2023–24 Gardner–Webb Runnin' Bulldogs women's basketball team

The 2023–24 Gardner–Webb Runnin' Bulldogs women's basketball team represented Gardner–Webb University during the 2023–24 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Runnin' Bulldogs, were led by first-year head coach Scott Merritt, played their home games at Paul Porter Arena in Boiling Springs, North Carolina as members of the Big South Conference.

2023–24 Gardner–Webb Runnin' Bulldogs women's basketball
Conference	Big South Conference
Record	6–24 (5–11 Big South)
Head coach	Scott Merritt (1st season)
Assistant coaches	Katie Nelson Lauren Holden Jonath Nicholas
Home arena	Paul Porter Arena
Seasons ← 2022–23 2024–25 →

2023–24 Big South women's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
High Point	14	–	2		.875			20	–	12		.625
USC Upstate	10	–	6		.625			16	–	16		.500
Radford	9	–	7		.563			15	–	18		.455
Charleston Southern	8	–	8		.500			11	–	19		.367
Presbyterian †	8	–	8		.500			21	–	15		.583
Winthrop	8	–	8		.500			14	–	16		.467
Longwood	6	–	10		.375			9	–	21		.300
Gardner–Webb	5	–	11		.313			6	–	24		.200
UNC Asheville	4	–	12		.250			11	–	20		.355
† 2024 Big South tournament winner

Previous season

The Runnin' Bulldogs finished the 2022–23 season 29–5, 18–0 in Big South play, to finish as Big South regular season champions.^[1] In the Big South tournament, they defeated UNC Asheville,^[2] Radford,^[3] and High Point to win the Big South tournament championship and earning the conference's automatic bid into the NCAA tournament.^[4] They received the #15 seed in the Greenville Regional 2.^[5] They would end up losing to #2 region seed Utah in the first round.^[6]

On April 6, head coach Alex Simmons announced that she would be stepping down, after 5 seasons at the helm, in order to take the head coaching position at Memphis.^[7] On April 22, the school named Wisconsin associate head coach Scott Merritt the team's next head coach.^[8]

Roster

2023–24 Gardner–Webb Runnin' Bulldogs women's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Year Previous school Hometown G 0 Micahla Funderburk 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) Sr Butler High School Charlotte, NC G 1 Kayla Martin 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) Fr St. Francis Prep Cambria Heights, NY G 2 Amina Gray 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) Fr Example Academy DeKalb, IL G 3 Lauren Bailey 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) Fr Greeneville High School Greeneville, TN G 5 Anaya Harris 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) Fr North Raleigh Christian Academy Raleigh, NC G 10 Nyla Walker 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m) So USC Upstate Frankfort, IL F 13 Andrea Martinez 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) Fr Boet Mataró Barcelona, Spain G 23 Ashley Hawkins 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) Jr Cypress College Long Beach, CA F 30 Ramatoulaye Keita 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) GS Buffalo Bamako, Mali C 33 Grace Pack 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) So TPLS Christian Academy Midlothian, VA F 44 Trinity Moreland 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) So Kansas City Charlotte, NC	Head coach Scott Merritt (Marquette) Assistant coach(es) Katie Nelson (Boston University) Lauren Holden (Fordham) Jonath Nicholas (UAB) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on   Injured   Current redshirt Roster Last update: January 12, 2024

