Chapman Box Score / Redlands Box Score

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - Battling from behind twice in the first match and getting ahead early before hanging on at the end in the second, the George Fox University Bruins defeated both Chapman University and the University of Redlands 3-2 in five-set matches in the Cal-Lu-fornia Invitational Women's Volleyball Tournament that began here Friday at California Lutheran University's Gilbert Center.

The Bruins dropped the first and third sets to Chapman's Panthers but recovered to win 19-25, 25-23, 23-25, 25-21, 15-10.  Against Redlands, the Bruins cruised through the first two sets before letting the Bulldogs back into the match, then jumped ahead early in the fifth set to win 25-18, 25-20, 18-25, 20-25, 15-9.

Chapman took the first set of the opening match handily when the Bruins hit only .075, but a .250 attack percentage in the second set enabled the Bruins to square the match.  After the Panthers squeezed out a two-point victory in the third set, the Bruins answered with 16 kills in the fourth set to force a fifth one.  The Bruins pulled away from a 7-6 lead to build a 13-6 advantage and won going away.

Lyndsay Hovee led the Bruins with 13 kills, followed by Kaitlyn Maddams with 12, Sarah Crossfield with 11,and Eliza Pledger with nine, the latter three combining for a .378 hitting percentage.  Pledger sparked the defense with 13 blocks (one solo and 12 assists), with Crossfield and Jennifer Panico adding five block assists.  Carley Johnson made 25 digs and Panico 24, Hovee chipped in with 12, and Lani Rasmussen had 10.  Ali Toedtemeier passed out 31 assists and Rasmussen had 19.

The Bruins took control of the Redlands match by hitting .371 in the first set and .316 in the second.  The offense dropped off significantly in the next two, however, as they could manage only .109 and .106 marks as the Bulldogs rallied to tie the match.  Determined not to let the game get away, the Bruins jumped out to a 7-1 lead in the fifth set and effectively ended the Bulldogs' hopes of a stunning comeback.

Panico topped the Bruins with 13 kills, Hovee added 12, and Pledger contributed 11 while again reaching double figures in blocks with six solo blocks and four assists.  Jenna Dohren made 36 digs, Panico had 21, and Hovee dug 15.  Toedtemeier again had 31 assists and Rasmussen passed out 23.

Statistics for Chapman and Redlands were unavailable at this time.

George Fox (3-1) faces Dominican University of California at 3:00 p.m. and Pomona-Pitzer Colleges at 5:00 p.m. Saturday as the tournament comes to a close.