NEWBERG, Ore. – A goal by Robby Ubben midway through the first half turned out to be enough to give the visiting Whitworth University Pirates a 1-0 win over the George Fox University Bruins Saturday afternoon here at the Austin Sports Complex, enabling the Pirates to retain at least a share of first place in the conference standings.

With the win, Whitworth improved to 6-0-1 overall and 3-0 in league play.  The Pirates were tied with the University of Puget Sound and Pacific Lutheran University atop the NWC entering the day's action.  George Fox, still seeking its first win under new coach Luis Del Rio, fell to 0-7-1 overall and 0-3 in the NWC.

Whitworth got on the board at 30:46 in the first half when Anders Nostdahl perfectly placed a corner kick from the left into the middle of the box, and Ubben emerged from a brief scrum to thread the ball into the middle of the net.  It was his second score of the season.

Both teams' defense took over from there.  Whitworth keeper Kyle Novak had three saves, two in the first half on shots by Myles Sorokovsky and Luke Hammer and a second-half attempt by Gabe Louthan.  George Fox goalie Elliott Davis also had three saves on shots by Kekoa Mountcastle, Colin Shockman and Samuel Engle. 

The Pirates took 15 shots in all, the Bruins nine. Whitworth held a 5-3 edge in corner kicks, and the fouls were even at 14 apiece.

NEXT: George Fox hosts Whitman College while Whitworth goes to Pacific University in Forest Grove, Ore., Sunday, both games starting at 2:30 p.m.  Each game will be preceded by NWC women's matches at 12:00 noon against the same schools.