The Wofford Women’s Basketball Team has just made history (again).
The team is the first women’s sport at Wofford to win the Southern Conference Regular Season Championship allowed to compete in the SoCon Regular Season Tournament the weekend of March 4.
“This is something that other sports teams on this campus want to do,” said Lilly Hatton ‘23, a forward from Georgetown, Indiana. “Hopefully, now that we’ve done it, we will see some other championships follow because we have some really talented teams on campus.”
The team started playing in 1981, competing in the Southern Conference beginning in 1995. After 28 years of hard work and competition within the conference, they were able to place at such a high level.
The Lady Terriers struck the championship after their 82-76 win against Mercer University on Saturday, Feb. 25. Several of the players helped to boost the score, ultimately leading to their victory.
Hatton recollects how she has witnessed the team grow from what she dubs a “middle-tier team” to now SoCon Regular Season Champions.
Jimmy Garrity has coached the Wofford Women’s Basketball Team for seven seasons, witnessing immense growth from all the women. He describes the team they are this year as “different.”
“This team cares about winning, no matter who is scoring or gets the minutes,” Garrity explained. “They put in the hard work and are competitive.”
“This team is the closest team we’ve had,” Hatton said. “We have the most individuals that really care about succeeding and winning a championship. When you have more members on your team bought into the idea, you’re more likely to achieve it.”
Part of what Garrity believes to also contribute to their success is the campus support. He explained that the women on the team are involved in many other aspects of the campus, allowing them to rally support from all corners.
“We want our players to have a great college experience in academics, basketball and culture,” Garrity explained. “When those boxes are checked for those three things, we can say that we’ve done something right.”
The culture aspect came true when Wofford Athletics provided free tickets to all students who wished to attend the finals in the tournament. They also provided transportation for the first 120 students to sign up.
On Thursday, March 2, Wofford Lady Terriers played against Western Carolina University for the first round of the tournament, winning 71-56. This win advanced them to round two of the Southern Conference Tournament.
In this second round, on Friday, March 3, the Lady Terriers played the University of North Carolina Greensboro Saints. They pulled through with another win, 68-63. This win placed them in the final round in the tournament against the Chattanooga Mocs.
Unfortunately for our beloved Terriers, Mocs pulled through with the win, 63-53, being named SoCon Tournament Champions.
Before the tournament, Garrity explained that the SoCon has never been so competitive, alluding to how any of the eight teams invited to the tournament could have won.
Still, the Wofford Women’s Basketball Team made history in making it to the tournament and will continue their post-season play in the WNIT. The Lady Terriers competed for the first time in the WNIT last year, acting as another milestone for the team.
This team makes history, and Garrity does not believe it will stop any time soon.
