The loss knocked George Fox out of a first-place tie with the Whitworth College Pirates, a 65-56 winner at Linfield College, as the Bruins fell to 13-5 overall and 7-2 in the league. Their six-game winning streak also came to an end. Whitman, rebounding from a slow start in conference play, improved to 10-8 overall and 5-4 in the league with its fourth win in five games.
Whitman held the hot hand early, scoring the game’s first five baskets, capped by a three-pointer by Laura Vertatschich, for an 11-0 lead, and never trailed in the game. The Bruins missed their first 7 shots before finally breaking the ice on a Leith three with 14:10 left in the half. With Leith scoring 12 points, the Bruins battled back for the game’s only tie at 17-17 tie with 7:43 left, but the Missionaries went on an 8-0 run to regain the lead. Leith’s three-point play with 8.2 seconds left, which gave her 17 in the half, cut the Whitman lead to 31-24 at the break.
Lizzy Washburn’s rebound basket gave the Missionaries their largest lead of 14 points at 42-28 with 15:50 to play before the Bruins began a slow but steady comeback. With Leith scoring 8 points, the Bruins went on a 14-5 run to get within five at 47-42 with 9:31 remaining, but that was as close as they would get. Whitman closed with an 11-4 run over the game’s final four minutes.
Leith was 12-24 from the field with 3 three-pointers and 6-7 from the free throw line, but the rest of the Bruins were 5-29 from the field, made only one three, and went 6-11 from the line. Only three other Bruins scored, none in double figures. Liz Clark led all rebounders with 14, and Tiffany Behary had 3 steals.
Washburn finished with 22 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Missionaries in both categories, while Vertatschich added 16 points. Megan Higgins had 4 assists and 3 steals. The Missionaries did a good job of controlling the ball, out-rebounding the Bruins 43-38 and making only 10 turnovers when Bruin opponents were averaging over 26 a game.
The Bruins host Whitworth Saturday at 6:00 p.m. on Homecoming night, and need a win to pull back into a tie for first with six league games left. The Missionaries travel to McMinnville Saturday to play Linfield, also at 6:00 p.m. Both games will be followed by men’s games at 8:00 p.m.
Newspaper Box Score Whitman vs George Fox 02/04/05 6:00 pm at Newberg, Ore. - Wheeler Sports Center At Newberg, Ore. - Wheeler Sports Center WHITMAN 62, GEORGE FOX 50 WHITMAN (10-8, NWC 5-4) Washburn, Lizzy 8-15 5-7 22; Vertatschitch, Laura 5-14 5-6 16; Krumdieck, Kelsey 4-9 0-0 8; Stephenson, Anna 3-4 0-0 6; Laird, Sarah 2-7 0-0 4; Patneaude, Kate 1-7 1-4 3; Higgins, Megan 1-5 1-2 3. Totals 24-61 12-19 62. GEORGE FOX (13-5, NWC 7-2) Leith, Kim 12-24 6-7 33; Clark, Liz 3-10 0-0 7; Campbell, Katy 2-6 2-3 6; Taylor, Robin 0-2 4-8 4; Powers, Erin 0-2 0-0 0; Boyd, Karissa 0-1 0-0 0; Behary, Tiffany 0-4 0-0 0; Thomas, Kellie 0-4 0-0 0. Totals 17-53 12-18 50. Whitman....................... 31 31 - 62 George Fox.................... 24 26 - 50 3-point goals-Whitman 2-12 (Washburn, Lizzy 1-2; Vertatschitch, Laura 1-2; Laird, Sarah 0-2; Patneaude, Kate 0-3; Higgins, Megan 0-3), George Fox 4-27 (Leith, Kim 3-11; Clark, Liz 1-6; Taylor, Robin 0-2; Powers, Erin 0-1; Behary, Tiffany 0-3; Thomas, Kellie 0-1; Campbell, Katy 0-3). Fouled out--Whitman-None, George Fox-None. Rebounds-Whitman 43 (Washburn, Lizzy 10), George Fox 38 (Clark, Liz 14). Assists-Whitman 12 (Higgins, Megan 4), George Fox 6 (Leith, Kim 2; Thomas, Kellie 2). Total fouls-Whitman 15, George Fox 15. A-750