FOREST GROVE, Ore. - Eliza Pledger, Kristin Knaupp, Isabel Valentine and Stephanie Kerr combined for 46 kills, leading the George Fox University Bruins to a 3-1 win (21-25, 25-11, 27-25, 25-15) over the Pacific University Boxers in a Northwest Conference women's volleyball match Friday night here at the Stoller Center.

Pacific took the opening setting by hitting a solid .382 (15 kills, 2 errors) to .132 for George Fox.  The Boxers used a 5-0 run, keyed by kills from Kelsy Takashima and Keahi Braginsky-Ahloo, to take a 16-9 lead. The Bruins got back into it with a 5-0 run of their own to close within two at 19-17, but two kills by Takashima and one by Braginsky-Ahloo gave Pacific three of the last four points in the set.

The Bruins turned the offensive tables on the Boxers in the second set, out-hitting them .419 (15 kills, 2 errors) to .074.  Leading only 8-7, the Bruins reeled off 11 unanswered points with Betsy Wilhelm serving to take a 19-7 lead, Pledger contributing three kills and teaming up with Kerr for two blocks during the outburst.  Pledger had five kills and Knaupp four in the set.

Set three was a tight one that featured 13 ties.  George Fox built the largest lead of the game at 13-8 on a kill by Kerr, but Pacific responded with a 9-1 run that included a kill and an ace by Danica Thompson and four Bruin attack errors to take a 17-14 lead.  The Bruins scored the next four points to regain the lead, and the teams stayed within two of each other the rest of the way.

A winner by Braginsky-Ahloo gave the Boxers a 23-22 lead, but the Bruins came back on a kill by Pledger and a block by Pledger and Cassie Irwin.  The Bruins failed to nail it down then because of a service error, and Pacific had a chance to win after another GFU attack error.  Pledger's kill kept the Bruins alive, and a block by Irwin and Valentine, followed by Valentine kill, gave George Fox the pivotal set.

The Bruins out-hit the Boxers .276 to .029 to win the fourth set and the match handily.  After dropping the first two points, the Bruins took off on an 11-2 run, with Knaupp making five kills and a block, to seize control with an 11-4 lead.  The Boxers got no closer than four points the rest of the way, and the Bruins closed out the match with a 7-1 run, including two more kills by Knaupp.

Pledger and Knaupp had 13 kills apiece, Valentine 11, and Kerr nine.  Pledger hit .500, with only one error in 24 attempts.  Ali Toedtemeier passed out 46 assists.  Wilhelm led the defense with 16 digs, Patti Reeves added 13, and Toedtemeier had 10.  The Bruins had 12 team blocks, with Pledger making one solo and six assists, while Valentine had five block assists and Kerr four.

Alexa Block led Pacific with nine kills and Thompson had 31 assists.  Jade Thompson posted 17 digs and Mari Kondo 10.  The Boxers had 10 blocks, with Takashima contributing five block assists.   

NEXT: George Fox (7-10, NWC 2-5), which snapped a three-game losing skid, closes out the first half of the conference season at Linfield College Saturday at 7:00 p.m. ... Pacific (2-13, NWC 1-6) visits the NWC co-leading University of Puget Sound Saturday at 7:00 p.m.