Rock Hill, S.C. – Meagan Beal scored less than a minute into overtime to lift the Furman women's lacrosse team to a 15-14 overtime win over the Winthrop Eagles in Big South Conference action, Saturday afternoon at Eagle Field.
Furman, who has now won five of its last six games, improves to 5-6 on the season and 5-1 in conference play. With the loss, Winthrop drops to 3-11 overall and 2-4 in the Big South.
Beal, a junior from Brewster, N.Y., led the Paladins with six points on three goals, including the game-winner, and a career high three assists while adding five draws and two caused turnovers.
Hannah Dintino (4 goals, 1 assist) and
Anna Roser (3 goals, 2 assists) both contributed five points.
Paige Harman and
Lauren Farber both scored two goals while
Sophia Buzelis added two points on one goal and one assist.
Sophie Shaw dished out one assist and
Katelyn Sousa tied her career high of three ground balls. In goal,
Lily Rathbun recorded 12 saves and one ground ball.
Alyssa Angelo finished with a game high eight points for the Eagles on five goals and three assists. Claire Witmer collected a hat trick and Lauren Asher tallied three points on two goals and an assist while causing two turnovers. Kimora Bailey won four draws. Kelsey Johnson had 10 saves in goal and picked up two ground balls.
The matchup marked Furman's first overtime contest since the 2019 Southern Conference Tournament championship game against Mercer. The Paladins' last overtime victory came on April 8, 2018 when they defeated Kennesaw State 10-9 in Kennesaw, Ga.
Furman held a 14-9 lead late in the third quarter following Farber's second goal off Beal's assist. Winthrop scored five consecutive goals over the next 17:23 to send the game into overtime with the score even at 14-14. The Eagles netted the final two goals of the third period before outscoring the Paladins 3-0 in the fourth quarter. Witmer tied the game at 14-14 with 6:27 remaining in the contest.
Shaw won the opening draw in overtime and the Paladins maintained possession throughout the entire period. Furman had back-to-back free position attempts within 10 seconds of each other before Beal netted the game-winning goal, off the assist from Roser, to give the Paladins the victory.
Furman concluded the game attempting 32 shots and held a 9-7 advantage in ground balls and 18-15 in draws.
The Paladins are back in action on Wednesday, April 20 when they entertain High Point at 6 p.m. from Paladin Stadium.
