NEWBERG, Ore. – Holding 15th-ranked Pacific Lutheran University to an .098 hitting percentage in the first set, the George Fox University Bruins took an early lead before the Lutes won three straight sets to clinch the Northwest Conference volleyball title 3-1 (23-25, 25-17, 25-19, 25-11) Friday night here at the Wheeler Sports Center's Miller Gym.

George Fox slipped to 12-11 overall and 7-8 in the conference, while Pacific Lutheran improved to 18-5 overall and 14-1 in the league.  With Willamette University upsetting the second-place University of Puget Sound 3-0 Friday, PLU secured the outright NWC title and a berth in the upcoming NCAA Division III National Tournament.

PLU took a quick 4-0 lead to open the match before the Bruins got a kill from Erin Campbell that sparked a 9-2 run and gave the home team a 9-6 lead.  The set was tight from that point on, with seven ties until the Bruins broke an 18-18 knot and took the lead for good on a PLU attack error.  Kills by Brooke Sturdevant, Karlee Jo Sampson, and Tiffany Burk, along with a service ace by Sampson, extended the George Fox lead to 23-19, and Campbell had kills for the final two Bruin points.  The Bruins hit .225 in the set while holding the Lutes to 11 kills and seven errors for a .098 mark.

PLU evened the match by hitting a blistering .519 in the second set, with 17 kills and only three errors.  Campbell and Sampson had two kills apiece and Payton Shrum served back-to-back aces as George Fox built an early 10-6 lead before the Lutes reversed the momentum.  The Bruins still had a 13-11 lead after a winner by Erin Sprowls, but the Lutes took off on a 14-4 burst to finish the set, Bethany Huston contributing five of her six kills in the set during that run, including the clinching point.

With both teams almost equal in the hitting department (the Bruins actually held the edge .238 to .237), the third set was close until the end.  PLU held a three-point lead three times in the first half of the set, the last at 11-8, before the Bruins battled back to tie it and go ahead 15-14 on a spike by Sampson.  Two kills by Haley Urdahl, a block by Huston and Urdahl, and an ace by Kacey Hartman boosted the Lutes to an 18-15 lead.  A block by Shrum and Kylee Adderson and a kill by Burk brought the Bruins within one at 18-17, but the Lutes pulled away again with a final 7-2 run as Huston and Allison Wood had consecutive tandem blocks, Wood had two kills, and Huston again delivered the clinching blow.

After the Bruins took an early 2-0 lead on kills by Campbell and Burk, the Lutes took total control of the fourth set.  With the score tied 2-2, PLU raced away to a 19-6 lead with a pair of three-point runs and two four-point stretches around a five-point run, with the Bruins only able to break up the runs with one point each time.  A kill and ace by Sturdevant and a block by Burk made it 22-11, but that was as close as the Bruins could get.  PLU finished with a .312 hitting percentage in the final set to .000 for the Bruins.

Campbell had 13 kills and Sampson 12 with a .303 hitting mark to lead the Bruins, while Burk just missed double digits with nine.  Shrum handed out 40 assists.  On defense, Chelsea Wilson made a match-high 26 digs and raised her season average to 6.02 digs per set, virtually guaranteeing her a new Bruin single-season record (the previous best is 5.88 by Patti Reeves in 2010).  Sampson added 11 digs, and Burk and Adderson were in on three blocks apiece.

Huston led all hitters with 16 kills and made no errors in 28 attacks, a sizzling .571 mark.  Urdahl added 11 kills and Lucy Capron 10, with Samantha North passing out 4 assists.  PLU finished with a .268 hitting mark to .165 for the Bruins.  Urdahl made 16 digs, Capron 15, and Amber Aguiar 12.  The Lutes served 13 aces, led by Urdahl's four, and Huston had five block assists. 

NEXT: George Fox closes its season Saturday at 7:00 p.m. at home against Willamette … The Bruins will honor their two graduating seniors, Wilson and Chelsea Brustad, in pre-game ceremonies … Pacific Lutheran finishes it regular season Saturday at 7:00 p.m. at Lewis & Clark College.