NEWBERG, Ore. -- The George Fox women's basketball team once again came painstakingly close to a win in a midweek matchup against Linfield, leading in the fourth quarter but ultimately falling, 54-49.

How It Happened
Erin Yoshitake struck first with a jumper in the opening minute before Linfield scored the next eight points to take an 8-2 lead. From there, the game turned quickly into a track meet, with 18 of the 24 points scored in the opening four minutes. A late layup from the Wildcats gave them a 15-9 advantage headed to the second.

The second quarter transformed into a defensive struggle, with both teams shooting under 27%. The Bruins scored the first six points of the period, battling back into the game before Jordan Roberts knocked in back-to-back treys to help extend the Wildcat lead to nine. Two late free throws from Marissa Bartels cut the deficit to seven, with Fox trailing 17-24 heading to the break.

In the third quarter, the Bruin offense roared to life, more than doubling their point total to take a narrow 38-37 lead into the final period. After not hitting a triple in the first half, Fox shot 3-4 from deep, each from a different player. Their final trey of the quarter — a shot from Mia Skoro — gave Fox their first lead since the opening minutes of the game.

The game once again stumbled to a halt in the fourth quarter, with the score locked in a 44-42 Linfield lead for nearly four minutes. With a little over one minute remaining, Jaela Eggers knotted the game at 44 with a fallaway bank shot. Though the Wildcats would be held without a field goal for the remainder of the game, Bruin fouls and free throw gave Linfield a six-point lead with just 20 seconds remaining.

Fox's last-gasp effort came in those final 20 seconds when Alyssa Wells nailed a triple and the Bruins forced a turnover. Unfortunately, an illegal screen with 12 seconds left gave the ball right back to Linfield. Eight fourth-quarter turnovers and a 2-8 shooting clip from the free throw line ultimately doomed the Bruins despite their hard effort, as they fell, 49-54.

Top Performers
Erin Yoshitake led the team with 15 points in the game, dishing out a team-high three assists as well. Alyssa Wells was the other double digit scorer for Fox, finishing the night with 12 points. Ella Roberts and Mia Skoro both stuffed the stats sheets — Roberts finishing with eight points and nine rebounds while Skoro totaled nine points and seven boards. Defensively, Skoro led the way with a career-high four steals.

What it Means
With the loss, the Bruins drop to 0-5 in games decided by five points or less and sit at a 2-12 overall record (2-5 NWC). The Wildcat's win was just their second victory over the Fox women's team in the last 15 years as they improved to 9-7 (4-3 NWC).

What Happens Next
The Bruins will head to Salem to take on the NWC-leading Willamette Bearcats (8-7, 5-1 NWC) on Saturday, January 20th. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.