: Furman 16-15, ETSU 17-13.
STATS TO KNOW
- Furman's bench outscored ETSU's reserves 27-9.
- There were five lead changes and five ties during the game.
- Furman outscored ETSU in the paint 32-26.
No. 4 Wofford 58, No. 5 Samford 56
ASHEVILLE --Wofford sophomore Evangelia Paulk had a triumphant return home, scoring the winning basket with 10.8 seconds left to give the No. 4 seeded Terriers a 58-56 win over Samford No. 5 Samford in the final quarterfinal game of the Ingles Southern Conference Women's basketball Championship Tournament at Harrah's Cherokee Center Thursday night. Paulk, a graduate of Asheville High who recently was named the SoCon Player of the year, took a pass from Maddie Heiss and scored a layup with a defender on her to break the tie and send the Terriers into Friday's semifinals, where they will play No. 1 seed UNC Greensboro. The Bulldogs had a chance to send the game into overtime, but guard Kennedy Langham missed a short shot as time expired. Paulk, who came into the game with a 13.2 scoring average, finished with just 7 points, although five of those came in the final quarter. Helen Matthews led Wofford with 20 points. Claire Johnson and Alonya Waldon had 19 and 17, respectively, for the Bulldogs. Paulk had a three-point play that gave Woffiord a 50-45 lead with 8:44 remaining. Forward Queen Ikhiuwu later followed with a basket that stretched the Wofford lead to seven, 54-47. Samford rallied and tied the game, 56-56. on a basket by Johnson with 2:33 remaining. Wofford had a shot clock violation with 39.8 seconds left, but Samford gave the ball right back when Sierra Godbolt was charged with an offensive foul with 31 seconds remaining. The Terriers called time and set up the play that won the game.
The first quarter went back and forth before Samford ended the quarter on top, 18-16, after a three-point basket with 15 seconds remaining. The Bulldogs, led by Waldon's four points, took a 24-16 lead, but Wofford responded, and Matthews knocked down a three with 38 seconds left that pulled the Terriers within four at 29-25. Samford scored the first five points of the third quarter to take a 34-25 lead, but the Terriers battled back and tied the game on a three-pointer by Matthews, 37-37 midway through the period. The quarter ended with a basket by Sadie Stetson that gave the Terriers a 45-43 lead.
STATS TO KNOW
- Samford committed 14 turnovers and had just seven assists. Wofford had 12 assists and 12 turnovers.
- Wofford made all nine of its free throws, and Samford made 11 of 15.
- Wofford received 17 points from its bench, compared to seven for Samford.