By Josh Nutter

SPOKANE --- The George Fox Women's basketball team came up short on Saturday on the road at Whitworth, falling 75-69 to the Pirates in an NWC contest.

Recap

The Bruins struggled to find buckets in the first half as Whitworth led 21-16 after the first quarter before the Bruins rallied to bring it back within one point at 31-30 going into halftime. Hailey Hartney was leading George Fox at the break with nine points with three three-pointers for the Bruins. Leading scorer Emily Holder struggled, getting only two points in the first two frames as Whitworth's defense prevented her from getting many touches.

The Bruins brought the fight in the third quarter, outscoring Whitworth 20-17 in the period to take a 51-48 lead into the final frame. Emily Holder got things going in the third, getting six points in the period. Haley Strowbridge hit a three-pointer and added five points for the Bruins in the third as they looked to hold onto the lead going into the fourth quarter.

The final quarter did not go as the Bruins hoped, as Whitworth erupted for 27 points in the frame to pull off the comeback. George Fox didn't shoot poorly in the frame, scoring 19 points on 5-for-13 from the field as the Pirates made seemingly every shot to overtake the Bruins slim lead and come away with the 75-69 win.

Top Performers

Strowbridge led the team with a 20-point outing on a 7-12 shooting night, including going 40% from three-point range. Holder put up 13 points as the only other Bruin in double figures.

What It Means

The Bruins fall to 17-6 overall and are now 9-5 against NWC opponents with two games left in the regular season. The Bruins will need to win out the rest of the way and also need Pacific (Ore.) to lose if there is to be any chance of hosting an opening round game in the NWC Tournament.

What Happens Next

George Fox will host its Senior Night matchup on Friday, Feb. 21, against Lewis & Clark before wrapping up the regular season in Tacoma against Puget Sound.