TACOMA, Wash. -- The George Fox Women's volleyball team bore a defeat after playing against the Puget Sound Loggers, losing 1-3. Despite the loss, though, Fox clinched a spot in the Northwest Conference Tournament.

How It Happened
The first set started out slow for the Bruins ,as they stayed a few points behind Puget Sound for the whole of the period. The first kill of the day was made by freshman Jordan Hahn, with another by Jenna Knibbs shortly after to keep the Bruins close, with a kill from Taylor DeKoning, Fox was within one. The Bruins managed to tie the score three times throughout the set —8-8 when Lexi Baer made a kill, 9-9 with a kill by Jenna Knibbs, and finally at 13-13 with Allaire Gilder — but other than those close moments, the Bruins couldn't manage to stay above the Loggers. Eventually, UPS pulled ahead while Fox stayed at 20 points — the final score of the set was 20-25.

Fox began strong and stayed ahead for the first half of the second set — Addison Roberston and Hahn were a power duo as they made the first few kills. Puget Sound tried to keep up by tying the score 3-3, but Baer kept them behind with multiple kills at 5-4. Knibbs put the Loggers further behind with a kill to make the score 15-12, and an ace Kennedy Kibby gave Fox their larget lead to that point — 16-12. After that, UPS started to gain more control of the game; the Bruins tried their best to keep the lead but eventually were surpassed by the Loggers, falling behind at another defeating score of 20-15.

In the third set, the Bruins fought hard to make their winning mark, keeping Puget Sound on their toes. Robertson had three consecutive kills for Fox to tie score of 9-9, and Baer kept the score at tied at 10 with another kill. Then, Mia Cha turned on the jets, totaling three service aces in a row and catapulting the Bruins ahead, 13-10. Still, both teams put up a fight, but DeKoning combated with two more kills in a row—17-15, Bruins. Gracie Bearden ended the game with a winning kill at 25-20, giving the Bruins a fighting chance to win for the night. After the hard-fought win, the Bruins lost steam on the fourth set, falling behind early and dropping the set, 9-25. 

Top Performances
Addison Robertson was the top player of the night with 11 kills and three digs, Jordan Hahn had nine kills and two digs, and Lexi Baer had eight kills for the night. Kennedy Kibby had 21 assists overall, while Addison Hawes had 18 assists. Piper Harrop finished the game with 11 digs total.

Coach's Thoughts
"Puget Sound had the best offense we've played against in a while," Bruin head coach Emily Davis said, "our team played well and transitioned hard allowing us to keep the first three sets tight. We will work hard and get better in practice this week."

What It Means
The Bruins fall to 12-11 (8-6 NWC), and the Boxers improve to 15-7 (12-2 NWC). Though Fox dropped the game, a Willamette loss to No. 23 Whitworth clinched the Bruins the fourth seed in the 2024 NWC Tournament, their second straight conference postseason appearance.

What Comes Next
The Bruins come back to Newberg for Senior Night on Friday, November 8, playing their rivals: the Linfield Wildcats at 7:00 p.m.