GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) _ There was no doubt in Mark Whipple's mind whose hands he wanted the ball in during overtime _ Marcel Shipp.

Shipp, after fumbling at the Furman 1-yard line in the third quarter, scored the winning touchdown on a 1-yard dive to give Massachusetts a 30-23 overtime win over the Paladins Saturday in the first round of the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs.

``I felt like our offensive line was really controlling them, and I wanted to get the ball to five (Shipp),'' Massachusetts coach Mark Whipple said. ``I know what a competitor he is and what a great player he is.''

The Minutemen (9-3) took just four plays to score in the overtime. After an 8-yard completion, Shipp got the ball three straight plays, for 11, 5 and 1 yard runs.

Shipp finished with 170 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 36 carries.

His fumble came with the Minutemen ahead 23-20. Furman's Hershal Pleasant recovered in the end zone and the Paladins (9-3) drove 58 yards for Jason Wells' game-tying 39-yard field goal with 11:12 to play.

``That was the worst thing that could happen,'' Shipp said, explaining his fumble. ``I saw the end zone and just wanted to get the ball over. I knew (in overtime) I had to go back in there and make something happen.''

After Shipp's touchdown, the Minutemen's defense took over. Matt Dawson dropped Furman receiver Desmond Kitchings for a 4-yard loss and Aaron Parker sacked Justin Hill for a 4-yard loss. Hill then threw two incompletions.

Furman had a chance to win in regulation, but Wells' 37-yard field goal with 18 seconds to play was wide left. The attempt came after Hill (15-of-25 for 183 yards, 40 yards rushing) drove the Paladins from their own 5 to the Massachusetts 19-yard line. He converted two third downs and a second-and-16 on the drive.

``It was pure joy,'' Minuteman linebacker Kole Ayi said of the missed kick.

The Minutemen, the defending I-AA champions, trailed 14-10 at halftime, but went ahead on Shipp's 13-yard touchdown with 4:45 to play in the third quarter. Furman's Walter Booth blocked Doug White's extra point attempt and the Minutemen led 16-14.

The teams traded the lead twice more in the second half. Derek Russell scored his third 1-yard touchdown with 8:33 to play in the third to give Furman a 20-16 lead.

Louis Ivory led the Paladins with 143 yards on 19 carries.

Massachusetts quarterback Todd Bankhead (28-for-41 for 287 yards) threw a 31-yard touchdown pass to Sean Higgins late in the quarter to cap off a 13-play, 83-yard drive that gave the Minutemen a 23-20 lead.

``They did a good job protecting Bankhead,'' Johnson said.

Both teams scored on their first possessions. The Paladins took the opening kickoff and went 75 yards on 13 plays, capped off by Russell's first score.

The Minutemen went 74 yards in nine plays to tie the game at 7-7. Bankhead completed all five of his passes on the drive, including a 15-yard scoring strike to Adrian Zullo (10 catches for 121 yards).

Massachusetts moved in front 10-7 early in the second quarter on Jason Cherry's 34-yard field goal.

Furman went ahead 14-10 with just over three minutes to play in the half on Russell's second touchdown on fourth-and-goal. Massachusetts stopped the Paladins twice from the one before Russell powered in.

The big play on the 49-yard drive was Ivory's 29-yard run. Ivory had one man to beat for the touchdown, but Willie Hemmer made a diving ankle tackle to prevent Ivory from going all the way.

The Minutemen's victory set up a rematch of last year's championship game with Georgia Southern in the quarterfinals. The Eagles beat Northern Arizona, 72-29, Saturday.