MACON, GA. – Lily Toole's goal with 1:21 remaining in overtime lifted the Furman women's lacrosse team to an 18-17 Big South Conference victory over league-leading Mercer on Wednesday afternoon at Five Star Stadium.

Furman wins its fourth straight contest and ties the school record for wins in a season. The Paladins improve to 12-3 overall and 6-1 in the Big South. With the loss, Mercer drops to 9-7 on the season and 6-1 in conference play. Furman hands the Bears their first Big South loss since April 23, 2022 and creates a three-way tie atop the league standings with High Point. Mercer entered today's contest having won 24 straight regular season games against conference opponents.

The win was the Paladins' first in overtime since March 17, 2023 when they defeated Kennesaw State, 8-7, in Kennesaw, Ga. Furman improves to 9-1 all-time in overtime games.

Toole finished with five goals, two ground balls, and one caused turnover and was one of three Furman players to score three or more goals in the victory. Big South Offensive Player of the Week Paige Harman paced the Paladin offense with eight points on seven goals and one assist while adding four draws and one ground ball. Harman also became the program's single-season record holder for points, surpassing Hannah Demis in 2021. Anna Roser, who broke her own single-season goal record on Wednesday, added four points on a hat trick and assist. Skylar Hilmer won a team high nine draws and Zoe Milmoe picked up a career best three ground balls. Andrea Fisher finished with two caused turnovers and two ground balls.

Goalie Madigan Brewer, the reigning Big South Defensive Player of the Week, tallied eight saves and one ground ball to move to 9-0 on the season.

Sofia D'Angelo led the Bears with five goals while Sandy Salit dished out three assists. In goal, Kayla Casey registered three saves.

Mercer had three chances at the game-winning goal in overtime over a span of 30 seconds with the last by Sami Lowinger hitting the post and Fisher picking up the ground ball. Toole, who was named Big South Freshman of the Week on Tuesday, received a pass from Harman atop the 12-meter fan and weaved past three Mercer defenders and scored the game-winner to give Furman its first win over the Bears since 2021.

The Paladins held a 16-14 advantage with 11:47 remaining in regulation and later saw Harman put them back ahead 17-16 at the 6:04 mark. Mercer tied the score less than two minutes later to send the game into overtime.

The Bears opened the contest on a 5-2 run before Furman outscored them 5-2 in the second quarter to hold an 8-7 lead at halftime.

The Paladins concluded the game with 34 shots, 17 draws, and 15 ground balls. Furman also forced Mercer into 13 turnovers.

The Paladins conclude the regular season on Saturday afternoon hosting Winthrop on Senior Day at 2 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).