By Josh Nutter

NEWBERG --- The George Fox Women's basketball team opened the new decade in an NWC matchup with Willamette in Miller Gymnasium. Willamette was able to come away with a 50-45 win in the first matchup between the two squads this season.

Recap

The game was well-matched and featured lots of ebbs and flows for both teams. The Bruins were able to come out strong in the opening quarter to take an early 15-10 lead. Emily Spencer had four points on 2-for-5 shooting in the opening period to lead the Bruins who got baskets from six different players in the early going to give them an early lead.

The contest slowed down in the second quarter and Willamette made a run to even the score at 22-22 going into the locker room at halftime. Spencer led all scorers with eight points for the Bruins and Cassidy Posey followed her with four of her own. Both the Bruins and the Bearcats were shooting around 36% from the field in the first half.

Willamette pulled away in the second half. The Bearcats outscored the Bruins 18-8 on 54.5% shooting in the third quarter to go up 40-30 going into the final frame and make a George Fox comeback unlikely.

George Fox pushed back hard in the final frame but came up short of pulling off the comeback with a final score of 50-45 after they made a 15-10 run in the fourth quarter.

Top Performers

Emily Spencer led the Bruins with 14 points and two assists on the night Haley Strowbridge had eight rebounds to lead George Fox on the boards. Emily Holder added eight points on 3-for-7 shooting while five other Bruins scored four points each. While the Bruins were unable to come away with a victory, they did set a school record for fewest turnovers in a single game with three.

What It Means

The Bruins fall to 0-1 in NWC play and 8-2 overall as NWC play has opened for all schools in the conference. This is the first time the Bruins have lost to Willamette since a 2002 defeat in Salem, Ore., at the Bearcats' arena.

What Happens Next

George Fox will visit NWC foe Linfield on Saturday at 4:00 PM in McMinnville.