Kennesaw, Ga. – The Furman volleyball team suffered a 3-1 (20-25, 15-25, 26-24, 21-25) setback in non-conference play to the High Point Panthers, Friday afternoon at Kennesaw State's KSU Convocation Center.

Furman falls to 1-4 overall while High Point improves to 4-0 on the season.

Mary Beth Headley led the Paladins with her first career double-double after compiling career highs of 18 kills and 11 digs. Lauren Haynes provided nine kills and eight digs while Genevieve Perry compiled eight kills. Sarah Turner tallied 26 assists and nine digs, and Ella Abraham contributed 13 assists. Hadlee Ackerman led the team with 14 digs.

Dylan Maberry and Sydney Palazzolo both had double-doubles to lead the Owls. Maberry recorded 17 kills and 12 digs, and Palazzolo tallied 15 kills and 10 digs. Ally Van Eekeren posted 37 assists and nine digs. Defensively, Jillian Ziemba registered 15 digs.

Furman opened the first set on a 6-1 run and took a five-point advantage when Haynes collected her second point on a kill. After High Point cut the lead down to four, the Paladins recorded four consecutive points to take a 10-3 lead following back-to-back kills by Headley and Grainne McGrath. Furman would later hold a 13-8 lead when McGrath and Headley combined for a block. The Panthers outscored the Paladins 17-7 the remainder of the set for the 25-20 triumph.

High Point scored 10 of the first 12 points in set two and would lead by as many as 12 points midway at 16-4. Furman would get to within seven points when a service ace from Haynes put the score at 19-12. The Panthers closed out the set on a 6-3 run to win 25-15.

The third set was highlighted by 14 ties with both teams trading the first 32 points of the frame when Haynes' kill evened the score at 16-16. Haynes later gave the Paladins a 21-18 lead with her service ace before High Point made it 24-24 following a Furman ball handling error. A kill by Perry and a Panther service ace gave the Paladins the 26-24 victory.

High Point led throughout the fourth set that began with a 7-3 run. Furman stayed within three points for most of the set until the Panthers used a 5-2 run late to hold a 21-15 advantage, forcing the Paladins into a timeout. Furman made a late charge with a 6-3 run of its own and trailed 24-21 after a High Point attack error. The Panthers captured the set, and match, on the following play.

The Paladins concluded the match with a season high nine blocks led by five unassisted from Perry and four unassisted by Chandler Parker.

Furman wraps up tournament play next weekend, September 9-10, traveling to Boone, N.C. for the Mountaineer Classic.