GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Wofford volleyball team came up short at Alley Gymnasium on Wednesday evening, as the Furman Paladins (7-12, 2-7 SoCon) came away with a straight-set decision on its home court, 15-25, 22-25, 15-25, to snap Wofford's three-match win streak and drop the Terriers to 10-11 overall and 4-5 in the Southern Conference.
 
Junior Kennedy Smith led with a team-high eight kills, a block and 13 digs, while sophomore Sarah Barham added five kills, three blocks, two aces and two digs. Freshman Sarah MacLean finished with six kills on 14 swings (career-best. 357 hitting) and two blocks.
 
Sophomore Emily Hodsdon paced Wofford with 22 assists, a block and four digs, as Addison Foote added three kills and eight digs. Sophomore libero Kaitlyn Brown recorded a team-best 14 digs, two aces and an assist, as Kelly Hubbard registered two kills, along with Meghan Yaffa recording two blocks and one kill.
 
Mary Emily Morgan finished with a kill and dig, while Abbey Richman and Robyn Krause finished with four and two digs, respectively.
 
The Paladins swept the season series over Wofford for the first time since 2018, dominating at the net with 15 blocks – the most Wofford has allowed this season – in addition to holding the edge in digs (60-49) and kills (41-26) for the match.
 
The opening rallies were played back and forth, tied at 5-5 after a Barham solo block early on. From there, Furman boosted a 10-6 lead as kills from Sarah MacLean and Kennedy Smith closed in prior to a Paladins 3-0 run extending a 15-10 margin at the media timeout. A Barham swing and combo block from Barham and Megan Yaffa ensued out of the break (17-13), though, the Paladins answered with back-to-back blocks of their own to force Wofford's first timeout at 19-13. Another 3-0 Furman run burned Wofford's final timeout (22-13), as a MacLean / Yaffa combination block briefly held off set point (24-14) prior to the Paladins' Bella Tolone finishing the set off, 25-15.
 
The Terriers found their rhythm in the second set, using a 6-0 run to storm back from an early 7-2 deficit with an 8-7 advantage after a Sarah Barham kill and Paladins error. Kaitlyn Brown would follow with her second ace on serve, as Barham and Kennedy Smith then paced the Terriers to a 14-9 cushion with a combination block and pair of kills each. Furman errors aided Wofford, as points from Barham, Sarah MacLean and Addison Foote ensued (19-14), though, the Paladins remained persistent in chipping away to close within two at a Wofford timeout, 19-17. Smith landed a big kill out of the break, as Furman then knotted the match at 20-20 upon a 3-0 run.
 
Out of Wofford's final timeout, Smith answered with another successful swing before the Paladins would take their first advantage since the opening rallies with back-to-back blocks at 22-21. A Paladins error tied the match again, though, Furman dialed away the final three points to secure the comeback decision in the second, 25-22.
 
The Terriers opened with early leads at 5-3 after a MacLean block and kill, though, the Paladins stormed back to take an 11-7 lead. Back-to-back Kelly Hubbard kills sparked a brief 3-0 run, capped by a Barham ace on serve, to come within one at 11-10. The Paladins then answered with back-to-back blocks to boost a 15-10 cushion at the media timeout. Coming out of the break, Furman continued to push large leads, extending a 20-11 margin until another MacLean kill broke Wofford's silence with consecutive kills at 20-13. Nonetheless, the Paladins carried the momentum into set-point at 24-15, as Furman would close the match out on a combination block to drop the Terriers in straight sets, 25-15.
 
Wofford (10-11, 4-5 SoCon) returns back to Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium this weekend, hosting Mercer on Friday, Oct. 22, and Samford on Saturday, Oct. 23. Both matches are slated for 6 p.m. starts.