Wake Forest Falls in WNIT Tournament First Round

Thursday, March 19

Winston-Salem, N.C.

6:00 PM

Wake Forest University

14-18,4-14ACC

Maryland Eastern Shore

20-14,11-3MEAC

UMES

Wake Forest

3/19/2026 8:26:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

The Demon Deacons were led by junior guard Mary Carter with 19 points and six rebounds.

By: Andrew Kovar

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The Wake Forest women's basketball team season ended in the first round of the WNIT, falling 59-48 to Maryland Eastern Shore in the first round Thursday night at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

The Demon Deacons (14-18, 4-14 ACC) set a season-high with 11 blocks against the Hawks, with a career-high five from freshman guard Grace Galbavy. Additionally, it marked the most for a Wake Forest team since having 11 blocks on Dec. 9, 2017 which also came against Maryland Eastern Shore (20-14, 11-3 MEAC).

It also was the first time since a freshman had five or more blocks in a game since Lindsey Jarosinski recorded five at NC State on February, 21, 2019. Additionally, it was just the second time a Wake Forest freshman has done so since the 2009-10 season.

On the offensive end of the floor, junior guard/forward Mary Carter finished the night with a season-high 19 points, going 7-of-17 from the floor while also a perfect 3-of-3 from the free throw line.

Freshman forward Opal Bird tied her season high with 10 points including going 3-of-4 at the line.

As a team, Wake Forest was nearly perfect at the charity stri[e on Thursday night, knocking down 14-of-15 free throws. Their 93.3 percent at the line was the highest of the season with 10 or more attempts.

How It Happened

The squads battled hard out of the gates.
- Graduate student forward Emily Johns put up the first points of the night for the Deacs.
- Junior guard/forward kept the offense going with a jumper at the 6:52 mark.
The Demon Deacons retook the lead with a deep three from sophomore guard Aurora Sørbye.
- Freshman forward Opal Bird made it 14-10 with a bucket from downtown.
Wake Forest led, 14-12 after 10.
An and-one from Carter opened the second quarter for the Deacs.
Johns extended the lead with a layup under the eighth minute.
With 2:43 in the half, Sørbye went 2-for-2 from the line.
The Demon Deacons trailed, 27-22 at the half.
Johns connected with Carter for two in the paint to cut into the Hawks' deficit.
- At 7:40, Carter reached double-digits with a three.
Nearing the five minute mark, Bird took a perfect trip to the stripe.
- Carter and Galbavy followed with a spotless trip of their own.
Galbavy returned to the line for two and brought the game within one, as UMES led 38-35 with a minute left in the third.
Wake Forest trailed, 40-35 before the fourth.
Galbavy opened the quarter with a breakaway layup to keep the Hawks' lead to five.
A layup from Bird put the Deacs back out front with six minutes left in the contest.
- Johns extended the lead with a second-chance layup.
Carter made it 48-45 with a bucket from downtown at the 4:41 mark.
The Deacs fell, 59-48 to UMES.

From Head Coach Megan Gebbia
"One of the biggest things from this game is we didn't shoot the ball well other than at the free throw line. Late in the game, we lost some assignments on defense. I am proud that this team fought to get back into the game but we didn't finish the way we needed to. We had too many turnovers and didn't rebound the ball well. That resulted in them getting more shots than us. I am thankful for Emily Johns who had a great career both at American and at Wake Forest. I wish we would have ended on a positive note for her and this team. I forever be grateful to her leadership and helping us take a step forward this year. It didn't end the way we wanted but we took a step forward as a program this year. Now we need to build on this momentum into the offseason and continue to push forward as a program into next season." - Megan Gebbia

SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
Historic Start
With nine wins to start the season, Wake Forest had its best start since the 2008-09 season, when the Deacs had 12 wins to start the season. Additionally, the Demon Deacons were the last undefeated in the ACC and one of just 28 teams in the country to win their first nine games of the season:

Date	Opponent	Result
Nov. 3	Radford	W, 71-64
Nov. 6	Presbyterian	W, 78-41
Nov. 9	Hampton	W, 77-48
Nov. 13	Mercer	W, 66-61
Nov. 20	NC Central	W, 68-65
Nov. 23	Western Carolina	W, 60-49
Nov. 26	Morgan State	W, 93-35
Nov. 27	UCF	W, 65-60
Nov. 28	Illinois State	W, 57-44

All-Freshman Milan
Wake Forest freshman guard Milan Brown earned ACC All-Freshman Team honors. Brown became the 15th Demon Deacon and first since guard Jewel Spear in 2020-21 to be selected to the All-Freshman team.

Her 9.0 points per game entering postseason were the most by a Wake Forest freshman since Elise Williams in 2021-22 and Brown's 6.2 rebounds per game were the most by a Demon Deacon freshman since Elisa Penna in 2015-16.

Going into postseason Brown ranked at or near the top in almost every statistical category including scoring, rebounding, assists and steals by ACC freshmen.

