With Tiffany Behary scoring seven points and Kellie Thomas five, including a three-pointer by each, the Bruins opened up a 12-0 lead four minutes into the game and held the Pirates scoreless for six-and-a-half. Sarah Shogren finally got the Pirates on the board with a trey at the 13:30 mark. The Bruins extended their lead to 21 at 34-13 on a layup by Robin Taylor with 2:42 to play, but the Pirates’ Holly Ridings made two steals that led to two baskets in the final 30 seconds of the half, cutting the Bruin advantage to 35-19 at the intermission.
Whitworth scored six of the first seven points of the second half to mount a comeback and got the deficit back under 10 at 44-35 on a pair of Shogren free throws with 12:13 to play. Dani Bielec’s three-pointer at 10:44 cut it to 46-40, but a 9-0 run, capped by a Liz Clark three, put the Bruins back up 55-40 with 7:30 to go. The Pirates again closed within eight at 61-53 on a Shogren layup with 2:52 left, but the Bruins, with consecutive threes by Kim Leith, Taylor, and Katy Campbell, went on an 11-2 game-ending run to remove all doubt.
Three George Fox guards combined for 47 points, with Behary and Taylor scoring 16 each and Leith 15. Clark and Campbell had 9 rebounds apiece as the Bruins out-boarded the Pirates 34-26. Clark had a career-high 8 assists. The Bruins had their best shooting night of the season as they hit .537 (29-54) for the game.
Tiffany Speer had 16 points to pace the Pirates, Shogren finished with 14, and Ridings added 12. Bielec was the top rebounder with 6 and picked up 4 steals. Wenchi Liu, Bielec, and Ridings had 3 assists each. The Pirates shot only .340 (16-47) from the field.
George Fox improved to 14-5 overall and 8-2 in the conference with its win before a Homecoming crowd of some 1,750, the third-largest crowd in team history. It was the Bruins’ second win over a ranked opponent this season, along with a 50-42 defeat of the University of Puget Sound when the Loggers were ranked 16th. Whitworth is now 17-2 overall and 8-2 in the NWC.
The Bruins host Willamette University and the Pirates entertain Puget Sound next Friday, both games at 6:00 p.m. followed by men’s games at 8:00 p.m.
Whitworth vs George Fox 02/05/05 6:00 pm at Newberg, Ore. - Wheeler SC/Miller Gym At Newberg, Ore. - Wheeler SC/Miller Gym GEORGE FOX 72, WHITWORTH 55 WHITWORTH (17-2, NWC 8-2) Speer, Tiffany 6-10 4-5 16; Shogren, Sarah 4-9 5-7 14; Ridings, Holly 3-8 4-4 12; Bielec, Dani 2-10 3-4 9; Hendrickson, Emily 1-2 2-2 4; Coppin, Kristie 0-2 0-0 0; Gadley, Holley 0-2 0-0 0; Liu, Wenchi 0-4 0-0 0. Totals 16-47 18-22 55. GEORGE FOX (14-5, NWC 8-2) Taylor, Robin 7-10 0-0 16; Behary, Tiffany 7-9 0-0 16; Leith, Kim 5-14 4-4 15; Campbell, Katy 4-6 0-0 9; Clark, Liz 3-7 0-0 7; Thomas, Kellie 2-5 0-0 5; Powers, Erin 1-1 1-4 3; Wilde, Jordan 0-1 0-0 0; Marek-Farris, Meliss 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 29-54 6-10 72. Whitworth..................... 19 36 - 55 George Fox.................... 35 37 - 72 3-point goals-Whitworth 5-22 (Bielec, Dani 2-8; Ridings, Holly 2-6; Shogren, Sarah 1-2; Liu, Wenchi 0-3; Hendrickson, Emily 0-1; Speer, Tiffany 0-2), George Fox 8-27 (Behary, Tiffany 2-4; Taylor, Robin 2-4; Campbell, Katy 1-2; Leith, Kim 1-9; Thomas, Kellie 1-3; Clark, Liz 1-4; Wilde, Jordan 0-1). Fouled out--Whitworth-None, George Fox-None. Rebounds-Whitworth 26 (Bielec, Dani 6), George Fox 34 (Campbell, Katy 9; Clark, Liz 9). Assists-Whitworth 10 (Ridings, Holly 3; Liu, Wenchi 3; Bielec, Dani 3), George Fox 18 (Clark, Liz 8). Total fouls-Whitworth 13, George Fox 19. A-1750