GEORGETOWN, Texas. -- The George Fox women's volleyball team captured victories in the first set of both of their opening games against Texas Lutheran and Southwestern (Texas), but ultimately lost in four sets to each team.
How It Happened - GFU vs. Texas Lutheran
The Bruins fell down early against the Bulldogs, but quickly rallied; down 4-0,
Gracie Bearden helped get things going with a kill. GFU's best run came shortly after, scoring five straight points thanks to a kill and ace from Bearden and a kill and block from
Audrey Schmitt. Fox took their first lead in the first when they went up, 11-10, on an attack error from TLU.
Madelyn Gunn and
Addison Goff got in on the action next, recording four straight kills to put the Bruins up, 18-14.
Jordan Hahn put the Bruins at 19, but a service error kept things close, with GFU up, 19-18. Fox ended strong with Gunn recording two kills and
Makena Phillips ending things with a 25-20 victory.
The next set would not be as kind for the Bruins. Though Fox scored the first point, the Bulldogs rattled off the next seven and never looked back.
Kendall Stidham had an ace while Gunn and Goff had had two kills, but the Bruins dropped the set, 25-11.
A pair of Bulldog service errors were the only way the Bruins scored in the opening eight points of the third set, and GFU never led. A 4-0 run that featured three more kills from Gunn helped close the gap to six, 18-12, but Willamette pulled away with a 6-2 run to take control of the game with a 25-17 victory.
The fourth set rivaled the first in its competitive nature. Schmitt helped the Bruins grab an early 3-1 lead, and Fox was off to the races. Thanks to two more kills from Goff, service aces from Stidham and
LeAna Cimarra, and a block from Bearden, Fox took a 17-10 lead. Unfortunately for Fox, though, the Bulldogs responded — nine straight points from TLU gave the Bulldogs the lead. Though Gunn continued her career day, tacking on two more kills, the Bulldogs took the set, 25-21, and the game, 3-1.
How It Happened - GFU vs. Southwestern
Much like the Bruins' first game, the Fox women came out of the gates strong in the first set. After surrendering the first two points, the Bruins rattled off four straight points thanks to kills by
Addison Goff,
Gracie Bearden, and
Audrey Schmitt. The Bruins took an 8-5 lead, but the Pirates countered with a 4-0 run of their own to take the lead back, 9-8.
Bearden had a pair of kills for GFU to keep the game tied at 11 — and then the Bruins took over. Fox outscored the Pirates 10-3, culminating in a block from Schmitt and
Makena Phillips to take a 20-13 lead. The Pirates tried to come back, getting within two, 24-22, but a kill from Bearden would hand GFU another first-set victory.
Unfortunately for the Bruins, the next two sets were something to forget. Fox managed just 16 points across the third and fourth sets, losing 25-9 in the second and 25-7 in the fourth. The Bruins hit -.077 in each set, with Southwestern hitting over .400 in each.
In the fourth set,
Addison Goff had a pair of kills to get things going, and the set was far closer than the previous two. The Bruins took a three-point lead, 12-9, thanks to a
Chloe Wiersma ace, but soon the Pirates struck again; Southwestern scored seven straight points of their own to take the lead and never relinquished it. Though a block from
Madelyn Gunn and
Jordan Hahn helped get the Bruins within three points at 23-20, they dropped the match with a 25-20 set four loss.
Top Performances
In game one,
Madelyn Gunn had the best game of her young career, recording 16 kills, while
Kendall Stidham led the team in aces (3) and assists (21).
Audrey Schmitt had three blocks, with
Isabella Avila recording a team-high 15 digs.
In the second game,
Gracie Bearden and Addison led the way with 10 kills — Goff had a team-high 20 kills across the two games — while
Jordan Hahn had four blocks.
Chloe Wiersma led the way with 16 assists.
Coach's Thoughts
"We had some really great moments,"
Emily Davis said, "and we are working on playing more consistently. These games are a great opportunity for us and we are excited to have one more left."
What It Means
George Fox falls to 2-4 on the season, while Southwestern improves to 3-2 and Texas Lutheran moves to 5-2.
What Happens NextÂ
The Bruins will stay in Georgetown to face one more Texas team in Hardin-Simmons to conclude the Southwestern Invitational. The game is scheduled to begin at 11:00 am Central (9:00 am Pacific).Â
