GREENVILLE, S.C. – The 2026 Conference Carolinas Women’s Basketball Championship opened with three tight first-round contests on Sunday evening. Young Harris College, Emmanuel University and Ferrum College all earned victories to advance to the second round.
No. 10 Emmanuel def. King 70-67
King jumped ahead with the first basket of the game, but Emmanuel responded with five straight points to take the lead and never trailed again. The contest was tied five times, but Emmanuel held off a late Tornado run to advance to the second round. The Lions led 20-15 after the opening 10 minutes and held a 35-31 lead at the half. The Tornado tied the contest at 39 and again at 42, but the Lions responded with a 14-0 run and held a 56-44 lead after three periods.
King used an 11-0 run in the fourth quarter to pull within 59-57 with six minutes remaining. Emmanuel extended their lead back to 65-57, but King fought back again, pulling within one twice. The second time at 68-67 in the final minute. Naomi Roberts made a pair of free throws with 14 seconds remaining to give Emmanuel a 70-67 lead. The Tornado couldn’t convert in the waning seconds, giving Emmanuel the win.
Roberts led three Emmanuel scorers in double figures with 23 points while Natalee Goff added 14 points and 13 rebounds. Alayna Smith led three King scorers in double figures with 21 points to go along with eight rebounds.
Emmanuel advances to face fourth seed Shorter University at 5:00 p.m. on Monday night. The winner will advance to the quarterfinals on Friday.
No. 11 Ferrum def. No. 8 UNC Pembroke 74-71
In a contest that went back-and-forth with 11 lead changes and four ties, Ferrum held off UNC Pembroke to advance to the second round. The Panthers scored six straight points to take a 12-7 lead before holding a 15-14 advantage after the opening 10 minutes. The teams went back-and-forth early in the second quarter before a 10-2 Ferrum run gave the Panthers a 29-22 lead as Ferrum led 41-33 at the half.
The Panther lead grew to 57-43 in the third quarter and Ferrum led 57-47 going to the fourth quarter. UNC Pembroke then used a 10-2 run in the fourth quarter to pull within 62-61 midway through the final period and later took a 65-64 lead on an Anastasia Sinclair triple. The Braves extended their lead to three twice, the final time at 69-66 before Ferrum scored consecutive baskets to regain a 70-69 lead. UNC Pembroke responded with a Bre’Asia Washington layup to take a 71-70 lead with 26 seconds remaining. However, Ferrum’s Breyana Kimmons converted a layup with eight seconds remaining to give the lead back to the Panthers. Maslyn Mosbacher iced the 74-71 win with a pair of free throws in the final second.
Kimmons led three Ferrum scorers in double figures with 17 points while Washington led UNC Pembroke with 24 points.
Ferrum advances to the second round to face fifth seed Lees-McRae College at 5:00 p.m. on Monday night. The winner will advance to the quarterfinals on Friday.
No. 7 Young Harris def. No. 12 Mount Olive 50-48
Young Harris held off a second half rally from Mount Olive and used to free throws to break a tie in the final 10 seconds to advance. The Mountain Lions started by scoring the final four points of the opening period to take a 12-7 lead. Young Harris used a 7-0 run to take their largest lead, 19-9 in the middle of the second quarter, but the Trojans came back and pulled within 23-20 at the half.
Mount Olive evened the score at 28 midway through the third quarter, but Young Harris pushed their lead back to seven and led 39-34 going to the final period. Mount Olive again chipped away and evened the score at 46 before taking a 48-46 lead with two minutes remaining. The Mountain Lions evened the tally on the following possession before making a pair of free throws in the waning seconds to advance.
Kamryn Bates led Young Harris with 11 points while Chassidy Fedd followed with 10 points and six rebounds. For Mount Olive, Savannah McAfee led the way with 18 points and seven rebounds.
Young Harris advances to the second round to face sixth seed Chowan University at 5:00 p.m. on Monday night. The winner will advance to the quarterfinals on Friday.
TOURNAMENT PAGE | BRACKET | LIVE VIDEO | FINAL SITE TICKETS
2026 Conference Carolinas Women's Basketball Championship
First Round – Sunday, March 1 at No. 4-5-6 Seeds
No. 10 Emmanuel def. No. 9 King , 70-67
BOX SCORE
No. 11 Ferrum def. No. 8 UNC Pembroke, 74-71
BOX SCORE
No. 7 Young Harris def. No. 12 Mount Olive, 50-48
BOX SCORE
Second Round – Monday, March 2 at No. 4-5-6 Seeds
No. 10 Emmanuel at No. 4 Shorter, 5:00 p.m.
No. 11 Ferrum at No. 5 Lees-McRae, 5:00 p.m.
No. 7 Young Harris at No. 6 Chowan, 5:00 p.m.
Quarterfinals – Friday, March 6 (at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium – Spartanburg, S.C.)
Winner of 5-8-11 vs. Winner 4-9-10, 6:00 p.m.
Winner of 6-7-12 vs. No. 3 Belmont Abbey, 8:30 p.m.
Semifinals – Saturday, March 7 (at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium – Spartanburg, S.C.)
Winner of 4-5-8-9-10-11 vs. No. 1 Francis Marion, 5:15 p.m.
Winner of 3-6-7-12 vs. No. 2 Barton, 7:30 p.m.
Final – Sunday, March 8 (at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium – Spartanburg, S.C.)
Winner of Semifinal 1 vs. Winner of Semifinal 2, 4:00 p.m.