University of Georgia Athletics
Woolfolk, Lady Bulldogs Go Hard In Big Win
February 16, 2026 | Women's Basketball, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
Mia Woolfolk wasn't going to be denied Sunday afternoon at Stegeman Coliseum.
"Honestly, it's just my mindset that was working for me," the Georgia sophomore forward said after scoring 11 of the Lady Bulldogs' 20 points in the fourth quarter of their 76-74 win over No. 5 Vanderbilt.
"We were going into this game knowing that if we play how we can play, we can do whatever we want. And so now that we're in that position in the fourth quarter, all I know is, I got to work; like, I'm a dawg, I got to go hard."
Woolfolk did go hard, making key plays at both ends of the floor; she finished with 19 points, one off her career high, while also grabbing seven rebounds. As the Commodores tried to get off a tying shot in the closing seconds, it was Woolfolk and teammate Zhen Craft who got in front of Vandy's Sacha Washington and denied her a good look at the basket.
Before that, Vandy inbounded the ball after a timeout with 22.2 seconds left, and Georgia had everything covered, especially its defense on Commodores star Mikayla Blakes, who came in leading the nation in scoring with 26.3 points per game. The harassing defense eventually led to Vandy calling another timeout with 3.3 seconds left.
"I feel like that last possession really shows who we are, especially defensively," Woolfolk said. "We harp (on) defense in practice. Like, y'all think I'm B.S.-ing, but I'm so serious (laughs) — we harp defense in practice, and I feel like it finally showed off in that last possession."
"We're always going to harp on defense," Georgia head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson said. "And I think any really good team in the country is going to harp on defense to get a win like this."
Georgia, which is ranked No. 24 in this week's AP Top 25, led by 14 points in the second quarter before Vandy rallied. The game was tied 56-56 heading into the fourth, when every possession and every play helped decide the outcome.
The Commodores led 65-60 with 7:32 to play after Blakes hit a pair of free throws (she scored 19 of her 27 points at the line). Woolfolk answered with a basket inside and a foul, with her free throw making it 65-63. Georgia's Miyah Verse then tied the game with 6:23 to play on layup.
Later in the period, guard Dani Carnegie, who scored a game-high 29 points, made two free throws to put Georgia ahead 70-69 with 3:35 remaining. With 1:15 to go, Blakes hit two more free throws to put Vandy ahead 74-73. After Woolfolk rebounded a missed Carnegie jumper, guard Trinity Turner scored inside to put the Lady Bulldogs ahead 75-74 with 50 seconds left.
Georgia then caught a break when Vandy turned the ball over on a pass into the corner, giving the Lady Bulldogs the ball with 30 seconds to go. Carnegie was fouled and hit one of two free throws to make it a two-point game. After Vandy's timeout to set up its final possession, Coach ABE said all she could do was pray.
"I was just praying to God that we got that win," said Coach ABE, whose hair was drenched after her players gave a celebratory water bath in the locker room.
Georgia's win over the Commodores came the day after the NCAA selection committee revealed its top 16 teams in the country, with Vandy ranked No. 4, meaning the Commodores were in position for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament heading into the final two weeks of the regular season. For the Lady Bulldogs, the upset win, Georgia's first over a top-five team since 2021, was their third over a ranked team this season. Georgia also won at No. 1 7Ole Miss on Jan. 16, crushing the Rebels by 23 points, and won by five at No. 16 Kentucky on Jan. 24.
"Obviously, as coaches, we knew they were super talented, and so we've just got to get them to stay consistent on their talent," Coach ABE said.
Georgia was consistently excellent shooting Sunday, hitting 26 of 50 field-goal attempts, led by Woolfolk's 8-for-10 and Carnegie's 9-for-15. The Lady Bulldogs turned the ball over 19 times, to just 10 for Vandy, but were consistently strong on the defensive end to hold the Commodores to 18 points off those turnovers and just 37.1% shooting overall.
