NEWBERG, Ore. -- After a month away from the friendly confines of Wheeler Sports Center, the George Fox women's basketball team put up a dominant performance to down the Whitworth Pirates, 58-44.  

How It Happened
After a slow offensive start to the first quarter — with a Pirate free throw the only bucket in the first two minutes of play — Hanne Hopkins quickly answered back for the Lady Bruins with a floating jumpshot of her own. It was then that a back-and-forth contest started between the two teams; after a Whitworth layup, Hopkins once again showed off her skill, driving into the paint for a layup that earned her an and-one shot, 5-3. With five minutes left in the quarter, Kylie Ritter continued the Bruins' offensive streak with a hook shot of her own. It didn't take long before Bella Arrisgado got on the board as well after being drawn to the line and making both free throws, 9-6. 

In a turn of events, the Pirates went on a six-point streak to snag the lead back. Answering back was Ritter with another hook shot and a free throw shot from Mia Skoro to take a 13-12 lead. With the 20 seconds left in the quarter, Whitworth put up a triple shot to gain the lead before the final buzzer, 15-13. 

The second quarter brought a change of pace for Fox — after just 20 seconds, Ritter continued her consistency in the paint and recorded yet another hook shot to tie the game at 15. Whitworth began to pull away, but they didn't get far before the Lady Bruins made their own dent in the score. Arrisgado started GFU's streak with two free throws, and Hopkins joined her with two of her own from the charity stripe. Continuing Fox's energy was freshman Addison Dippel, who recorded the first points of her collegiate career with a driving layup. 

The next possession, Tara Ushiro fought her way through the Pirate attack for a steal, which resulted in a fast break layup. Hopkins hit another smooth, driving layup to widen the gap to 25-19 and cement a 10-0 run. After a Whitworth layup, George Fox was back at it again. This time around, Macduff brought the fire with an aggressive jumper that earned her an and-one. Following Macduff was Skoro, who added another layup to her record, 30-21. Despite having less than one minute left in the quarter, the Lady Bruins' offense did not slow down; Arrisgado sparked the offense back up again by making both of her free throws. Following her lead — and with only two seconds left —  Emma Boehm made a turnaround jump shot to make the final score of the half 34-25. 

With the start of the third quarter, it was clear that GFU's offense didn't end in the first half. Ritter continued to show her dominance on the court, both in and out of the paint. Her hook shot remained consistent as she added two more to her record within two minutes; after another Ushiro steal, the ball was passed to Ritter, who swished a three-point shot from behind the outside ring. Along with Ritter, Skoro and Hopkins both contributed layups to the 9-0 streak and made the score an impressive 43-27. 

While the Pirates occasionally broke up the score with points of their own, they could never fully stop the Bruins' offense. With a little over four minutes left in the quarter, Macduff and Skoro both drove into the paint for aggressive layups. Dippel also continued to put points on the board, attacking the hoop for a smooth layup. A Hopkins jumper gave GFU a 51-33 lead going into the fourth quarter. 

Whitworth used the start of the fourth quarter as a chance to make their comeback. While their offense ramped up in many ways, their defense couldn't stop George Fox from keeping their offense alive. With less than seven minutes left, Boehm found herself behind the outer ring and swished a trey, 54-37. It wasn't until less than two minutes left in the quarter that GFU scored again after an aggressive Skoro layup. With two final free throws made by Ritter, the game ended with a Bruin win, 58-44. 

Top Performances
While Kylie Ritter led GFU in points with 15, she also ended with two blocks and six rebounds. Right behind her was Hanne Hopkins with 13 points and Mia Skoro with seven, along with two blocks of her own. Hopkins and Paige Macduff led the team in rebounds with seven apiece, while Bella Arrisgado had the most assists with three. Defensively, Tara Ushiro brought chaos to the court with three steals. 

Coach's Thoughts
"We've been working hard to bring the energy defensively and get quicker rotations in," Bruins head coach Lauren Howard said, "I thought the team worked hard and we were able to count on bench players to give solid minutes."

What It Means
The Lady Bruins rise to 8-6 (4-1 NWC) while the Pirates fall to 1-13 (0-5 NWC). 

What Happens Next
Fox will continue conference play on Saturday, January 17, as they go head-to-head against the Whitman Blues; the competition is scheduled to start at 3:00 pm in Newberg.