SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Gardner-Webb kept pace with No. 9 Wofford throughout Saturday afternoon, but fell 27-24 to the Terriers in a hard-fought game at Gibbs Stadium.

The Runnin' Bulldogs (0-4) had won two of the past three in the series, and gave the Terriers (3-0) all they could handle on a sweltering Saturday. Paul Schumacher's 50-yard field goal attempt with 1:05 remaining was low and wide, and Wofford was able to run out the clock.

The Terriers have won their first three games in clutch fashion, beating Furman, Mercer and Gardner-Webb by a combined five points.

Gardner-Webb stymied Wofford in the early going, halting the Terriers' first trip to the red zone to force a 37-yard field goal by Luke Carter with 8:11 left in the first quarter.

The Runnin' Bulldogs got the chains moving into the Terriers' red zone early in the second quarter, and Paul Schumacher tied the game with a 30-yard kick with 9:57 left in the first half.

Wofford scored the game's first touchdown, with Brandon Goodson tossing a corner route to R.J. Taylor from 30 yards out. The extra point pushed the Terriers' lead to 10-3 with 4:40 left in the half. Wofford stopped Gardner-Webb's ensuing drive and forced a punt, but GWU made a big play on the defensive side to pull even.

Backup quarterback Joe Newman's pitch was dropped near the GWU sideline, and veteran safety Thomas Adams scooped the ball and raced 53 yards to the house. Schumacher's extra point tied the game with 2:39 to play before halftime.

Wofford answered, putting Newman back in the game to lead a seven-play, 75-yard drive that culminated with an Andre Stoddard scoring run from two yards out with just 28 seconds to play before intermission.

Trailing 17-10 to start the third quarter, Gardner-Webb came out with some early success to get into Wofford territory, but George Gbesee stepped in front of a Tyrell Maxwell pass at his own 33-yard line and raced the other way to give the Terriers a short field.

Gardner-Webb's defense stiffened in the red zone, but Carter connected on another short field goal for a 20-10 Terrier lead.

Maxwell recovered to get GWU back into Wofford territory, connecting with Adonus Lee on a 15-yard gain down to the Terrier 12-yard line. The drive stalled at the five-yard line, but Maxwell found Ralph Jolly on fourth down from that mark with 3:00 left in the quarter. Schumacher connected on the PAT to trim the Terriers' lead to 20-17.

Wofford went to work, however, with Stoddard capping a 75-yard drive with 26-yard dash right up the middle for a 27-17 lead with 39 seconds left in the third quarter. The drive took just five plays and 2:21 off the clock, with Goodson's 38-yard hookup over the middle to Taylor on third down the key play.

Maxwell moved his squad back into Wofford territory on the ensuing drive, but the Terriers stuffed a third-down pitch to force a punt – which Andrew Komornik pinned at the Wofford six-yard line with 11:19 to play in the game.

Gardner-Webb's defense pushed Wofford back to the five on three snaps, and Carter's rugby punt did not clear the midfield stripe – giving GWU possession with 9:45 left at the Wofford 45-yard line.

Maxwell took advantage, moving Gardner-Webb to the 23-yard line after a penalty. The senior connected with Willie Jackson IV on second down, and Jackson bounced off a pair of Wofford tacklers to race into the end zone with 7:45 on the game clock – pulling the 'Dogs within 27-24.

Wofford chewed up yardage and time on its next drive, working its triple option attack into Gardner-Webb territory as the clock ticked under five minutes. Lennox McAfee appeared caught in his own backfield on third down, but spun out of a tackle to get to the 34-yard line for a crucial first down with 3:02 to play.

Kenyatta Dunbar came up with a big play defensively with 2:39 left, forcing a Stoddard fumble that Dalton Cochran fell on at the Wofford 40-yard line. 

A dropped pass on first down and a batted down pass on second set up a key third down for Gardner-Webb, and Maxwell found Jackson on a slant to the Wofford 45-yard line to move the chains. Maxwell took off on a scramble to the Terrier 31-yard line with 1:56 left.

Wofford held, setting up a 50-yard field goal attempt by Schumacher with 1:05 on the clock. The kick was low and wide, handing the ball back the Terriers at the 33-yard line.

Gardner-Webb forced a fourth down on the ensuing drive, but was unable to stop the clock for one last chance as Wofford survived. 

Maxwell had his best day passing the football this season, connecting on 20-of-29 attempts for 171 yards and two scores. He also ran eight times for 44 yards.

Jackson had two catches for 38 yards and a score and Lee finished with a pair of catches for 32 yards to pace the receiving corps. Gardner-Webb finished the day with 270 total yards on 59 plays, with just 99 yards coming on the ground.

Adams led the defense, collecting a career-high 13 total tackles (10 solo) to go with his 53-yard fumble return touchdown. Jeffrey Pegues collected a season-high 12 stops and nose guard Josh Ramseur finished with nine hits. Dunbar had seven total tackles, 3.0 tackles for loss and a forced fumble on the day.

Wofford managed 372 yards offensively in the game, with 235 coming on the ground. The Terriers were efficient (8-of-14) on third down and held a 37:58-28:48 edge in possession time.

Goodson completed 8-of-12 passes for 117 yards and a score, with Taylor hauling in three of those balls for 72 yards. Stoddard ran for 91 yards on 16 carries to go with two touchdowns.

Gardner-Webb will enjoy an open date next week, before returning home to host Division II Shorter (Ga.) on Saturday, October 7. Kickoff is set for 1:30 pm on Homecoming Weekend.