FOREST GROVE, Ore. – Down by a point with under five minutes left, the George Fox University Bruins out-scored the Pacific University Boxers 18-4 the rest of the way, including 10 in a row to take the lead, and seized an important 76-63 win in Northwest Conference women's basketball Friday evening her at the Stoller Center.
The victory improved George Fox to 15-5 overall and 9-2 in the conference, climbing within a game of first-place Lewis & Clark College (15-5, NWC 10-1), whom the Bruins host Saturday. Pacific fell to 6-14 overall and 2-9 in the NWC.
Sparked by a fast-break layup and two free throws by Keisha Gordon, the Bruins jumped out to a 10-1 lead four-and-a-half minutes into the game. Erica Schultz got the Boxers going, scoring their first seven points on a free throw and three baskets, to bring the home team within four at 11-7 with 14 minutes left in the period, and the game remained a tight one until the very end.
George Fox maintained its lead throughout the half, but the Boxers stayed close and three times closed within a point. Hannah Munger kept the Bruins in front with 17 first-half points on 7-10 from the field, all on layups and short jumpers inside. The Boxers relied on three-point shooting, making four of six attempts from outside the arc, and eight points inside by Paige Jensen.
Pacific took its first lead of the game by opening the second half with goals by Schultz and Jensen, then took advantage of nine George Fox turnovers in the first 10 minutes of the half to keep a slim lead. A jumper by Ashley Jacobs gave Pacific its largest lead at 42-38 with 14:15 remaining. The Bruins momentarily regained the lead 47-46 on a Munger free throw with 8:44 left, only to have Schultz hit a layup and Alissa Nergaard a three for a 51-47 Boxer lead with eight minutes to go.
George Fox finally recovered the lead for good when Gordon canned a driving layup and added a free throw for a 61-59 edge with 4:17 left. Over the next three minutes, the Bruins scored nine more unanswered points on a short hook by Munger, three Breezy Rinehart-Young free throws, a layup by Hayley Cusick, and two charity tosses by Gordon for an insurmountable 70-59 lead with 1:19 to go. Their largest lead was 75-61 after two Jordin Ketelsen free throws with 12 seconds left.
Munger led all scorers with 24 points for the Bruins, hitting 9-14 from the field, and had a team-high nine rebounds. Cusick scored a career-high 17 points, making every shot she took - 7-7 from the field, including a three, and 2-2 from the line - and made four steals. Megan Arnoldy added 10 points on 5-7 shooting as the Bruins shot .531 (26-49) as a team. George Fox was also 22-31 from the line and out-rebounded Pacific 36-26. Munger, Gordon, and Carrie Myers had three assists apiece.
Jensen, who had 31 points and 17 rebounds in her last game vs. Pacific Lutheran University, had another double-double of 19 points and 10 boards to pace the Boxers. Schultz added 18 points and Jacobs 11. Jensen and Jacobs each had three assists, and Schultz made three steals. The Boxers shot .464 (26-56) form the field and were 5-8 from three-point range.
NEXT: George Fox hosts Lewis & Clark Saturday at 6:00 p.m. with a share of first place in the conference on the line ... Pacific visits Willamette University Saturday, also at 6:00 p.m. ... Both games are parts of NWC doubleheaders, with men's games following at 8:00 p.m.