McMINNVILLE, Ore. – Out-scoring the Linfield College Wildcats 7-0 over the final four minutes in what had been a back-and-forth contest, the visiting George Fox University Bruins retained a share of first place in the Northwest Conference women's basketball race with a 60-54 win Friday evening here at Ted Wilson Gym.

With its eighth straight win, George Fox is now 19-5 overall and 13-2 in the conference, tied with Lewis & Clark College, which won at home 75-44 over the University of Puget Sound.  The Bruins host UPS Saturday with a chance to clinch at least a share of their fifth straight league title.  The Bruins also assured themselves of a home game in the first round of the NWC Tournament next Thursday.

Linfield slipped to 12-11 overall and 7-8 in the conference.  Their hopes for the fourth and final spot in the NWC Tournament was snuffed out when Whitman College clinched that spot with a 69-42 win at Pacific University.

The entire game was a see-saw affair, with six ties and 13 lead changes.  George Fox took an 8-5 lead on a Keisha Gordon layup four minutes into the game, but Linfield responded with a 9-0 run, keyed by three-pointers from Gretchen Owens and Chrissy Baumgartner, to take the largest lead of the half for either team of 14-8 at 13:24. 

Consecutive threes by Gordon, Carly Towne, and Carrie Myers sparked a 14-4 run by the Bruins, giving them a 22-18 lead with 9:17 left in the period.  A three by Micha Pringle and two free throws by Kaely Maltman put the Wildcats back in front 23-22 with 8:31 to go, and they never trailed the rest of the half, taking a 32-31 lead into the intermission.

Owens hit a three to open the second half, but the Bruins reeled off nine points in a row on a layup by Hannah Munger, a three by Arianna Mohsenian, and baskets by Hayley Cusick and Munger for a 40-35 lead with 16:14 left.  Baumgartner slowed the run with a last-second three, but two Cusick layups around another Mohsenian three extended the George Fox lead to 47-38 with 14:!0 to go.

Linfield rallied with a 12-2 run, taking a 50-49 advantage on a three by Owens with 10:47 remaining.  The teams swapped leads three more times before an Owens layup gave the Wildcats one final lead at 54-53 with four minutes left – but that was the last time Linfield would score.  A Munger layup at 3:49 gave George Fox the lead for good, and the Wildcats missed their last four shots while the Bruins added another Munger basket, two free throws by Gordon, and a freebie by Cusick to seal the win.

Munger was the only Bruin in double figures with 12 points, while Cusick and Gordon had nine points and three assists apiece, and Mohsenian scored nine on three threes.   Gordon had a team-high eight rebounds as the Bruins controlled the glass 35-30.

Linfield got a game-high 21 from Owens, the conference's leading scorer, 16 from Maltman, and nine from Baumgartner.  Owens had eight rebounds to lead the Wildcats, while Abby Olbrich and Stephanie Fennimore had three assists each.

NEXT: George Fox hosts Puget Sound and Linfield goes to Pacific Lutheran University Saturday to close out the regular season, both games starting at 6:00 p.m.  NWC men's games will follow at 8:00 p.m.