WALLA WALLA, Wash. --- The George Fox women's lacrosse team bounced back in the win column on Sunday, as the Bruins opened up the Northwest Conference beating Whitman College, 9-4.

Recap:
Miranda Edwords got things going for the Bruins in the first period with a goal in the first four minutes. Freshman Jess Hanson continued the momentum with a goal two minutes later that put the Bruins up, 2-0. After a yellow card at the 12:41 mark by the Missionaries, the Bruins went on the attack and Christine Doherty found the back of the net a minute later for the third goal of the game.

Freshman Lois Ray drilled one home with just under six minutes to play in the first period, as Alexa Nakashimada set the freshman up with a beautiful pass. The Missionaries wouldn't go into the break scoreless, though, as Nina Henelsmith opened up the scoring after Bea Sheffer set her up for the goal.

George Fox went into the half with a 4-1 advantage.

The Bruins got off to a quick start after intermission, tacking on four more goals in the span of five minutes. Nakashimada scored twice in 38 seconds, while Ray and Ashlie Hernandez scored within 13 seconds of each other. The Bruins jumped out to an 8-1 lead with the quick four goals.

The Missionaries managed to find the back of the net three times to slowly make a comeback, but the Bruins' defense kept the front line from doing any more damage. Edwords sealed the deal with a goal at the horn, 9-4.

Top Performers:
Ray, Edwords, and Nakashimada all scored two goals apiece. The Bruins out-shot the Missionaries 27-20. Mikaela Easterlin earned the win for the Bruins with all 60 minutes in the net. She faced 12 shots and recorded eight saves.

What It Means:
With the win, the Bruins improve to 1-1 on the season and 1-0 in the Northwest Conference.

What Comes Next:
The Bruins will head back home to host Pacific on Saturday, March 12 and Linfield on Sunday, March 13. Both games will start at noon.