TACOMA, Wash. -- The George Fox Women's volleyball team won the first set in their Friday night matchup with one of the top teams in the conference in Pacific Lutheran, before dropping the next three as the Lutes won, 3-1. 

How It Happened
GFU opened the game on a tear, taking an early 7-3 lead after a kill from Gracie Bearden. The Lutes slowly climbed back, eventually tying the game at 11-11. The two sides battled back and forth, with neither team leading by more than two points until the Bruins found themselves down, 21-19. Fox then surged, ripping off a 6-0 run on the back of two Jenna Knibbs kills and a handful of errors on the Lutes, giving the Bruins what would wind up being their only set win of the night, 25-21. 

The second started neck-and-neck as Fox traded points with PLU, before the Lutes pulled away to an eventual 15-9 lead. GFU erased the six-point difference with a 9-3 run that tied the game at 18 points each – the Bruins racked up five kills in the run, with Addison Robertson leading the way with a pair. The run would fall short however, as the Lutes responded with a run of their own, closing the frame out with a 7-2 spurt that ended the set in a 25-20 loss for the Bruins. 

The third set was much more lopsided than the others, as PLU outhit the Bruins with 16 kills on a .429 hit percentage compared to 10 kills and a .138 hit percentage for the Bruins. Despite the stats, GFU jumped to a quick lead, going up 3-1 early. The game wound up tied at 11, before PLU went on a devastating 14-5 run that featured nine kills, closing out the set and handing Fox a 25-16 defeat. 

In the fourth set, the Bruins fell behind early, as the Lutes took a 5-1 lead. GFU battled back, tying the game at 9-9. The two teams battled until a 14-14 tie, before the Lutes jumped out on a quick 4-0 run, as Fox fell behind 18-14. Fox hung around after but could not overcome the four-point surge, eventually losing by that same amount, 25-21, and losing the game three sets to one. 

Top Performances
Addison Robertson led the Bruins with 10 kills, and Kennedy Kibby led the team in assists and aces, with 19 and three, respectively. Piper Hilgaertner led the team with 15 digs. 

What It Means
The Bruins fall to 12-10 (8-5 NWC), and the Lutes improve to 16-6 (11-2 NWC). 

What Comes Next
The Bruins stay in Tacoma, playing the University of Puget Sound on Saturday, November 2, at 7:00 p.m.