Bears Succumb To Furman In SoCon Quarterfinals

Friday, November 21

Asheville, N.C.

4:30 p.m.

Mercer University

10-20,6-10SoCon

Furman

21-8,11-5SoCon

Mercer

Furman

Bears Succumb To Furman In SoCon Quarterfinals

11/21/2025 6:27:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

By: Kaylin Flukey, kaylin.flukey@live.mercer.edu

ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Seventh-seeded Mercer used a convincing 25-20 decision in the second set to knot up its Southern Conference Tournament quarterfinal matchup with second-seeded Furman, but the Paladins hit better than .300 at the net across the third and fourth sets to oust the Bears, 3-1, on Friday evening inside the Harrah's Cherokee Center.

The setback put the wraps on a 10-win season for Mercer (10-20) who won four of its last six regular season outings, all against SoCon foes. The Paladins (21-8) advance to play the winner of Friday's late contest between Wofford and Samford in Saturday's semifinal round.

MATCH SUMMARY
FINAL SCORE	Furman 3, Mercer 1 (22-25, 25-20, 12-25, 22-25)
RECORDS	Mercer 10-20, 6-10 SoCon; Furman 21-8, 11-5 SoCon
ARENA	Asheville, N.C. (Harrah's Cherokee Center)

MATCH REPLAY
SET 1 I 22-25	The Bears hit an impressive .283 in the opening set, and led 15-11 after a kill from Lara Matta, but the Paladins answered with six-straight points to take the lead for good and take control early. The Bears closed to within 23-22 down the stretch, but Furman utilized an attack error and a solo block to close it out.
SET 2 I 25-20	Mercer registered 10 kills and a pair of blocks, while also utilizing nine attack errors by the Paladins, to provide a 25-20 answer in the second set. Furman forged an early 11-9 lead following a kill from Grainne McGrath, but the Bears turned the table and tacked up six-straight points to surge ahead for good. Charlotte Thompson established a set point opportunity on a solid kill, while the Orange & Black was the benefit of an attack error two points later to knot up the contest.
SET 3 I 12-25	Furman limited the Bears to just a .029 hitting clip in the third set on the way to tallying a 25-12 win. The Paladins registered 11 of the set's first 13 points before hitting cruise control the rest of the way out.
SET 4 \| 25-22	Mercer was solid through the first 28 points of the fourth set and inevitably mustered a 15-13 lead on kill from Sophia Henry, but Furman caught its second wind after that point. The Paladins tacked up 10 of the next 12 points of the set to build a 23-17 advantage, and then held off a late rally attempt from the Orange & Black.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
KILLS	Sophia Henry (15), Charlotte Thompson (11), Avery Wilks (9)
ASSISTS	Sammi Bergjans (24), Jessica Dunn (11)., Aubri Martin (7)
DIGS	Aubri Martin (24), Sammi Bergjans (13), Jessica Dunn (8)
BLOCKS	Destiny Nelson (1), Avery Wilks (1), Sophia Henry (1)
SERVICE ACES	Avery Wilks (2), Sophia Henry (1), Aubri Martin (1)

UP NEXT
Season complete.

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