ATLANTA, GA. – Maria Pinho had a match high 20 kills to lead the Georgia State Panthers to a 3-1 (25-19, 28-30, 25-21, 25-22) victory over the Furman volleyball team Saturday afternoon in the final match of the GSU Invitational at GSU Sports Arena.

Furman drops its first match of the season, falling to 2-1 overall. With the win, Georgia State improves to 3-0 overall.

Tennyson Gorman led the Paladins offensively with 12 kills on .207 hitting and Izzy Castelloe contributed 11 and hit .423 overall. Quinn Morrissey recorded her first double-double of the season after finishing with 20 assists and 10 digs while Emily Navarro contributed 23 assists. Kennedy Seekford had a team high 18 digs and Lauren Haynes provided 13.

Pinho compiled a .514 hitting percentage for the Panthers with Ayse Guvener (18 kills, 12 digs), Myllena Torquetti (10 kills, 10 digs), and Shanelle Martinez (28 assists, 10 digs) each tallying double-doubles. Marta Lazzarin led all players with 22 digs.

Georgia State took the opening set 25-19 to hold an early 1-0 lead over Furman. Castelloe compiled three kills, Navarro four assists, and Haynes seven digs.

The Paladins responded in the second set hitting .366 as a team with the frame going into extra points and Furman holding on for the 30-28 victory to even the match at 1-1. Haynes and Lindsay Walch both had four kills with Morrissey dishing out seven assists. Defensively, Seekford, Morrissey, and Haynes all totaled three digs. The set featured 15 ties and seven lead changes. The Panthers opened on an 8-4 run before the Paladins used a 15-7 run of its own to go in front 19-15 midway on Navarro's service ace. Georgia State held a 22-21 lead late and Furman came back for a 24-23 advantage on a kill by Haynes. The teams traded the next 11 points until Ashtan Dodson's service ace secured the win.

The Panthers followed with a 25-21 triumph in the third set and 25-22 in the fourth to pick up the four-set triumph. Gorman led the Paladins with five kills on .500 hitting during the third set with Navarro posting seven assists and Seekford and Morrissey four digs apiece. Dodson registered four kills in the fourth set and Navarro (6) and Morrissey (5) combined for 11 assists. Seekford turned in five digs.

Furman concluded the match hitting .234 as a team and held a 10.0-7.0 advantage in blocks. Castelloe had a team best seven blocks to go with her 11 kills.

The Paladins travel to Asheville, N.C., next weekend, September 5-6, to face East Carolina, West Georgia, and UNC Asheville in the Bulldog Invitational.

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