The Lady Bulldogs return to the Steg on Thursday to face another tough opponent in No. 10 Oklahoma.Â
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Staff Writer
Mia Woolfolk wasn't going to be denied Sunday afternoon at Stegeman Coliseum.
"Honestly, it's just my mindset that was working for me," the Georgia sophomore forward said after scoring 11 of the Lady Bulldogs' 20 points in the fourth quarter of their 76-74 win over No. 5 Vanderbilt.
"We were going into this game knowing that if we play how we can play, we can do whatever we want. And so now that we're in that position in the fourth quarter, all I know is, I got to work; like, I'm a dawg, I got to go hard."
Woolfolk did go hard, making key plays at both ends of the floor; she finished with 19 points, one off her career high, while also grabbing seven rebounds. As the Commodores tried to get off a tying shot in the closing seconds, it was Woolfolk and teammate Zhen Craft who got in front of Vandy's Sacha Washington and denied her a good look at the basket.
Before that, Vandy inbounded the ball after a timeout with 22.2 seconds left, and Georgia had everything covered, especially its defense on Commodores star Mikayla Blakes, who came in leading the nation in scoring with 26.3 points per game. The harassing defense eventually led to Vandy calling another timeout with 3.3 seconds left.
"I feel like that last possession really shows who we are, especially defensively," Woolfolk said. "We harp (on) defense in practice. Like, y'all think I'm B.S.-ing, but I'm so serious (laughs) — we harp defense in practice, and I feel like it finally showed off in that last possession."
"We're always going to harp on defense," Georgia head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson said. "And I think any really good team in the country is going to harp on defense to get a win like this."
Georgia, which is ranked No. 24 in this week's AP Top 25, led by 14 points in the second quarter before Vandy rallied. The game was tied 56-56 heading into the fourth, when every possession and every play helped decide the outcome.
The Commodores led 65-60 with 7:32 to play after Blakes hit a pair of free throws (she scored 19 of her 27 points at the line). Woolfolk answered with a basket inside and a foul, with her free throw making it 65-63. Georgia's Miyah Verse then tied the game with 6:23 to play on layup.
Later in the period, guard Dani Carnegie, who scored a game-high 29 points, made two free throws to put Georgia ahead 70-69 with 3:35 remaining. With 1:15 to go, Blakes hit two more free throws to put Vandy ahead 74-73. After Woolfolk rebounded a missed Carnegie jumper, guard Trinity Turner scored inside to put the Lady Bulldogs ahead 75-74 with 50 seconds left.
Georgia then caught a break when Vandy turned the ball over on a pass into the corner, giving the Lady Bulldogs the ball with 30 seconds to go. Carnegie was fouled and hit one of two free throws to make it a two-point game. After Vandy's timeout to set up its final possession, Coach ABE said all she could do was pray.
"I was just praying to God that we got that win," said Coach ABE, whose hair was drenched after her players gave a celebratory water bath in the locker room.
Georgia's win over the Commodores came the day after the NCAA selection committee revealed its top 16 teams in the country, with Vandy ranked No. 4, meaning the Commodores were in position for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament heading into the final two weeks of the regular season. For the Lady Bulldogs, the upset win, Georgia's first over a top-five team since 2021, was their third over a ranked team this season. Georgia also won at No. 1 7Ole Miss on Jan. 16, crushing the Rebels by 23 points, and won by five at No. 16 Kentucky on Jan. 24.
"Obviously, as coaches, we knew they were super talented, and so we've just got to get them to stay consistent on their talent," Coach ABE said.
Georgia was consistently excellent shooting Sunday, hitting 26 of 50 field-goal attempts, led by Woolfolk's 8-for-10 and Carnegie's 9-for-15. The Lady Bulldogs turned the ball over 19 times, to just 10 for Vandy, but were consistently strong on the defensive end to hold the Commodores to 18 points off those turnovers and just 37.1% shooting overall.
The Lady Bulldogs return to the Steg on Thursday to face another tough opponent in No. 10 Oklahoma.Â
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Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files.
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