TACOMA, Wash. – After building three-run leads early in both games, the George Fox University Bruins could not hold off comebacks by the University of Puget Sound and dropped a pair of Northwest Conference softball road games to the Loggers, 7-6 and 8-5, Sunday afternoon here at Logger Field.

In the opener, the Bruins took a 1-0 lead in the 2nd when Bethany Chriss drew a bases-loaded walk to force in Erin Lee, but the Loggers went ahead 3-1 in the 3rd on Anthea Aasen's three-run homer, her third of the season. 

The Bruins used the long ball themselves to regain the lead, Chriss slugging a three-run shot and Shelby Briske a two-run homer in the 4th to give the visitors a 6-3 advantage.  It was the fourth round-tripper of the season for both Bruins.

Aryn Grause's two-run single in the 5th brought the Loggers back within one, and they tied it 6-6 in the 6th on back-to-back doubles by Katy Appleby and Carolyn Moore, with pinch-runner Erika Hayes scoring the run.  The Loggers then won it in the bottom of the 7th as Aasen reached on an error, pinch-runner Bijou Felder advanced on an illegal pitch and a wild pitch, and Brianna Huber dropped a game-winning single down the left field line.

Grause (5-7) got the win on the mound after relieving UPS starter Auriel Sperberg in the middle of the 4th, surrendering only two hits with four strikeouts and no walks.  Erin Lee (7-12), in relief of Bruin starter Taylor Whitmore, suffered the setback.

Shelby Klein led the Bruins with two hits, while Chriss collected four RBIs.  Grause had two hits to pace the Loggers.

Each team scored a run in the 1st inning of the second game.  George Fox got its run on an RBI single by Becka Doyle that scored Kerrianne Davidson, while Grause singled in Moore, who had walked, advanced on a wild pitch, and stolen third for Puget Sound's run.

The Bruins put two hits and two Logger errors together to score three times in the 2nd and build a 4-1 lead.  In the UPS 2nd, Alex Usher hit a solo home run, her fourth, and another run scored on a Bruin error as the Loggers closed within 4-3.  The Loggers then went ahead for good in the 3rd on a three-run homer by Brianna Huber, her third of the year.

Erin Lee was hit by a pitch and Klein doubled her in to make it a one-run 6-5 game in the 6th,but Puget Sound added two big insurance runs in the home half on a two-run single by Christina Demuelenaere.  Sperberg then replaced UPS starter Grause and retired the Bruins in order in the 7th for her second save.

Grause (6-7) spaced seven hits in 6.0 innings to notch her second win of the day, fanning four and walking two.  George Fox starter Taylor Whitmore (2-14) took the loss.

Doyle had a pair of hits for the Bruins, while Grause, Demuelenaere, and Usher had two hits apiece for the Loggers.

George Fox (9-26, NWC 3-20) hosts Whitworth University Friday at 4:30 p.m. in a single game to complete their four-game series that was postponed after three games had been played on Mar. 28.  Puget Sound (12-24, NWC 10-14) hosts cross-town rival Pacific Lutheran University Saturday in a conference doubleheader starting at 12:00 noon.