REDLANDS, Calif. --- The George Fox women's lacrosse team lost a nail biter Thursday, as the Bruins closed out their California trip against the Bulldogs of Redlands in a tough 12-11 loss.

Recap:
Lois Ray struck first for the Bruins with a free position shot 40 seconds into the game. Redlands tied the game up five minutes later, but the Bruins responded with three straight goals to take their largest lead of the game, 4-1.

The rest of the first half was back and forth, as both teams traded goals to go into halftime tied at 6-6.

Redlands kicked off the second half with two quick goals to take an 8-6 lead. The home lead wouldn't hold, though, as the Bruins scored at the 25:55 mark, the 24:13 mark and the 18:15 mark to retake the lead, 9-8. Redlands fired back with three straight goals to hold an 11-9 advantage, but Emma Fanger put the Bruins down by one with a goal at 7:28. The Bulldogs scored the deciding goal a minute later, putting the Bruins down 12-10. Ray closed the gap with a late goal, but with time not on their side the Bruins fell in a highly contested game.

Both teams were evenly matched throughout the full 60 minutes, as the Bulldogs tallied 20 shots to the Bruins 19. The Bruins took full advantage with free position shots, going 3-5 in the game.

Top Performers:
Edwords led the team with three goals on five shots, while Ray scored twice and grabbed three draw controls. Jennifer Burked netted two, picked up four ground balls and won two draw controls. Mikaela Easterlin finished her day with six saves.

What It Means:
The Bruins close out their California trip at 2-1 and stand at 5-2 on the season.

What Comes Next:
The Bruins will pick action back up Saturday, April 1, against Puget Sound at 12p.m.