GREENVILLE, S.C. – Furman hit .281 on Thursday evening while Ava Augustson and Quinn Morrissey both finished with double-doubles as the Paladins defeated the Mercer Bears, 3-1 (25-22, 25-18, 18-25, 25-18), in Southern Conference volleyball action at Alley Gymnasium.

Furman increases its winning streak to three straight matches while improving to 11-11 overall and 5-6 in the SoCon. Mercer, who entered Thursday's matchup atop the conference standings, saw its eight-match winning streak end while dropping to 21-5 on the season and 11-2 in conference play.

Augustson recorded a team high 13 kills along with Chandler Parker and posted her fourth double-double of the season on a career best 22 digs. Morrissey chipped in her sixth double-double this year on 23 assists and 15 digs. Tennyson Gorman contributed 12 kills on .579 hitting and Emily Navarro totaled 24 assists and seven digs. Defensively, Kennedy Seekford registered 15 digs and Ashley Stein 14.

Mercer's Skye Ekes led all players with 16 kills and Sophia Henry and Gia Padilla both logged 11. Padilla added a double-double after tallying 16 digs. Brooke Phillips also compiled a double-double with 36 assists and 19 digs. MeMe Davis finished with a match high 37 digs.

Augustson led the Paladins with four kills and six digs in the first set while Stein, Gorman, and Izzy Castelloe all had three. Navarro and Morrissey both dished out seven assists. The Bears jumped out to an early 5-2 lead before Furman came back with a 10-4 run to go in front,12-9, on Gorman's kill. Mercer would take a 13-12 lead, but the Paladins responded with three consecutive points. The Paladins held a late 23-20 lead until the Bears scored back-to-back points, leading to a Furman timeout. The Paladins scored the final two points to win, 25-22, capped by a kill from Grainne McGrath.

Furman compiled a .395 hitting percentage in the second set en route to a 25-18 triumph. Gorman totaled five kills on .714 hitting and Navarro had seven assists. Augustson recorded seven digs. The Paladins scored three of the first four points and held an early 10-6 lead, forcing Mercer into a timeout. Furman extended its lead after the break to 19-12 before the Bears posted three straight points. Following a timeout, the Paladins reeled off a 6-3 run to win, 25-18, that was clinched by Gorman's kill.

Mercer hit .333 in the third set leading to a 25-18 victory and trimming Furman's lead to 2-1. Parker had a team high three kills for the Paladins while Navarro contributed five assists and Augustson six digs.

Furman responded in the fourth set with a 25-18 win to clinch the 3-1 match victory. The Paladins finished over .300 hitting for the second time in the contest, registering a .386 clip. Parker hit .545 and led the team with six kills. Morrissey had nine assists and a team high six digs along with Seekford. The teams split the opening 14 points before Furman outscored the Bears, 14-7, to take its largest lead of the set at 21-14 following Castelloe's kill. Gorman secured the set, and match, with her kill.

The Paladins held a 60-57 advantage in kills and 54-53 in assists. Furman also led 12.0-3.0 in blocks, tying a season high total for blocks in a match.

The Paladins are back in action tomorrow evening when they host Samford at 6 p.m. 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).

Admission to all Paladin home matches this season is free of charge with first-come, first-serve seating.