Press Release
2/4 - GEORGE FOX 74, PACIFIC 65: Bruins Get Back on the Beam with Homecoming Win over Boxers
NEWBERG, Ore. - Overcoming a 38-point, 18-rebound performance by league-leading scorer DeeDee Arnall, the George Fox University Bruins built up as much as a 26-point lead and snapped a three-game losing streak with a 74-65 win over the Pacific University Boxers in a Northwest Conference women's basketball game Saturday night here at the Wheeler Sports Center's Miller Gym.
Arnall, a post player, hit a three-pointer that gave Pacific an early 8-3 lead, but the Bruins reeled off the next 9 unanswered points to take a 12-8 lead with 16:10 left in the first half and never trailed again. Led by Robin Taylor's 13 first-half points, the Bruins took a 20-point lead into the half, 46-26. Arnall had 12 to pace the Boxers, who were held to a 25.0 shooting percentage (8-32) in the period.
An 8-2 start to the second half raised the George Fox lead to 26 points at 54-28 with 16:21 to play before the Boxers fought back. With Arnall scoring 14 points, the Boxers went on a 20-2 run over the next eight minutes to cut the Bruin lead to 8 points at 56-48. Kim Leith made a three-point play for the Bruins to slow the run, and Taylor canned a three-point basket to get the lead back to 16 at 66-50 with 5:43 left. An 11-2 run by the Boxers narrowed the margin to 7 at 68-61 with 2:50 to play, but Bruin baskets by Katy Campbell and Tiffany Behary and two free throws by Leith kept the visitors from getting any closer.
Taylor finished with 21 points to lead the Bruins and Leith added 10, while Erin Powers and Behary passed out 4 assists each. Campbell and Powers grabbed 12 rebounds apiece, leading the Bruins to a 50-49 edge on the boards. The Bruins shot 35.2% (25-71) from the field, while the defense made 12 steals and forced 20 Pacific turnovers.
Arnall's 38 points moved her past Chris Tarabochia, who had 1,512 points from 1982-86, into second on the all-time Pacific scoring list with 1,548. She was 12-27 from the field and 13-16 from the line. Amy Pederson added 12 points for the Boxers, who shot 29.2% (19-65) from the floor. Shana Rietmann had 3 assists.
George Fox improved to 16-5 overall and 7-5 in the conference, with Pacific dipping to 6-15 overall and 1-11 in the league. The Bruins host Linfield College Tuesday at 6 p.m., while the Boxers play at Willamette University Friday at 6 p.m. Both games will be followed by men's NWC games at 8 p.m.