Freshman ACC Scoring

Rank	Points Per Game
1. Uche Izoje (Syracuse)	15.0 PPG
2. Theresa Hagans (Pitt)	12.6 PPG
3. Lara Somfai (Stanford)	10.6 PPG
4. Hailee Swain (Stanford)	10.0 PPG
5. Jocelyne Grier (Boston College)	9.3 PPG
6. Milan Brown (Wake Forest)	9.0 PPG

Freshman ACC Rebounding

Rank	Rebounds Per Game
1. Uche Izoje (Syracuse)	9.3 RPG
2. Lara Somfai (Stanford)	9.2 RPG
3. Milan Brown (Wake Forest)	6.2 RPG
4. Taylor Barnes (Cal)	5.1 RPG
5. Amirah Anderson (Boston College)	4.2 RPG

Freshman ACC Assists

Rank	Assists Per Game
1. Theresa Hagans (Pitt)	3.6 APG
2. Opal Bird (Wake Forest)	2.9 APG
3. Milan Brown (Wake Forest)	2.7 APG
T4. Caitlyn Jones (Wake Forest)	2.6 APG
T4. Aliyahna "Puff" Morris (Cal)	2.6 APG

Freshman ACC Steals

Rank	Steals Per Game
1. Theresa Hagans (Pitt)	1.6 SPG
2. Hailee Swain (Stanford)	1.1 SPG
3. Milan Brown (Wake Forest)	1.0 SPG

Assists On Made Baskets
Wake Forest finished with nine assists on 15 made baskets for the contest (60.0 percent). In 32 games this season, the Demon Deacons have totaled 539 assists on 790 field goals (68.2 percent) which would mark the highest percentage in a single season within the Megan Gebbia era.

The Demon Deacons are averaging 16.8 assists, fourth in the ACC behind Duke, Virginia and Louisville. Additionally, the Deacs are on pace to have the second-most assists in program history and the 16.8 assists per game currently ranks fourth in program history:

Season	Total Assists	Total Games	Assists/G
1987-88	563	31	18.2
1988-89	484	28	17.3
1986-87	466	27	17.3
2025-26	539	32	16.8
1989-90	469	28	16.8

The Deacs 539 assists this season is now ranked second most in school history:

Rank	Total Assists	Year
1.	563	1987-88
2.	539	2025-26
3.	489	2004-05
4.	488	1989-90
5.	484	1988-89

The Deacs did an excellent job of moving the ball last season, as they assisted on 394 of 667 made baskets this season (59.1 pct.). This was the highest assist percentage in the Gebbia era and the assist percentage ranks in the top 70 percent in the nation according to HerHoopStats.

In 2023-24, the Deacs assisted 404 of 694 made field goals (58.2 percent).

Forcing Them Over
The Demon Deacons forced the Hawks into 17 turnovers. Wake Forest has forced 10 or more takeaways 97 times in the last 100 games, a stretch dating back to January of 2022.

Through 32 games, the Demon Deacons have forced 14.0 turnovers per game.

Owning the Paint
The Demon Deacons had another excellent game in the paint, with 18 points posted inside.

Across 32 games, the Deacs have totaled 998 points in the paint (31.2 per game).

Sharpshooting Deacs
Over the last 18 games, the Demon Deacons have five double-digit three-point performances coming against Gardner-Webb, Pitt, NC State, Clemson, Virginia and Boston College. During that stretch, Wake Forest is averaging 7.4 threes made per game and the 132 threes made have accounted for 64.1 percent of the threes made for the entire season. Additionally, the Deacs are shooting at a high clip during that 18-game stretch, knocking down 132-of-335 3FG (39.4 pct.).

The Deacs finished the 2024-25 season knocking down 159 threes (5.5 3FGM per game). This included seven games with eight or more threes made.

Through the first three seasons under head coach Megan Gebbia, the Demon Deacons hit 599 threes in 96 games under her direction (6.2 3FGM per game).

This includes her first two seasons, which both rank in the top five in program history and this season ranks fourth in program history:

Rank	Single-Season Threes Made	Year
1.	275	2004-05
2.	227	2022-23
3.	215	2005-06
4.	210	2025-26
5.	204	2023-24

Grace is Historically Efficient
So far this season, sophomore forward Grace Oliver has been one of the most efficient players in the country, leading the ACC in field goal percentage and ranking ninth nationally, shooting 60.4 percent from the field:

Rank	Field Goal Percentage
1. Grace Oliver (Wake Forest)	60.4 pct.
2. Ra Shayna Kyle (Miami)	56.3 pct.
T3. Uche Izoje (Syracuse)	55.6 pct.
T3. Sakima Walker (Cal)	55.6 pct.
5. Toby Fournier (Duke)	53.2 pct.

Additionally, she has had one of the best seasons in program history as her 60.4 percent ranks sixth in Wake Forest history.

In a win over Gardner-Webb in December, Oliver finished the night going a perfect 14-for-14 from the floor, setting the ACC and Wake Forest record for field goal attempts without a miss. The previous ACC record was 12-of -12 from the floor by four players and was last done by Kalista Walters (Pittsburgh) against Chicago State on Dec. 31, 2017.

Additionally, this is just the ninth known occurrence in NCAA history of a player making 14 or more shots without a miss and first since Tinara Moore (CMU) on Jan. 9, 2016.

Since the turn of the century, only four players in Division-I have had 14 or more field goal attempts without a miss:

Player (School)	Date	Opponent	Field Goals	Points
Grace Oliver (Wake Forest)	Dec. 22, 2025	Gardner-Webb	14-of-14	30
Tinara Moore (CMU)	Jan. 9, 2016	Akron	16-of-16	35
Dyana Pierre (SIU)	Dec. 16, 2014	Murray State	14-of-14	31
Gwen Jackson (Tennessee)	Nov. 29, 2002	PR-May	14-of-14	28

Additionally, she recorded a new career-high with 30 points, breaking her previous high of 21 points against Mercer on Nov. 13. It also marks the first 30-plus point game by a Wake Forest forward since Dearica Hamby tallied 32 points against Georgia Tech on Feb. 28, 2015.