Bruins Fall to Dixie State

George Fox fell to 3-8 with its fourth straight loss, while Dixie State won its second in a row and improves to 6-5.

Head Volleyball Coach Steve Grant Photo: George Fox University

NEWBERG - Taking on their only NCAA Division II opponent of the season, the George Fox University Bruins got off to quick starts in three of the four games played but could not sustain that early success, eventually dropping a 3-1 decision to the Dixie State College of Utah Rebels in a non-conference women’s volleyball match Saturday at the Wheeler Sports Center’s Miller Gym.

The Bruins fell 24-30, 18-30, 30-28, 22-30 to the Rebels, who are in their first year of competition as a four-year school after many years as a junior college.

The Rebels opened the match with a 4-0 outburst in game one and stretched it to 10-4 before the Bruins rallied. Down 12-8, the Bruins reeled off five unanswered points and took their only lead of the game at 13-12 on a kill by Amy Knight. The Rebels went ahead for good when a Tera Fish kill broke a 16-16 tie, and gradually pulled away until a Brittney Hamilton killed ended it.

George Fox jumped out to a 5-0 lead to start game two, but Dixie State responded with a 17-4 run to build a solid lead at 17-9. The Bruins got no closer than five points the rest of the way.

The Bruins again took a 5-0 lead to open game three, and upped it to 10-4 on a Rebel attack error. A 9-2 run by the Rebels enabled them to seize a 13-12 lead, but it was the only one they would have. Back-to-back service aces by Whitney Kolb put George Fox up 20-14, but the Rebels rebounded to tie it at 24-24. A kill by Kolb gave the Bruins the lead for good, and she notched her fifth kill of the game to nail down the final point.

Two kills by Kolb and one by Jennifer Panico plus three Rebel attack errors gave the Bruins a 6-0 lead to start game four, but again the home team could not sustain the momentum. The game was knotted at 8-8, 9-9, and 10-10 before Cidney Judkins put one away, igniting a 6-0 run that gave Dixie State an insurmountable 16-10 lead. The Rebels led by as many as 10 at 23-13 before a Breena Bonnett kill ended the match.

Kolb had 15 kills to lead the Bruins, who struggled with too many offensive errors and hit only .048 for the match. Knight passed out 35 assists. Karina Philliber had 20 digs to lead the defense, with Panico adding 18, Knight 15, and Sarah Burkey 10. Elizabeth Anderson had five blocks.

Judkins paced a balanced Rebel attack that hit .136 with 15 kills, Bonnett added 14, and Heidi Erickson had 12. Fish handed out 21 assists and Whitnee Webster had 19. Bonnett led a quartet of double-figure diggers with 20, Webster had 18, Judkins 17, and Nikki Callahan 12. Erickson was in on four blocks.

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