Wake Forest Women's Basketball Win Season Opener One Point at a Time
In this story:
The Wake Forest Women's Basketball team opened up the 2025-26 season at the Joel with a win over the Radford Highlanders.
And they did the hard way - one point at a time. The team made 20 free throws in the game. That was the most points from the charity stripe in the four years that Megan Gebbia has been the head coach in Winston-Salem.
In addition to the free throws, the Deacs excelled on the boards, coming away with 48 rebounds - the second-most in the Gebbia Era. The only game with a higher total came against Longwood on Dec. 15, 2022, when the Deacs pulled down 50 rebounds.
Freshman guard Milan Brown made her debut as a Deac with 10 points and 12 rebounds, making her the first freshman to hit a double-double in Gebbia's four years. She was also the first known Wake Forest player to do so in this century (2000-present) in her rookie debut.
Double-double in her debut 🚨
— Wake Forest Women's Basketball (@WakeWBB) November 3, 2025
✅ 10 points
💪 12 rebounds pic.twitter.com/B4igYVAZgb
Mary Carter, a redshirt-junior transfer guard/forward from Cal-Poly, made her debut in the Old Gold & Black with a team-high 16 points. In two seasons in San Luis Obispo, Carter totaled 550 points and 257 rebounds. Last year, the Rocklin, California-native average 12.7 points per game in 27 games played.
Freshman forward Opal Bird recorded her first double-figure scoring effort of her collegiate career, finishing the night with 10 points, including six of the Deacs' 20 free throw makes.
Sophomore forward Grace Oliver nearly had a double-double in her Wake Forest debut, posting nine points and nine rebounds.
How did the Deacs Pull Out the Season Opener Win?
The first quarter was a tough one for both teams. Radford outscored the Deacs 8-5 in the first 12 minutes of play. The Deacs shot 1-for-18 (5.6%) and made their first three free throws in the quarter. Radford wasn't much better, going 4-for-20 (20%).
The Deacs opened up the 2nd quarter with an 11-0 run. This included Carter posting five points and the Deacs going 6-for-10 from the free-throw line during this run. In her Demon Deacon debut, freshman guard Caitlyn Jones kept the Deacs in front with a jumper in the paint, making it 20-17 with 4:36 left before half.
Keep shooting Mary 🔥
— Wake Forest Women's Basketball (@WakeWBB) November 3, 2025
✅ 14 points
💪 Eight rebounds pic.twitter.com/wHuAsZRhTb
However, going into the break, Radford held a slight lead at 27-25. For the Deacs, Brown led all three offensive categories at the half with five points, seven rebounds and two assists.
With three minutes remaining in the quarter, Brown reached double digits in points and tied up the contest at 38-38. As the clock was running down, Oliver notched a jumper to give the Deacs the 45-44 lead to close out the third quarter.
Aurora Sørbye added two from the line to give Wake Forest a 10-point lead with thirty seconds remaining in the contest.
What's Next?
The Demon Deacons are back home again on Thursday when the Deacs play host to Presbyterian at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. on ACC Network Extra.
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Barry is the managing editor/publisher of both the TCU Horned Frogs On SI and Wake Forest Demon Deacons On SI sites. He oversees a team of 15+ writers, photographers, and podcasters covering all sports at both schools. He writes on football, basketball (men’s and women’s), baseball, men’s tennis, and other sports as needed. His weekly articles include ACC Power Rankings and Poll Watching during the football, basketball, and baseball seasons. Barry is a member of the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), U.S. Basketball Writers Association (USBWA), and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA). He has covered the 2022 Fiesta Bowl, the 2023 College Football National Championship, the 2023 College World Series, the 2024 NCAA Men’s Tennis National Championship, Big 12 Football Media Days, and Big 12 Basketball Media Days. He is an avid sports fan and traveler, and he loves any opportunity to see a sporting event in person. He has been to 18 of the 30 MLB ballparks, experienced game day at 25 college football stadiums, seen 21 NFL stadiums, and been to 16 bowl games.