Greenville, S.C. – The Furman volleyball team is moving on to the championship match of the SoCon Volleyball Championship after defeating the fourth-seeded Chattanooga Mocs in a five-set thriller 3-2 (18-25, 26-24, 25-23, 24-26, 16-14) during the semifinal round, Saturday evening inside Timmons Arena.

The No. 8 seed Paladins (11-18) improve their winning streak to five consecutive matches and advance to the championship match for the first time since 2015. Chattanooga's season ends with a 17-16 overall record.

Furman had four players finish with double-digit kills led by double-doubles from Sarah Turner, Mary Beth Headley, and SoCon All-Freshman selection Lauren Haynes. Turner recorded her team-leading 11^th double-double of the season with 32 assists and 13 digs, Headley turned in her 10^th double-double on 19 digs and 18 kills, and Haynes her sixth double-double on 19 kills and 19 digs. Morgan Cobb set new career high with 18 kills while Sydney Turner added a season best 10. Ella Abraham dished out a season best 26 assists and Andrea Aceveda led the team with 24 digs.

Natalie Tyson led all players with 29 kills for the Mocs and compiled a double-double on 15 assists. Halle Olson also had a double-double after tallying 16 digs and 10 kills. Sydney Hall added 10 kills and Elaine Redman collected 55 assists and eight digs. Paige Gallentine and Makenzie Jordan registered 30 and 15 digs.

After dropping the opening set 25-18, the Paladins would capture the next two sets that saw the score tied 24 times and the lead change hands on 11 different occasions. Furman would take a 2-1 lead in the match after winning the second set 26-24 and 25-23 in the third.

Headley led the Paladins in the second set with a near double-double of eight digs and six kills on .500 hitting while Haynes and Tanner combined for seven kills. Neither team led by more than three points as Furman went in front 20-18 during the later stages following back-to-back Chattanooga attack errors. The Paladins were at set point leading 24-23, but the Mocs would send the set into extra points. Furman secured the 26-24 victory when it received kills from Tanner and Haynes.

The Paladins used a balanced offensive attack in the third set with seven players registering at least one kill, led by Cobb's four. Chattanooga held a 15-13 lead midway before Furman used a 9-5 run to lead 22-20 when Headley connected on a kill. The Mocs would score three of the next four points to even the score at 23-23. Haynes and Cobb combined for the last two kills to give the Paladins the 25-23 win.

Chattanooga sent the match into the fifth set after taking the fourth 26-24 highlighted by 10 ties with five coming over the last 15 points.

Cobb, Haynes, and Headley combined for 12 of Furman's 13 kills in the fifth set as it posted a .312 hitting percentage. The Paladins opened the set scoring six of the initial eight points and took a 6-2 lead following three straight kills by Cobb, leading to a Mocs timeout. Trailing 10-8, Chattanooga would go on a 5-1 run and hold a 13-11 advantage. Haynes evened the score two plays later with back-to-back kills. The teams traded the next two points before Furman got kills by Cobb and Headley to secure the 16-14 set win and 3-2 match victory.

For the ninth time this season, the Paladins concluded the match with double-digit blocks after totaling 11. Watkins led Furman with seven assisted blocks while Tanner added four (two solo, two assisted) and Cobb three unassisted.

The Paladins will face No. 2 seed Samford in the championship match Sunday afternoon at 4 p.m. The Bulldogs held off third-seeded Western Carolina, 3-2, in the second semifinal match Saturday.

Fans can follow the action on www.furmanpaladins.com via live stats. The match is being streamed via paid subscription on ESPN+. Updates will also be posted on the Furman volleyball Twitter page (@FurmanVB).

Tickets for the match are $10 for adults and $5 for kids. Students from SoCon schools receive free admission with their school ID. Click here for tournament ticket information.