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 8, 2023* 7:00 pm, ACCNX		at No. 16 North Carolina	L 49–102	0–1	16 – Funderburk	5 – 2 Tied	2 – 2 Tied	Carmichael Arena (2,212) Chapel Hill, NC
November 11, 2023* 1:00 pm, ESPN+		Elon	L 69–90	0–2	16 – 2 Tied	6 – Funderburk	5 – Hawkins	Paul Porter Arena (245) Boiling Springs, NC
November 15, 2023* 11:00 am, ESPN+		Richmond	L 53–80	0–3	12 – Hawkins	11 – Keita	4 – Hawkins	Paul Porter Arena (2,167) Boiling Springs, NC
November 17, 2023* 6:30 pm, ESPN+		at Charlotte	L 43–93	0–4	11 – Pack	5 – 3 Tied	4 – Hawkins	Dale F. Halton Arena (635) Charlotte, NC
November 20, 2023* 7:00 pm, FloHoops		at Charleston	L 78–90	0–5	18 – Walker	7 – Bailey	11 – Hawkins	TD Arena (285) Charleston, SC
November 26, 2023* 2:00 pm, ESPN+		at UNC Greensboro	L 47–64	0–6	10 – Funderburk	9 – Keita	2 – 2 Tied	Fleming Gymnasium (186) Greensboro, NC
November 29, 2023* 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Furman	L 66–73	0–7	23 – Hawkins	13 – Keita	5 – Hawkins	Paul Porter Arena (150) Boiling Springs, NC
December 7, 2023* 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Florida Gulf Coast	L 53–102	0–8	20 – Hawkins	8 – Keita	3 – Hawkins	Alico Arena (1,251) Fort Myers, FL
December 10, 2023* 1:00 pm, ESPN+		at South Florida	L 75–105	0–9	18 – Bailey	6 – Keita	8 – Hawkins	Yuengling Center (2,346) Tampa, FL
December 15, 2023* 8:00 pm, ESPN+		Appalachian State	W 82–78	1–9	28 – Hawkins	11 – Martinez	6 – Hawkins	Paul Porter Arena (117) Boiling Springs, NC
December 17, 2023* 3:00 pm, ESPN+		Florida	L 37–115	1–10	11 – Funderburk	8 – Pack	3 – Hawkins	Paul Porter Arena (270) Boiling Springs, NC
December 20, 2023* 5:00 pm, ESPN+		at East Tennessee State	L 48–60	1–11	15 – Hawkins	8 – Keita	3 – Hawkins	Brooks Gymnasium  Johnson City, TN
December 30, 2023* 2:00 pm, ESPN+		at Queens	L 48–66	1–12	10 – Pack	12 – Keita	7 – Hawkins	Curry Arena  Charlotte, NC
Big South regular season
January 6, 2024 1:00 pm, ESPN+		High Point	L 64–74	1–13 (0–1)	20 – Hawkins	12 – Keita	7 – Hawkins	Paul Porter Arena (215) Boiling Springs, NC
January 10, 2024 6:00 pm, ESPN+		at Charleston Southern	L 61–83	1–14 (0–2)	18 – Harris	9 – Keita	4 – Hawkins	Buccaneer Field House (347) North Charleston, SC
January 13, 2024 2:00 pm, ESPN+		at Presbyterian	W 72–58	2–14 (1–2)	19 – Hawkins	7 – Keita	8 – Hawkins	Templeton Physical Education Center (303) Clinton, SC
January 17, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Radford	L 71–80	2–15 (1–3)	20 – Hawkins	17 – Martinez	7 – Hawkins	Paul Porter Arena (115) Boiling Springs, NC
January 20, 2024 2:00 pm, ESPN+		at Winthrop	L 50–61	2–16 (1–4)	13 – Hawkins	5 – 3 Tied	5 – Hawkins	Winthrop Coliseum (218) Rock Hill, SC
January 24, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Longwood	W 74–59	3–16 (2–4)	15 – 2 Tied	13 – Keita	10 – Hawkins	Paul Porter Arena (208) Boiling Springs, NC
January 27, 2024 1:00 pm, ESPN+		USC Upstate	L 59–78	3–17 (2–5)	14 – Hawkins	16 – Keita	7 – Hawkins	Paul Porter Arena (509) Boiling Springs, NC
January 31, 2024 6:30 pm, ESPN+		at UNC Asheville	L 58–72	3–18 (2–6)	18 – Pack	7 – 2 Tied	6 – Hawkins	Kimmel Arena (341) Asheville, NC
February 7, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Presbyterian	W 86–57	4–18 (3–6)	21 – Funderburk	7 – Harris	9 – Hawkins	Paul Porter Arena (157) Boiling Springs, NC
February 10, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at High Point	L 72–75	4–19 (3–7)	22 – Hawkins	7 – 2 Tied	3 – Hawkins	Qubein Center (1,004) High Point, NC
February 14, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Charleston Southern	L 69–76	4–20 (3–8)	17 – Pack	11 – Pack	5 – Hawkins	Paul Porter Arena (152) Boiling Springs, NC
February 17, 2024 2:00 pm, ESPN+		at USC Upstate	L 56–73	4–21 (3–9)	11 – Hawkins	9 – Pack	7 – Hawkins	G. B. Hodge Center  Spartanburg, SC
February 21, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Radford	W 63–58	5–21 (4–9)	23 – Hawkins	12 – Bailey	5 – Hawkins	Dedmon Center (744) Radford, VA
February 24, 2024 1:00 pm, ESPN+		UNC Asheville	W 80–65	6–21 (5–9)	20 – Harris	6 – Keita	9 – Hawkins	Paul Porter Arena (255) Boiling Springs, NC
February 28, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Longwood	L 57–67	6–22 (5–10)	22 – Hawkins	8 – Hawkins	7 – Hawkins	Joan Perry Brock Center (873) Farmville, VA
March 2, 2024 1:00 pm, ESPN+		Winthrop	L 54–72	6–23 (5–11)	10 – Harris	5 – 2 Tied	4 – Harris	Paul Porter Arena (369) Boiling Springs, NC
Big South tournament
March 6, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN+	(8)	vs. (9) UNC Asheville Opening round	L 74–75	6–24	33 – Hawkins	9 – Hawkins	4 – Hawkins	Qubein Center  High Point, NC
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern.

Sources:^[9][10]

References

1. "2022-23 Women's Basketball Standings". Big South Conference. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
2. "No. 1 Gardner-Webb Rolls Past No. 8 UNC Asheville in Quarterfinals of 2023 Hercules Tires Big South Basketball Championships". Gardner-Webb University Athletics. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
3. "Women's Basketball's Valiant Effort to Upend Gardner-Webb Comes Up Just Short in Big South Semifinals". Radford University Athletics. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
4. Hughes, Joe L II (March 5, 2023). "Dancin' Dogs: Gardner-Webb women's basketball wins Big South, NCAA Tournament berth". The Shelby Star. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
5. "2023 Division I Women's Basketball Official Bracket". NCAA.com. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
6. Coon, John (March 18, 2023). "Pili, 2nd-seeded Utah dominate Gardner-Webb in March Madness". AP News. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
7. Munz, Jason (April 6, 2023). "Memphis women's basketball hires Alex Simmons, reigning Big South Coach of the Year". The Commercial Appeal. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
8. Stewart, Mark (April 22, 2023). "Scott Merritt leaves Wisconsin to become Gardner-Webb head women's basketball coach". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
9. "2023-24 Women's Basketball Schedule". Gardner-Webb University Athletics. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
10. "Gardner–Webb Runnin' Bulldogs 2023-24 Regular Season NCAAW Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved January 12, 2024.