Photo Taken By: Gabriel Clark

By: Alex Plusquellec

NEWBERG, Ore. --- The Bruins hosted the Pacific Boxers Friday, battling back to capture a five set victory over a top Northwest Conference foe.

Recap:

Pacific entered the match with a 13-3 overall record sitting in third place in the NWC, but the Bruins did not let the challenge phase them. Despite getting off to a strong start, the Bruins found themselves in a 12-8 hole early in the first set but rallied to tie the Boxers 14-14 behind two kills from Delaney Cruz and Danyle Dupray.

The Bruins and Boxers traded big points with momentum shifting seemingly with every serve. The Bruins found themselves leading 24-21 late, needing just one point to secure the set but the Boxers flexed their muscles to square things up at, 24-24. The Boxers strung together back to back kills to take a 26-25 lead, but Paige O'Rear took matters into her own hands. The freshman rattled off three straight kills to give the Bruins the first set victory, 28-26.

The Boxers showed why they are one of the conference's top teams in the second set, making big plays late. Dupray and Alyssa Burch recorded kills to keep the Bruins within two at the midway point, but the Boxers looked to have seized control after a 6-2 run to take a 23-16 lead. The Bruins put together five straight points to cut the lead to 23-21, but Pacific closed the door taking the second set, 25-21.

In the third set, the Bruins grabbed a 3-0 lead before watching the Boxers rip off six straight points. Much like the preceding set the Bruins hung tough, keeping the set within reach after a kill from Dupray. Again the Boxers pulled away, turning a three point lead into a 22-16 advantage before taking the third set, 25-17.

Needing a win to force a decisive fifth set, the Bruins stepped up to challenge. Trailing 15-10, the Bruins relentless effort forced four straight errors by the Boxers after a kill by Laney Search to square the set 15-15. The Bruins continued to battle and the set was again tied late, 20-20.

With the match on the line, the Bruins made the plays they needed as Cruz and Sophia Lawrence recorded kills to give the Bruins a 23-21 lead. After a rally by the Boxers to again pull even 24-24, Burch, O'Rear and Search sealed the deal, giving the Bruins the fourth set victory, 27-25.

The Bruins rode the momentum to an early 5-0 lead in the fifth set and never looked back. The Boxers cut the Bruin lead to one, 10-9, but Dupray and O'Rear capped off their stellar performances with final four kills to take the final set 15-11 and complete the comeback.

Top Performers:

Dupray was stellar on the attack, totaling 20 kills on the night. O'Rear recorded a career-high 12 kills in her most complete performance to date, while Search added 10 kills of her own. Six Bruins tallied at least 13 digs with Lawrence leading the way with 24. Madison Ross added 29 assists, while Search added 27.

What It Means:

The big win by the Bruins brings their overall record to 6-7 and gets them to 5-5 in the NWC.

What Comes Next:

The Bruins will look to pick up their fourth straight victory Tuesday, Oct. 17, as they travel to take on Multnomah University in a nonconference match at 7 p.m.