GREENVILLE, S.C. – Junior Merry Gebel finished in double figures in kills for the 11th straight match but Furman won three-consecutive sets after dropping the opener in a 3-1 win over Western Carolina on Sunday at Alley Gymnasium. The Paladins won by scores of 17-25, 25-16, 25-18, and 25-19.
 
Furman improves to 4-5 overall and in the Southern Conference while WCU drops to 5-7 overall and an even 5-5 in league contests.
 
Gebel, the reigning SoCon Player of the Week, led the Catamounts with 10 kills followed by freshman Julia Gardon and senior MaKenzie White with nine each. Senior Hannah Price, who is the reigning SoCon Setter of the Week, posted a double-double with 31 assists along with 10 digs. Freshman Destinee Dorsey had a team-best 14 digs while sophomore Johnna Robinson had a match-best three solo blocks.
 
Neci Harris led three Paladins in double figure kills with 18 followed by Mikaela Schultz with 16 and Courtney Hoffman with 15. Andrea Aceveda had a match-best 20 digs while Katie Murphy handed out a match-high 54 assists.
 
With the opening set tied at four, WCU used a 6-0 run for a 10-4 lead. The Paladins took the next three points to pull within three points before WCU tallied five straight points for a 15-7 lead. The Catamounts led by no fewer than three points for the rest of the way as a Price kill capped a 3-0 WCU run to clinch the set.
 
The Paladins hit .387 in the second set as they broke a 5-5 tie with seven of the next eight points and never looked back en route to a 25-16 win to even the match at one apiece.
 
Furman scored four of the first five points in the third set and pushed its 17-9 following a Harris kill. The Catamounts battled back to within three, 19-16, thanks to a Paladin error before the hosts took the next four points for a 23-16 lead. A Hoffman kill ended the set and gave Furman a 2-1 lead for the match.
 
After the teams traded the first two points, Furman used a 5-0 run for an early 6-1 advantage. With Furman leading 14-7, WCU chipped away at the deficit and pulled to within two, 15-13, after a Furman error. The Paladins took three of the next four points and pushed their lead back to seven, 21-14. WCU strung together four straight points to pull within three, 21-18 but would get no closer the rest of the way.
 
The teams conclude their weekend series tomorrow at 6 p.m. The match will be streamed on ESPN+ (paid subscription required).
 
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