NEWBERG, Ore. — The George Fox women's basketball team started the new year with a gritty win in overtime against Lewis & Clark, 67-62, on Taylor Court.
How It Happened
The Bruins got off to a slow start in the opening quarter and trailed 13-11 after the opening 10 minutes. The second quarter brought more of the same for the Bruins as they missed eight consecutive foul shots and found themselves behind, 26-20, at the half after shooting a paltry 8% from the field in the second quarter.
After the break, Fox was able to fix some of its foul shooting woes and continued to draw contact in the lane, putting the Pios in foul trouble early. Fox was able to outscore the Pios 23-14 in the third and pushed to a 43-40 lead after 30 minutes of action.
One of the biggest lifts came from Jordan Ryan in the second half as she stepped up for the Bruins and provided much-needed scoring punch and rebounding off the bench. Ella Roberts also contributed to righting the ship with gritty defense and dead-eye shooting, pushing the Bruins to keep pace throughout the last 10 minutes of regulation.
Ryan drew a crucial fifth foul against the Pios' star post player and cashed both foul shots to tie the game at 59-59 with 17 seconds left, and the Bruins held on defensively to force overtime after Roberts swatted the Pios' last shot in regulation.
From that point on, the Bruins outscored their guests 8-3 in extra time to seal the win.
Top Performers
Ryan and Roberts lead the team and all bench scorers with a combined 28 points, 10 rebounds, and a stellar shooting performance. Ryan was a perfect 8-8 at the stripe and Roberts was 4-4 from the floor, including three triples.
Coach's Thoughts
"We had a great team effort spearheaded by Ella and Jordan who really gave us needed firepower off the bench," coach Michael Coppolino said afterward. "This was a great team effort when our shooting as a team wasn't at our best."
What It Means
Fox improves to 5-7 on the year and is now 1-2 in conference, while the Pios fall to 2-1 in NWC play and 7-5 overall.
Up Next
Fox will finish the week in Tacoma with a tilt against Pacific Lutheran on Friday, January 7.
