McMINNVILLE, Ore. -- The George Fox women's volleyball team dropped their first game to rival Linfield since 2016 — the Wildcats snapping a 17-game Fox winning streak with a 3-0 win.

How It Happened
The Bruins struggled out of the gate , as Linfield scored the first seven points of the game to leave Fox in the dust. Gracie Bearden started things for Fox with a powerful first kill, while Lexi Baer swung in another as Fox attempted to catch up. Point-by-point, the Bruins were able to catch up with one behind the Wildcats—Hannah Huffman leading a three-point run with a kill before Bearden started a four-point run to close the gap to one, 11-10.

Linfield wrestled away the advantage again with another big run, this one 7-1, to grab a 19-12 lead. Jenna Knibbs scored two kills nearing the end of the set, but the Wildcats kept pace. Jordan Hahn had the final kill of the set, but Fox lost, 25-16.

The second set was similar — Linfield led with an early four-point lead, this time with Baer making the first kill for Fox. Fox was then able to get in a nice ace from Bearden, using a mini-run to cut the deficit to two — but the Wildcats countered with another five-point run. Baer and Hahn made kills to cut the Linfield lead to four, 19-15, but the Wildcats were on a roll, winning the set, 25-17.

Fox had more control in the final set, with Addison Goff making the first two kills for the Bruins—keeping a close distance at 2-3. Linfield jumped ahead again, while Hahn and Bearden interrupted their run with two kills. Linfield started to slowly widen the gap between the scoreboard thanks to several aces; the Wildcats' Naia Alefaio-Foifua would total eight aces in the match while the team as a whole notched 16. Goff totaled another kill to keep it close in the mid stages, but Fox couldn't snag a lead, staying two points behind for the majority of the game; in fact, the Bruins would not lead in any set as the Wildcats took the game, 25-20, and the match, 3-0, to down GFU.

Top Performances
Gracie Bearden had six kills and six digs total, while Lexi Baer and Hannah Huffman made five kills each. Addison Goff made an overall of four kills, while Jordan Hahn and Jenna Knibbs had three kills for the night.

What It Means
George Fox falls to 5-9 (2-6 NWC) on the season, while the Wildcats improve to 6-7 (4-4 NWC) for the year.

What Happens Next
The Bruins will travel close-by to Salem, Ore., playing against the Willamette Bearcats on Tuesday, October 14. The game is scheduled to begin at 7:00 pm.