,NEWBERG, Ore. -- The George Fox women's basketball team won their first game of the season after taking an early first quarter lead against Warner Pacific, downing the Knights, 67-55.

How It Happened
In the first quarter, the Bruins started out behind in the opening minutes, but quickly tied the score, 4-4, when Kylie Ritter made a two-point jumper. They moved ahead with another jumper from Sophia Hardy—in what would become a recurring statement. A few minutes later, Fox scored four quick points off of buckets from Mia Skoro and Hanne Hopkins.

Eventually, the Knights managed to tie the score 10-10, but Fox bounced back when Ritter challenged the defense with a strong layup. Hardy had another layup as well before Bella Arrisgado swished a shot from beyond the arc, finishing off the first quarter with the Bruins ahead, 19-12.

The second period began strong for Fox when Tara Ushiro nailed a strong floating jump shot. Then, the Bruins were able to double WPU's score, 24-12 with a triple from Hardy. Though the Knights tried to make a few points to even out the score with a mini-run of their own,  the Bruins were stronger, as Hopkins faked a drive in one direction, then pivoted back, making an amazing turn-around shot.

The remainder of the quarter had Hopkins and Hardy's fingerprints all over the game. Hopkins scored or assisted on the final 16 Bruin points — in total, the junior guard ended the first half with seven assists. Skoro, Hardy, and Emma Boehm were all recipients of solid passes from Hopkins, and at the half, the Bruins led, 40-24.

After halftime, the Bruins picked up right where they left off with smooth layups from Hardy and Hopkins, 46-29. With five minutes left in the third quarter, the game became one of tough defense for both teams; it wasn't until a swishing trey from Ritter that GFU's offense ended a three-minute scoring drought. Following Ritter was Hardy with a layup in the paint to further the gap in the score. The Knights did manage to sneak one last layup in before the end of the third quarter, but George Fox still maintained their lead, 51-36. 

Warner Pacific took the start of the fourth quarter as their chance to put pressure on GFU, and for the first three minutes, the only net that was seeing action was the Knights. Skoro wasn't going to keep it that way for long, and retaliated with an arcing three; not far behind her was Hardy, who went in for a finishing layup to make the score 56-40. 

While Hopkins made both her free throws after being drawn to the line, the Knights maintained their vigor and closed the gap to less than 10, 58-49. With four minutes left, aggression was apparent on the court as both teams made their way to the free throw line; for George Fox, both Ushiro's free throws were good, but they were almost immediately followed by three made free throws from the Knights. 

Within the final minutes, Ushiro was a reliable player for GFU, as she went five for six at the charity stripe to close the game. On the one free throw that didn't fall, Arrisgado was there for the rebound and passed it out to Hopkins for a solid jumper. The Lady Bruin's offensive performance in the fourth quarter – led by Ushiro – helped them take the win, 67-55. 

Top Performances
Hanne Hopkins came within inches of the first triple-double recorded by a Bruin since 2008, finishing with 18 points, nine rebounds, and nine assists. Sophia Hardy, meanwhile, had a career day of her own, finishing with a career-high 18 points, including two three-pointers — Hardy hit just one triple in 2024-25. Kylie Ritter led GFU in rebounds with 10, while Tara Ushiro totaled four steals. 

What It Means
The Bruins rise to 1-1, while the Knights fall to 0-3.

What Happens Next
The Bruins will travel to Orange, Calif. to play against the Chapman Panthers on Friday, November 21. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.