PARKLAND, Wash. – Whitworth University fell to George Fox 3-1 in the semifinals of the 2023 Northwest Conference volleyball tournament on Friday night at Pacific Lutheran, marking the end of the season for the Pirate women.
The third-seeded Bruins (16-8) bounced back from an opening set loss to defeat the second-seeded Pirates 20-25, 25-18, 25-19, 27-25. George Fox will take on top-seeded and host Pacific Lutheran in Saturday's championship match.
Kaity Barr had 11 kills and 15.5 points to lead Whitworth (15-10).
The opening set featured six ties and three lead changes over the first half. With the set tied at 18-18, the Pirates scored five straight points to go ahead 23-18 after a Bruin ball-handling error. A block from Barr and Amblessed Okemgbo ended the set in Whitworth's favor. Barr had four kills in the game for the Bucs, who hit .167 in the set.
George Fox used an early 6-1 run to take a 9-4 led in the second set and never trailed again in the game. Trailing 16-7, the Pirates got back within 21-16 on a block from Ella Jimenez. But the Bucs could not get closer and the Bruins closed the game on a kill by Taylor Dekoning. George Fox hit .367 in the second set while holding Whitworth to .026.
GFU used another quick start to take control of the third game, going up 13-6 on a kill from Kassandra (Staton) Mendenhall. The Pirates fought back to within 13-11 on a block from Barr and Abigail Hudson before the Bruins answered with an 8-1 run for a 21-12 lead. After Whitworth closed within 24-19 on a kill from Jimenez, another Mendenhall kill ended the set.
The fourth set featured 16 ties and nine lead changes and was the most competitive of the match. After a kill from Okemgbo gave Whitworth a 24-23 lead, the Pirates were serving for set point. George Fox closed the match on a 4-1 run. The final point came on a lucky break for the Bruins as a strong Pirate attack bounced off Emily Blagg's arm back into the Whitworth court and landed on the sideline for a kill.
Cassidy Franklin added a dozen kills for Whitworth, while Jimenez had 10 kills. But the Pirates finished well below their season averages for hitting percentage (.140) and blocks (5.0).
Mendenhall had 19 kills to lead George Fox, while Blagg had ten kills. The Bruins hit .228 and had nine kills.
