SPOKANE, Wash. – Hannah Munger became the No. 3 scorer in George Fox University history but the Bruins could not overcome the blistering pace set by Whitworth University from the three-point line as the Pirates sank 12 of 22 from long distance for a 66-59 win over the Bruins in Northwest Conference women's basketball action Saturday night here at the Whitworth Fieldhouse.
George Fox, ranked 18th in the D3hoops.com poll and 21st in the WBCA poll, and Whitworth now have identical overall 17-6 records and 10-4 conference records. Coupled with their Friday night 49-46 overtime loss at Whitman College, the Bruins suffered back-to-back losses against conference teams for the first time since dropping three in a row from Jan. 27-Feb. 3, 2006 (that streak included the two-game 'Whits' trip and a home loss to the University of Puget Sound).
George Fox took an early 4-0 lead on layups by Hayley Cusick and Jami Roos and extended it to 10-2 four minutes in on baskets by Megan Arnoldy, Roos, and Megan Hays. The Pirates got back within four on a three-pointer by Laura Picha that made it 16-12 with 13:31 left, but Munger scored the first seven points of a 9-0 run that boosted the Bruins' advantage to 27-12 with five minutes remaining.
The Bruins went scoreless the rest of the period, though, missing three shots and committing four turnovers as the Pirates rallied. Emily Travis, Picha, and Kendra Lahue all hit three-pointers in a 15-0 streak that was capped by two Kayla Johnson free throws with two seconds left, knotting the game 27-27 at the half.
Roos drove for a layup to open the second half, ending the Bruins' drought, but Picha drained a three 14 seconds later to give Whitworth its first lead of the game 30-29. Over the next three minutes, there were three lead changes and three ties before Cusick broke a 38-38 deadlock with 14:32 left, igniting another 9-0 George Fox run for a 47-38 lead with 11:42 remaining. Cusick sealed the streak with a three-pointer and two free throws.
The Bruins were still up by eight at 53-45 after a McKenzie Wolfe layup with 7:09 to go, but the Pirates exploded to out-score the visitors 21-6 the rest of the way. A three by Kendra Knutsen started the comeback, and Emily Travis tied the game 54-54 at the 4:19 mark, then gave the Pirates the lead for good with another trey at 3:20. A layup by Jamie Lyons and a conventional three-point play by Lahue around a Munger basket made it 62-56 with 1:13 left, and the Pirates hit five of six free throws down the stretch to preserve the win.
George Fox shot .481 (25-52) from the field but only .182 (2-11) from three-point range. Whitworth, meanwhile, shot only .333 (21-63) overall but hit threes at a .545 rate, including .778 (7-9) in the second half. The Bruins owned the boards 43-35 but committed 20 turnovers, double the number for the Pirates.
Arnoldy led the Bruins with 13 points and posted her third double-double of the season with a game-high 12 rebounds. Munger added 12 points, giving her 1,534 for her career and moving her past Katie Lacey (1,524 from 1997-2001) into third on the Bruins' all-time scoring list. Roos contributed 11 points and Cusick had nine. Arnoldy and Nicole Blizzard passed out four assists each, and Cusick made three steals.
Travis paced the Pirates with a game-high 17 points, hitting 4-6 from long range, while Picha and Johnson scored 13 each, Picha making three threes. Lahue added nine points with a pair of triples. Johnson grabbed seven rebounds, while Travis had six assists and three steals.
NEXT: George Fox closes out the regular season in Tacoma next weekend, starting at Pacific Lutheran University on Friday at 6:00 p.m. ... Whitworth visits Linfield College Friday, also at 6:00 p.m. ... Both are conference doubleheaders, with men's games following at 8:00 p.m.