BROWNWOOD, Texas -- The George Fox women's basketball team played against Howard Payne, bouncing back from a rocky start, but ultimately losing the game, 59-52.

How It Happened
After jumping out to an 8-0 lead against No. 15 East Texas Baptist two days before, Wednesday's contest began the exact opposite; in the opening minutes, the Yellow Jackets scored the first nine points. While Kylie Ritter managed to score four consecutive points on free throws, Fox still trailed, 9-4.

Howard Payne continued to widen the gap, taking a 16-4 lead, but the quarter turned at the four-minute mark. Sophia Hardy nailed a three-pointer before Ritter did the same. A fallaway jump-shot by Emma Boehm with just 24 seconds left in the first quarter helped the Bruins end the first on an 8-1 run and made the score 17-12 at the end of the period.

The Bruins kept that run going with two free throws by Tara Ushiro and a smooth layup from Hardy, almost tying the score, 17-16. One by one, though, HPU improved its lead as the period went on, and Fox failed to score for the next seven and a half minutes. However, Hardy and Bella Arrisgado helped the Bruins end the half strong, with Arrisgado nailing a triple and Hardy scoring a layup to cut the halftime deficit to five, 26-31.

Once again, the Bruins struggled to score out of the halftime break, remaining stuck at 21 points for the first five minutes of the half — but, despite offensive struggles, the Bruin defense locked in, keeping GFU within shouting distance by allowing just four points over the opening five minutes. Eventually, Mia Skoro broke the drought with a three-pointer, and Hanne Hopkins scored a jumper, cutting the deficit to 11, 37-26.

Kylie Ritter made a layup shortly after, but the Howard Payne lead hovered around 10 points. Skoro made a free-throw, and with less than 20 seconds left, made a jump-shot—the score was at 39-31 at the end of the period.

The final quarter was back-and-forth as Arrisgado started off the period with a charging layup, but the Yellow Jackets extended the lead to 10 once again over the next five minutes, making the score 53-42. With time winding down, the Bruins needed a rally.

Down by 10 with 2:15 remaining, Ushiro started that rally with a three-pointer, hitting another one just 30 seconds later. Hopkins made two consecutive layups to cut the lead to five, and Arrisgado stole the ensuing inbounds pass. However, despite their frantic rally and effort to end the game, Fox couldn't push through, as Howard Payne claimed the game, 59-52.

Top Performances
Kylie Ritter led the team with  12 points, seven rebounds, and two assists, while Hanne Hopkins totaled 10 points, with six assists, five rebounds, and three steals. Sophia Hardy had eight points and a team-high eight rebounds, while Tara Ushiro also scored eight points to go alongside three steals.

What It Means
George Fox falls to a 5-5 overall record after a 1-2 Texas trip, but keeps their 1-0 record in the Northwest Conference. Howard Payne advances to a 6-6 overall record, winning their fourth straight game. 

What Comes Next
The Bruins will take a break to rest up and recoup before returning in the new year to play at Pacific Lutheran on Friday, January 2. The game is scheduled to start at 5:30 pm in Tacoma, Wash.