Box Score BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ---- Facing a 2-1 match deficit heading into the fourth set, Samford battled for two close wins in the final two sets to complete a 3-2 comeback victory over Wofford in Saturday night's regular season finale.
 
Samford (21-10, 12-4 SoCon) ends the regular season with a 12-4 SoCon record, tying for second place with Furman and finishing one game behind regular season champion Georgia Southern.  The Bulldogs will enter next weekend's SoCon Tournament as the #3 seed while Wofford (13-18, 8-8 SoCon) will be the #7 seed.
 
In Saturday's match neither team was particularly effective offensively, but the Bulldogs managed to take advantage of key opportunities late in sets four and five to ultimately seal the five-set win.  Michaela Reesor and Gabbi Greenwald were the Bulldogs' main weapons at the pins, finishing with 19 and 14 kills, respectively.  Erin Bognar showed great versatility, taking 37 swings with nine kills while also earning 11 digs and three blocks.  Bognar was one of three Bulldogs with double-digit digs, led by Chelsi Carter with 26 while Stephanie Palmer earned 16 along with 46 assists for her team-leading sixth double-double this season.
 
The night's opening frame was a Samford rout from the start as the Bulldogs jumped ahead to a significant 12-4 lead at the midway point.  After Samford built a double-digit lead, 16-6, Wofford began to creep back thanks to five unanswered points as the Bulldogs took a timeout leading 16-11.  Wofford would manage to draw within four points, trailing 21-17, but Samford would close out the set with a 4-1 run to win 25-18 for an early 1-0 match lead.
 
Wofford came out with renewed intensity to open set two, moving ahead 6-3 before a Terrier error and two Bulldog blocks tied the set at 6-6.  The lead would change six times before Samford took its first timeout, following a kill by Stephanie Palmer that gave the Bulldogs an 18-17 lead.  A Wofford attack error made it 19-17 but the Terriers bounced right back with four-straight points to retake a 21-19 lead as Samford burned its final timeout.  Wofford would reach set point, 24-22, and a kill by Bognar would give Samford back possession but a Samford attack error ended it as Wofford earned the two-point win, 25-23, to even the match at 1-1.
 
Much like set two, Wofford built an early lead in the third set before Samford eventually came back to tie it at 7-7.  The set was very tightly-contested until, down 11-10, Wofford rattled off four-straight kills to move ahead 14-11 as Samford took a timeout.  A 5-2 run after the break extended their lead to six points, 19-13, and Wofford would maintain a lead until reaching set point, 24-19.  Back-to-back kills by Greenwald and Emily Meitz drew the Bulldogs within three as Wofford took a frustrated timeout.  Samford could not complete the comeback to win the set however, as a service error gave Wofford the win on the very next point, 25-21.
 
Down 2-1 in the match, Samford needed to win set four if it wanted a chance to win the match in the fifth.  Tied at 7-7, Wofford scored four in a row to move ahead 11-7 but Samford would battle back with a 6-2 run to tie it back up at 13-13.  The Bulldogs would take advantage of multiple Terrier attack errors, moving ahead 18-14 before a 4-1 Wofford run made it a one-point game.  A Wofford service error gave Samford possession and the point, up 21-19, and a clutch 4-1 run by the Bulldogs down the closing stretch would give Samford the 25-20 set win and force a fifth set.
 
Early in set five, Wofford had much of the momentum, erasing a 3-2 Samford lead with four unanswered points to pull ahead 6-3.  The Terriers remained in front at the mid-set switch, leading 8-6.  With Wofford serving up 10-8, a kill by Greenwald and two huge blocks gave Samford back the lead, 11-10, as Wofford took a timeout.  It remained anybody's game in the closing moments, with the teams tied 13-13.  A kill by Greenwald gave the Bulldogs match point as the Hanna Center crowd leapt to its feet with Wofford burning its last timeout.  An errant Wofford attack on the next point sealed it as Samford completed the comeback with a 15-13 set-five victory to secure the 3-2 match win.
 
Samford, a #3 seed in next weekend's SoCon Tournament, will open postseason play against #6 Western Carolina (18-12, 8-8 SoCon) on Friday, Nov. 22 at 4:30 p.m. ET in Greenville, S.C.  The winner of that match will advance to Saturday's semifinals and will face the winner of #2 Furman vs. #7 Wofford.