NEWBERG, Ore. -- The George Fox women's basketball team suffered their first loss in a calendar month, dropping a tough game to Willamette. 56-66.

How It Happened
Fox's first quarter was electric, as they jumped out to an early lead. Alyssa Wells made the first layup in a quick motion, and popped in a three-pointer  two minutes later. The Bruins stayed ahead with Tara Ushiro clocking another three pointer for Fox, doubling the Bearcats' score at 4-8. Willamette had a hard time keeping up as the Bruins continued to move ahead—Hanne Hopkins made a clean jumper and Wells knocked in another layup with just two minutes left. Kylie Ritter put the finishing touches on a dominant first quarter, making the last shot of the quarter—a three-pointer that launched the Bruins to a 15-8 lead. 

In the second quarter, the Bruins started to lose momentum after such a powerful start. Fox went cold from the field, not scoring for the first seven minutes of the period. During that time, Willamette slowly made their way ahead, taking a 22-15 lead thanks to their extended 14-0 run. Alexa Borter helped the Bruins stay close as the offense picked up in the closing seconds, but the Bruins entered halftime down three, 21-24.

The third quarter was a similar story, with the Bruins shooting 24% from the field as the Bearcats pulled ahead. Fox started the third strong, with a Borter layup getting the Bruins close, 30-28, but Fox stayed behind from there, with Willamette leading 45-34 heading into the final period.

The first three minutes of the last quarter were quiet, as both teams struggled to make any dents in the scoreboard. Claire Hinds kept the Bruins in firing range with a layup, but Fox couldn't quite break into single-digits consistently Ritter fought to the end, flying in with two powerful layups with five minutes remaining. Bella Arrisagado then advanced the score with a shot at 54-44. With a minute left in the game, the Bruins gained motivation as Ritter made two more consecutive layups within seconds of each other. Wells sank one last three-pointer before the buzzer went off, but the Bruins still ended the game ten points behind, 66-56.

Top Performances
Kylie Ritter scored a career-high 18 points in the game with seven rebounds, while  Alyssa Wells totaled 14 points, six rebounds, and a career-high seven assists, while Hanne Hopkins finished the game with eight points, nine rebounds, and four assists in total.

What It Means
Fox's four-game winning streak comes to a close as the Bruins fall to 8-2 (0-1 NWC) while Willamette improves to 5-7 (2-0 NWC).

What Comes Next
The Bruins will go to McMinnville, Ore. to play a marquee matchup against the rival Linfield Wildcats (10-0, 2-0 NWC) at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 4th.