NEWBERG, Ore. -- Lightning struck twice for the George Fox women's basketball team, who hit their second game-winner in three games to down the No. 15 Hardin-Simmons Cowgirls, 59-57, thanks to a buzzer-beater from Hanne Hopkins.

How It Happened
From the opening tip, it was clear that the Bruins were not afraid of the undefeated Cowgirls, who entered the game No. 15 in both the WBCA Coaches Poll and D3hoops.com poll — though the early scores didn't show that. Mia Skoro hit the first basket of the game, a three-pointer, but the Cowgirls answered with a 12-0 run over the next five minutes. The Bruins, who had generated good looks the entire first half of the period, began to convert them in the final three minutes, with Bella Arrisgado, Hanne Hopkins, and Skoro all connecting to trail just 10-13 after the first.

Several new faces took over the second quarter as the Bruins struggled with foul trouble early. Sophia Hardy made use of her time in the period, converting a fastbreak layup to keep the Bruins close. Then, it was Paige Macduff's turn, stepping in after both Fox posts picked up two first-half fouls. The freshman had one key offensive rebound and her first collegiate points as Fox took a 26-24 lead into the break.

The Cowgirls came out of the halftime locker room hot, scoring seven straight points to open the half and take a five-point lead, 31-26. Rather than back down, though, the Bruins rose to the occasion, working hard on both ends to snag the lead back. Good post work from Alexa Borter, a steal by Alyssa Wells, and a layup from Kylie Ritter gave Fox the 36-35 lead. 

As had been the case all day, the Bruin defense flustered the Cowgirls, only allowing two points in the final Hardin-Simmons points in the final seven minutes. Ritter extended the Bruin lead to five with a floater to give Fox the 31-26 advantage after the third, putting GFU within shouting distance of their first ranked win since a 72-49 takedown of No. 17 Puget Sound in January 2022.

The fourth quarter was basketball in its purest sense, with neither team giving an inch as the game barrelled towards a classic finish. The first three minutes were quiet, with Hardin-Simmons working their way back before Wells buried a triple and Hopkins cut to the hoop to keep the lead at five. Then, it was the Cowgirls' turn to fight, with Dylan Koele hitting a shot in the paint to give the Cowgirls a 47-46 lead midway through the period.

Ritter and Borter dominated the offense as the game went down the stretch — thanks in part to several key passes from Hopkins. First, it was Ritter, who was left wide open for a triple before Borter finished to give Fox a four-point lead. Though the Cowgirls got within one possession several times, one bucket apiece from Ritter and Borter kept the Bruins in front. With 17 seconds left, a key offensive rebound by Ritter kept the Bruins with the ball, up 56-54.

Again, it was Ritter who stepped up and kept the ball in the hands of Fox — the junior yanked down her third offensive rebound of the period — as Fox took a three-point lead with 13 seconds left. The lead would be short-lived, however, as the Cowgirls took advantage of an offensive rebound of their own; Aiken Semones nailed the triple with eight seconds left to knot the game up at 54.

Bruin head coach Lauren Howard turned to Hopkins with the seconds winding down — and as she had done all day, the sophomore answered the call. 
 
Hopkins drove past the right elbow, and nearly lost control of the ball, before regaining possession and hitting the buzzer-beater to send the Fox crowd into hysterics and give the home Bruins the 59-57 win over the No. 15 team in the nation.

Top Performers
Hanne Hopkins stuffed the stat sheet yet again, ending her day with 12 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, and one steal to go alongside the buzzer-beater. Kylie Ritter meanwhile, played the best game of her career statistically, tying her career high in both points (11) and rebounds (11). Alyssa Wells recorded 10 points and four assists, while Alexa Borter and Bella Arrisgado combined for just two misses in their eight-point performances.

Coach's Thoughts
"I could not be more proud of this group," Bruin head coach Lauren Howard said, "We knew we had to play solid defense for 40 minutes and the girls locked in and everyone did their job. This team shows up to battle every night and I feel lucky to coach them."

What It Means
Thanks to their first win over a ranked team in three years, the Bruins improve to 5-1, while the No. 15 Cowgirls fall to 5-1.

What Happens Next
Fox will take some well-deserved time off after three games in five days. Their next contest is on Tuesday, December 10, at Warner Pacific. The game is scheduled to tip off at 6:00 p.m.