Wofford Pulls Away In Fourth Quarter, Downs Mercer

Thursday, February 19

Spartanburg, S.C.

11 a.m.

Mercer University

15-11,5-6SoCon

Wofford

15-11,9-3SoCon

Mercer

Wofford

Wofford Pulls Away In Fourth Quarter, Downs Mercer

2/19/2026 2:25:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

By: Todd Anderson, anderson_t02@mercer.edu

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Red-hot Wofford scored 18 points off of 20 Mercer turnovers and bridged the third and fourth quarters with a 14-2 run to turn back the visiting Bears, 72-58, on Thursday afternoon at the Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium.

Mercer (15-11, 5-6 SoCon) combined to shoot 43.5 percent from the field in the second and third periods, but countered hot shooting with 11 turnovers across that 20-minute stretch. It was the ninth win in the last 11 outings for the Terriers (15-11, 9-3) who have now won seven of the last eight series matchups with the Orange & Black as well.

THE BASICS

SCORE: Wofford 72, Mercer 58
RECORDS: Mercer 15-11 (5-6 SoCon); Wofford 15-11 (9-3 SoCon)
LOCATION: Spartanburg, S.C. (Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium)

HOW IT HAPPENED

1ST QUARTER

Wofford connected on half of their 16 field goal attempts in the game's first 10 minutes, and used a 3-pointer from Gabby Mundy at the 3:48 mark to take the lead for good. Mundy's layup less than a minute later sparked the Terriers on a 6-0 scoring spurt that eventually allowed them to lug a 21-15 advantage into the second frame.

2ND QUARTER

Mercer used a pair of free throws from Talia Kemp just less than two minutes into the second period to make it a one-possession game, 21-19, but a short jumper from Toni Warren on the other end of the court sparked the hosts on a 10-2 run that pushed their lead out to double digits 4-1/2 minutes later. Nahawa Diarra dropped in a 3-pointer with 1:11 left trimmed MU's deficit back to four points, but Mia Flor converted on a layup with 17 ticks left to give the hosts a 37-31 edge at the break.

3RD QUARTER

The Bears continued to chip away at their deficit in the third quarter, but the momentum swung for good in the final minute of the stanza. Wofford led 51-37 after Maddie Heiss's jumper with 3:16 remaining, but Mercer tacked up the game's next eight points to make it a two-possession, 51-45, affair once again. Wofford forced a pair of turnovers in the final 17 seconds of the period, however, and turned both miscues into points to forge a 55-45 lead heading to the final frame.

4TH QUARTER

The Terriers finished off their 14-2 run by raking in 10 of the final period's first 12 points, and eventually pushed their lead out to 18 points, 65-47, on two free throws from Toni Warren midway through. Mercer whittled its deficit back to a dozen points, 70-58, with 23 seconds left, but could not get any closer.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

+ Junior Elena Cabello came in off of the bench to register a career-high 22 points on 9-for-13 shooting, including a quartet of 3-pointers. She complemented her offensive numbers with seven rebounds and four steals.
+ Junior Abigail Holtman chipped in eight points, including a pair of triples, while also adding three rebounds and a steal.
+ Senior Nahawa Diarra, likewise, totaled eight points, while also tallying two assists and as many steals.

NOTABLES

+ Mercer converted 15 of its 19 (.789) free throw attempts on Thursday – the 11^th time this season that the Bears have shot 75 percent or better from the charity stripe.
+ The Bears have now registered at least one block in 40-straight games dating back to a four-swat performance at East Tennessee State on Jan. 16, 2025. MU got a lone block in Thursday's setback to Wofford.
+ MU has now tallied eight or more steals in 13 contests this season, including nine on Thursday against Wofford. The Bears are averaging 7.0 steals per game in 2025-26.

UP NEXT

Mercer will close out its four-game road trip on Saturday when it makes the short hop over to Greenville, S.C., to take on Furman (16-10, 8-3 SoCon) inside Timmons Arena. Tipoff is slated for 2 p.m.

STAY CONNECTED

Follow Mercer Women's Basketball on Twitter and Instagram and "Like" Mercer Women's Basketball on Facebook.

BACK THE BEARS

Fans can help support the Mercer athletics department by making a gift to the Mercer Athletic Foundation. To find out more information about the Mercer Athletic Foundation, email maf@mercer.edu.