BANNER ELK, North Carolina – Eleventh-seeded Ferrum College pulled off a thrilling 74–71 upset over eighth-seeded UNC Pembroke in the first round of the 2026 Conference Carolinas women's basketball tournament at Williams Gymnasium on the campus of Lees McRae. Breyana Kimmons led the Panthers with 17 points, while Taryn Blankenship added 14 points and Maslyn Mosbacher chipped in 12 points.

RECORDS
Ferrum 10-18, (7-13)
UNC Pembroke 13-14, (8-9)

THE BASICS
Ferrum jumped out to an early 15–14 lead after the first quarter and extended the advantage to 41–33 at halftime. The Panthers carried that momentum into the third quarter, outscoring UNC Pembroke 16–14 and building their largest lead of the game at 10 points.

UNC Pembroke stormed back in the fourth, briefly taking a 71–70 lead late in the game. Kimmons answered with a clutch layup with eight seconds remaining, and after a missed layup by Bre'Asia Washington, Sofia Ponce secured the rebound. A Ferrum timeout advanced the ball to half court, and UNC Pembroke fouled Mosbacher on the inbounded pass. She converted both free throws to make the final score 74–71.

The Panthers finished the game shooting 40.7 percent from the field and 35.3 percent from three-point range, while knocking down 24 our of of their 35 free throw attempts. Ferrum also recorded 29 rebounds, 17 bench points, and forced 8 turnovers that led to 17 points. The Panthers had a season low 8 turnovers. 

KEY STATS
Ferrum: Kimmons 17 pts; Blankenship 14 pts; Mosbacher 12 pts
UNC Pembroke: Washington 24 pts; Bailey 12 pts; Sinclair 11 pts

UP NEXT
Ferrum, the 11th seed, will take on fifth-seeded Lees-McRae on Monday, March 3 at 5:00 p.m. in the quarterfinals of the 2026 Conference Carolinas Tournament.