By: Ryan Lackey
NEWBERG, Ore. --- The Bruins pushed their record over .500 to 5-4 on Saturday with a decisive 6-3 victory over the Pacific University Boxers, but the match was much closer than the score suggests.
Going into the match, both teams were ranked in the West Region, as George Fox ranks at 18, while the Boxers rank at 19.
"Today was our best performance of the season," said head coach Rick Cruz. "We knew it was going to be a tough match and we needed to be ready to play from the start."
In doubles, the Bruins nearly escaped with a sweep, dropping only the embittered No. 2 doubles to Pacific's Jelena Vidovic and Carlee Rhodaback, who defeated Andrea Motley and Catrina Kwong by the narrowest of margins, 9-8 (7-5). Sarah Tuemmler and Chantelle Hadeed took the No. 1 doubles match for the Bruins, 8-4. Ali Diehl and Krista Rey won the No. 3 match by the same score.
Tuemmler lost the No. 1 singles match to the very precise Vidovic 6-4, 6-1, despite an impressively high-energy, upbeat game. Pacific also took the No. 2 singles match, as Kaitlyn Lomartire overcame Hadeed, 6-2, 6-1.
The No. 1 and No. 2 singles matches lost, Taylor Barnes needed to play sterling tennis in the No. 3 match to give the Bruins a foothold, and she succeeded.
"We played well, but I knew our three through six would have to step up, and they did," said Cruz.
After dropping the first set 7-5 to the Boxers' Sidney Smith, Barnes rallied to win the second comfortably, 6-1. Smith gave Barnes all she could handle in the rubber set, but the day was Barnes, who carried a 7-5 win to take the match.
Catrina Kwong, in the No. 4 match, overcame Mai Kobayashi with less spectacle but equally good tennis, 6-2, 6-1.
Motley, in the No. 5, had an even wider margin of victory, winning 6-1, 6-1.
The No. 6 match, though, proved the most exciting. After Diehl claimed the first set 7-5 following a stubborn back-and-forth, Kanani Kea won the second by the same score. In the decisive third set, Diehl, playing inspired tennis, finally broke down Kea's defense to win the set and the match 1-0 (10-6).
After the match, Cruz lauded the team's performance.
"Taylor clinched the match with a great three set win and Ali finished off her match with a well-played 10 point breaker," he said.
"This was a great team effort by the girls! I'm excited to get away from conference for the next couple of weeks and see how we do against teams from around the country."
The win lifts the Bruins over the .500 mark to 6-5 on the season, 3-4 in conference. The Bruins take the court again on Monday, when they host Schreiner.
