NEWBERG, Ore. -- The George Fox women's basketball team wrapped up its regular season with a Senior Night contest, dropping a game to the Northwest Conference champion Linfield Wildcats, 76-61.

How It Happened
In the pregame, the Bruins honored their four senior basketball players — Mia Skoro, Maddie Schumacher, Laney Snelling, and Kylie Ritter — as well as senior team manager Talya Kulsack. Though Skoro and Snelling were out due to injury, the team still introduced them as honorary starters.

Schumacher started the game strong for Fox with a pair of free throws before Sophia Hardy knocked down a triple to make the score 5-2. Then it was Hanne Hopkins' turn, answering a 6-0 Wildcat run with a fastbreak layup as the teams began to trade buckets. 

While the teams traded points, Paige Macduff had the defensive highlights, recording a pair of blocks on back-to-back possessions. Hardy had the final points of the first quarter for the Bruins, hitting her second triple of the first period (the junior entered the game with her last made three-pointer on January 3) off a pass from Schumacher. At the end of the first, the Wildcats led, 17-14.

Macduff began the second period with a layup and another block — her third of the game — before Hopkins scored four straight. Then, it was Ritter's turn, scoring two transition layups thanks to steals from Addison Dippel and Emma Boehm. Fox managed to take a three-point lead on a Boehm triple and extended it to four on free throws. With six seconds left in the period, though, the Wildcats hit a huge trey of their own, cutting the Bruin lead to one, 35-34, at half.

The teams continued to trade the lead in the early stages of the second half, with Hopkins and Macduff hitting shots in the paint to give the Bruins a 39-38 lead. Linfield snatched the lead with a triple and wrangled control in the back half of the third; the Wildcats went on a 10-2 run to take a 12-point lead. Schumacher found Hardy again on a pass from half-court to cut that deficit to 10 at the end of the third, 60-50.

Fox was able to hit free throws to keep pace in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter, but the Bruins couldn't put the ball in the bucket; the Bruins were 0-4 in the first 4:30 of the final frame before Boehm nailed a triple to make the score 66-55, Linfield. That triple would be the only shot that Fox hit in the fourth quarter as the Bruins finished 1-10 from the field (though GFU did shoot 8-8 from the free throw line in the period). 

Down by double digits in the waning seconds, Bruin head coach Lauren Howard checked out seniors Ritter and Schumacher to the roar of the crowd. Though the Bruins didn't pick up the win on Senior Night, falling to Linfield, 76-61, thanks in part to the hard work from the seniors, they will have another chance at the Wildcats in the NWC Tournament.

Top Performances
In her final game at the Wheeler Sports Center, Kylie Ritter was the top scorer on the night, putting up 13 points and nine rebounds. Fellow Maddie Schumacher ended with seven points and a team-high three assists. Emma Boehm and Sophia Hardy were the other double-digit scorers, each hitting two triples. Paige Macduff, meanwhile, had a career-high four blocks.

What It Means
George Fox falls to 14-11 (10-6 NWC), while Linfield improves to 22-3 (15-1 NWC) on the year. The Bruins end the season as the number four seed in the conference, while Linfield earned its first-ever 20-win season and conference championship.

What Happens Next 
The Bruins will face the very same Linfield Wildcats in the first round of the conference tournament, traveling to McMinnville, Ore., to take on the top team in the NWC. The game is scheduled for 7:30 pm on Friday, February 27. Should the Bruins win, they would stay in McMinnville for a chance at their 15th NCAA Tournament bid on Saturday.