MCMINNVILLE, Ore. --- The George Fox women's basketball team rallied in the second half to secure a 76-66 victory over Linfield on Saturday evening. The Bruins produced four double-digit scorers despite a stagnant second quarter on the road.

Recap

After a tough loss to Willamette on Friday night, the Bruins played well when it counted to secure their first Northwest Conference victory of the season.

Emily Spencer got it going with a trip to the charity stripe before the Blue & Gold put another five quick points on the board. The Bruins continued to show their strength from the outside, and the Wildcats struggled to close out on shooters as freshman Kaylee Bishop drained back-to-back threes. The Bruins scored another 10 unanswered points before Linfield hit a switch and ended the quarter on a 7-0 run to cut the Fox advantage to 20-14.

The Wildcats got hot-handed with a 12-0 run through the turn of the quarter as the Bruins hit an offensive wall in the second. The Cats' evened the score at 21-21 after their defense held the Bruins to just three points with seven minutes left in the first half. Aubrey Baker broke up the run with a casual layup at the three-minute mark. Bishop dished out her third three of the game, and two Haley Hartney free throws would close out Bruin scoring to end the half at 33-28 Linfield.

Bishop led the Bruins at the half with all nine points coming from beyond the arc. GFU held on with a 25-18 rebounding advantage after being outshot 19-8 in the second.

Layups from Haley Strowbridge and Spencer opened the Bruins' third-quarter scoring, but LU continued to march ahead to their largest lead of the night at 40-32. Fox was able to settle down, make adjustments, and establish their position on top. The Bruins took their first lead since late in the first quarter, fueled by a triple from Emily Holder with 3:55 to go in the period. The senior scored seven of the Bruins' final eight points to take a 52-50 lead into the final ten minutes.

Both teams exchanged buckets in the opening minutes, but the Bruins were able to build on their slim lead. A quiet night for Spencer ended with a trifecta as she extended the Bruins lead to four at 60-56 at the 5:40 mark. Bishop hit her fifth three a minute later before Spencer produced back-to-back layups, pushing the lead out to double digits at 69-58 with 3:17 to go.

Spencer came up with three clutch steals and scored nine of her 11 total points in the fourth quarter. The Bruins outscored the 'Cats 6-1 in the final minute, snagging the 76-77 decision.

Top Performers

Holder and Bishop led the Bruins with 15 apiece while Spencer stepped up with 11 points of her own. Bishop's five-of-six shooting from the outside is a season-high for the rookie. Hartney grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds, including eight offensive boards, and Kylin Collman dished out a game-high four assists.

What It Means

The Blue & Gold jumps to 9-2 overall and 1-1 in conference action after defeating Linfield for the 27th-straight time since 2007.

What Happens Next

The Bruins continue their three-game road trip with a stop at Pacific (Ore.) on Tuesday, Jan. 7. Tip-off is set for 6:00 p.m. with the men taking on the Boxers at 8:00 p.m.