SPARTANBURG, S.C. – After three games away from home, the Wofford women's basketball team returned to the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium Tuesday night with a 60-point dispatching of Southern Wesleyan (SWU), 95-35. Wofford improves to 3-2 with the triumph, and the Division II Warriors remain 1-3 with the contest officially an exhibition for them.
 
"Everybody played valuable minutes and did a really good job," said head coach Jimmy Garrity. "We had two players close to double-doubles. We shared the ball well. Coming in we thought we could get out in transition and run, and I was really happy with the way we pitched the ball ahead and then got paint touches and looked to attack."
 
Wofford posted several season highs in the contest, notably securing 49 rebounds and forcing 30 turnovers for a stout defensive effort. The last time Wofford forced at least 30 turnovers was in December of 2021 with 31 forced against Brevard. That was also the last time the Terriers scored at least 95 points. Wofford shot 52.7 percent (39-of-74) on the night with 10 made threes while holding the Warriors to a 19.6 percent clip (11-of-56). With 20 steals, the Terriers secured 25 fast break points and 42 total points off turnovers. Running deep, the Wofford bench tallied 53 points, outscoring the whole SWU team by 18 points.
 
"Really proud," said Clarke of the team's offensive performance. "We've talked about just coming out from the get-go, not waiting until the second or third quarter to kind of just prove who we are, and we did that off the first three possessions. I was proud to see that."
 
Six Terriers scored in double figures, led by Evangelia Paulk with 15 points in just 12 minutes of play. She was 7-of-8 with five rebounds, three assists and four steals. Madi Hawk and Indiya Clarke both tallied 13 points. Hawk's total is a new career best alongside her four boards and three helpers. Clarke was just shy of a double-double with nine rebounds while also posting a career-best six steals.
 
Molly Masingale netted 12 points with four boards, and Toni Warren posted a career-best 12 points with five rebounds. Queen Ikhiuwu also recorded a career high with 10 points to round out the double-digit scorers. With a career-best eight rebounds, she was also just short of a double-double while posting three assists.
 
Maddie Heiss almost joined them with nine points, and she added six rebounds with six steals. Sara Deidda dished a team and career-high seven assists while swiping four steals. Mia Flor added five boards and four points.
 
"I feel like I'm always looking for my teammates out there," said Deidda of her career-high assists. "I think that's my primary role, to make plays and create for others, and I was just looking for them."
 
Wofford opened the contest on the gas pedal with the first nine points. Maddie Heiss kicked off the scoring with a layup and three before Evangelia Paulk converted buckets off back-to-back steals. SWU got on the board with a pair of scores, but the Terriers remained hot with eight-straight points, six of which came off steals. A Sara Deidda three was followed by a SWU score, but the Terriers had six more points in a row thereafter. The Warriors would convert a pair of foul shots, but Molly Masingale tallied a fastbreak layup in her first-career start to close out a 30-10 first quarter. This quarter is now Wofford's highest-scoring quarter of the season.
 
After a SWU free throw opened the second quarter, Queen Ikhiuwu converted down low before Paulk swiped a steal and fed to Ikhiuwu for another bucket. The Warriors picked up some steam in the second quarter, trading blows with Wofford for 12 total points. But the Terriers closed the half strong with a three by Masingale to lead 47-22 entering the break.
 
Out of halftime, Mia Flor put home a layup. A Paulk three was sandwiched between a pair of SWU scores, but Wofford then embarked on a 16-point run. The run saw three Wofford steals and three-pointers by Madi Hawk and Toni Warren. Hawk would hit another three after the run ended, and Indiya Clarke converted a three-point play to close the quarter with Wofford leading 74-28.
 
The Terriers netted the first 16 points of the fourth quarter, which overall capped a 22-point run. Paulk opened the frame with a scoop and score. The run saw threes drained by Masingale and Warren, and Ikhiuwu capped the run with a paint bucket. The Terriers would run out the game from there, as despite some Warrior points, Hawk's three in the final 30 seconds served as an exclamation mark on a 95-35 triumph for Wofford.
 
Wofford remains home on Thursday to host High Point. The contest against the Panthers is set to tip off at 7:00 p.m. inside the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium.