GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Furman women's lacrosse team set a new school record for points in a game Saturday afternoon as the Paladins remained undefeated at Paladin Stadium with a 23-10 victory over the Longwood Lancers in Big South Conference action.
Furman moves its record to 9-3 overall and 3-1 in the Big South. With the loss, Longwood drops to 1-11 on the season and 1-4 in conference play.
Sofija Buzelis had a career afternoon to pace Furman offensively after setting new career highs in points, goals, and draws. The senior from Willowbrook, Ill., led the Paladins with nine points on seven goals and two assists. Her career best 14 draws are the second-most in a game in program history, falling one shy of Meagan Beal's 15 against Wofford on March 30, 2022.
Anna Roser and
Lily Toole, the reigning Big South Offensive Player of the Week, both compiled eight points. Roser scored six times and dished out two assists while Toole had four goals and a career high four assists.
Paige Harman led all players matching her career high of five assists. Roser picked up two ground balls and
Molly Faul caused two turnovers.
Goalies
Madigan Brewer and
Sailor Henderson combined for six saves and one ground ball.
Alexandra Hirst led the Lancers with five points on three assists and two goals and Jordan Fitzgerald scored a team best three goals. Goalie Cybella Smith totaled three saves.
Furman outscored Longwood 13-3 in the second half, including 8-2 in the third quarter, to improve to 7-0 at home this season. The Paladins are one win away from tying the school record of eight achieved in 2019 when Furman finished the season 8-4. Furman opened the game with four straight goals before the Lancers answered with a 4-1 run to make the score 5-4 with 41 seconds left in the first quarter.
The Paladins responded with three consecutive goals to start the second quarter to hold a 9-4 advantage at the 11:06 mark on Toole's second goal of the day. Longwood closed out the half scoring three of the last four goals to cut Furman's lead to 10-7 at halftime.
Buzelis scored three of her seven goals in the third quarter as the Paladins built an 18-9 lead heading to the fourth. The Lancers scored the first goal of the fourth quarter before Furman closed out the contest scoring the final five, holding Longwood scoreless for a stretch of nearly 13 minutes. Roser and
Lilly Pons both scored twice while
Nadine Galiano scored with 4:45 to go to secure the 13-goal victory.
The Paladins' 41 points and 18 assists on Saturday set a new program records. The 23 goals tied for second-most in a game in program history.
Furman outshot the Lancers 38-19 while also leading 13-12 in ground balls and 27-10 in draws. The 27 draws fell two shy of tying the school single-game record.
The Paladins are back at Paladin Stadium next Wednesday, April 16 to host Presbyterian at 7 p.m. Fans can follow the action on www.furmanpaladins.com via live stats. The game is being streamed via paid subscription on ESPN+. Updates will be posted on the Furman women's lacrosse Twitter page (@FUWlax). Admission is free.
