SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Five different Paladins recorded double-doubles on Wednesday evening as Furman came back from two sets down to defeat the USC Upstate Spartans 3-2 (18-25, 19-25, 25-16, 25-23, 15-9) in non-conference action at the G.B. Hodge Center.
Furman evens its record at 2-2 on the season while USC Upstate drops to 0-4 overall.
Chandler Parker,
Izzy Castelloe,
Mary Beth Headley,
Emily Navarro, and
Quinn Morrissey each had double-doubles to pace the Paladins. Parker led the team with 13 kills on .250 hitting while Castelloe matched her career high of 10 blocks. Defensively,
Kennedy Seekford had a team best 21 digs. Navarro (29 assists, 19 digs) and Morrissey (16 assists, 12 digs) combined for 45 assists and 31 digs.
Bri Brathol and Allison Palmi both recorded double-doubles to lead the Spartans led by Brathol's 16 kills. Kamyla Vega David also tallied a double-double on 48 assists and 19 digs. Julia Gladhill led all players with 29 digs.
USC Upstate jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead in the match after winning the opening two sets, 25-18 and 25-19. Furman responded by winning 25-16 in the third, 25-23 in the fourth, and 15-9 in the fifth to claim the victory. The win was the Paladins' seventh straight in the series dating back to 2012.
Furman hit .286 in the third set while limiting the Spartans to .000 on nine kills and nine attack errors. Castelloe tallied five kills and three blocks in the frame with the Paladins using an 8-1 run midway to break the scoring open. With the score tied at 12-12, Furman recorded six consecutive points to go ahead 20-13. The Paladins clinched the set, 25-16, after three straight USC Upstate errors.
Furman kept the Spartans under .100 hitting throughout the fourth set with the visitors receiving a combined 10 kills from Parker,
Grainne McGrath, and
Ava Augustson for the 25-23 win. The Paladins trailed 21-17 late in the set before trimming their deficit down to 22-21 when Augustson connected on a kill. Furman was down 23-21 but answered back with the next two points capped by a combination block from Castelloe and Headley. A USC Upstate attack error and Headley kill gave the Paladins the 25-23 triumph.
Furman got off to a 6-2 start to begin the fifth set capped by a Spartan attack error. USC Upstate got to within 8-6 but the Paladins ended the match on a 7-3 run. After the Spartans made the score 10-7, Furman reeled off four straight points to sit at set point, 14-7, following a combination block from Parker and Castelloe. The Paladins picked up the set, 15-9, on another USC Upstate error to secure the 3-2 victory.
Furman concluded the match with a .146 hitting percentage and registered a season high 12 blocks.
The Paladins return to action next Tuesday, September 10 when they travel to Boiling Springs, N.C. for a 6 p.m. first serve at Gardner-Webb. 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).
