NEWBERG, Ore. -- In head coach Jordyn Merkel's first game of her Bruin career, the George Fox women's lacrosse team racked up 18 goals on their way to an 18-14 win over the Whitworth Pirates.

How It Happened
The Bruins got the season going quickly, scoring a goal just over 30 seconds into the half, as Merrick Gibson scored off of an assist from Morgan Maxfield to give GFU a 1-0 lead early. Gibson scored again minutes later, once again putting it in after a Maxfield assist. Two minutes later last year's goal leader for the Bruins, Ava Bluhm, got her first score of the season, putting it in the back of the net after a pass from Lana Davis to make the score 3-0. After the Bruins' defense forced a ground ball seconds later, GFU had a successful clear attempt that led to Bluhm being fouled and getting a free position shot for her second goal of the season. Maxfield dished another assist at the seven-minute mark to push the Bruins lead to 5-0 with seven minutes left in the first quarter. Withworth managed to get two scores in the final two minutes of play in the first quarter, and the frame ended with the Bruins up, 5-2. 

Bluhm started the second quarter strong with another goal to extend the lead to 6-2 just 40 seconds into the frame. Whitworth responded seconds later with a goal of their own, putting the lead back at three goals. The Pirates added another goal minutes later, bringing the score to 6-4 in favor of GFU. Bluhm slowed Whitworth's momentum with her fourth goal of the first half at the 12-minute mark, putting Fox up 7-4. After four minutes of back-and-forth play, the Bruins found the back of the net from Gibson's stick on a free-position shot, extending the lead to 8-4. Whitworth scored not long after on a power play, to which freshman Stella Flores responded with her first collegiate goal to make the score 9-5. The Pirates scored two more goals again in the final minutes of the frame, making the score 9-7 GFU, however, Shae Katagi beat the buzzer with a score with 10 seconds left in the half to make the score 10-8 heading into the half. 

The Pirates won draw control to start the second half, then Bruins goalie Myah Pack came up with a save to stop the attack. Sasha Thayer scored her first goal of the season with 13 minutes in the quarter, followed by Claire Abraham scoring her first of the season as well a minute later, making the score 12-7. The Pirates scored with 10 minutes left before the teams played back and forth for the next six minutes. Whitworth broke the dry spell with another goal with 2 minutes left, making the score 12-9. The duo of Davis and Maxfield struck again in response minutes later, with Maxfield scoring and Davis assisting as the Bruins pushed the lead to 13-9, which is what the quarter would end with. 

Heading into the fourth quarter, the Bruins carried a four-goal lead, which they expanded with a second goal from Abraham, and a third from Gibson, making the GFU lead 16-9 with 9:52 left in the match. Whitworth's Campbell Vincent scored three goals in three minutes, cutting the Bruins' lead to 16-12 with just over six minutes left. Davis responded with a highlight reel goal, winning the draw herself and then slicing through the defense to score the solo goal and give the Bruins a 17-12 lead. The Pirates weren't done yet, scoring two more goals to make the score 17-14 with 4:04 left in the game. Maxfield then delivered the dagger shot, scoring after a free position attempt set her up with the look to push the lead to 18-14 and finish off the Pirates. 

Top Performers
Ava Bluhm had four first-half goals, while Merrick Gibson also scored four goals herself. Morgan Maxfield had five assists and a pair of goals. Goalie Myah Parker picked up seven saves. 

What It Means
The Bruins start the season with a win in their first non-conference action of the season, and Whitworth starts with a loss. 

Coach's Thoughts
"Proud of our first win and the fight these players had," said Merkel. "They battled through a lot. This conference is definitely getting stronger but we learned what we need to work on to get ready for game two." 

What Comes Next
The Bruins play at home on Thursday, February 27, against Willamette at the Austin Sports Complex, starting at 6 pm.