Press Release
Overall 7-4: Home 5-1, Road 1-1, Neutral 1-2 / NWC 3-1 (1st, T): Home 2-1, Road 1-0
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HIGHLIGHTS:
* Coming Up: Willamette Home, at Pacific on Weekend
* Recent Games: Bruins Sweep "Whits" for Share of NWC Lead
* Marek-Farris BAA Athlete, NWC Player of the Week
* Polls: Bruins Pick Up More Votes after Two Good Wins
* Post Players Produce in Win over Pirates
* NCAA Stats: Marek-Farris in Blocks, Team in Three Categories
RECENT GAMES: 2-0 (Click scores for link to stories and box scores):
Jan. 5 - at George Fox 52, Whitman 37
Jan. 6 - at George Fox 66, Whitworth 50
COMING UP: Willamette Home, at Pacific on Weekend
* Fri., Jan. 12, 6:00 pm - vs. Willamette University (3-10, NWC 1-3, 7th T), at Newberg, Ore.
KFOX Radio webcast at www.kfoxradio.net ... Northwest Conference doubleheader (men's game at 8 p.m.) ... The Bearcats from Salem, Ore., were picked to finish 8th in the NWC pre-season coaches' poll; the Bruins were picked 4th â?¦ Series record: GFU leads 39-12 since 1982 (23-3 home, 15-9 road, 1-0 neutral) ... The Bruins have won the last eight meetings and 17 of the last 19, including 76-48 in Salem Jan. 21 and 92-48 in Newberg Feb. 18 last season â?¦ The Bearcats' last win in the series was 53-51 in Salem Feb. 9, 2002 â?¦ Willamette defeated Pacific 71-66 in overtime Friday to snap a 20-game losing streak in conference play â?¦ Willamette averages 51.3 ppg (9th in the NWC) and allows 62.2 ppg (8th) ... Willamette's top scorer is F Keilyn Fujioka (9.8, 14th in the NWC) ... Fujioka also leads in rebounding (8.2, 4th) â?¦ Fujioka ranks 3rd in the league in blocked shots (1.46) and field goal pct. (.561) â?¦ Laura Payne is the assists leader (2.69, 7th) â?¦ Coach Bruce Henderson (Willamette '85) is 8-29 to date in his 2nd season ... Willamette next hosts Linfield Jan. 13 at 6 p.m. ...
* Sat., Jan. 13, 6:00 pm - at Pacific University (4-8, NWC 0-5, 9th), at Forest Grove, Ore.
KFOX Radio webcast at www.kfoxradio.net ... Northwest Conference doubleheader (men's game at 8 p.m.) ... The Boxers from Forest Grove, Ore., were picked to finish 9th in the NWC pre-season coaches' poll; the Bruins were picked 4th â?¦ Series record: GFU leads 29-23 since 1982 (16-10 home, 13-13 road) â?¦ The Bruins have won the last six meeting and 19 of the last 20, including 69-50 in Forest Grove Jan. 7 and 74-65 in Newberg Feb. 4 last season â?¦ The Boxers' last win in the series was 59-54 in Forest Grove Feb. 8, 2003 â?¦ Pacific averages 58.2 ppg (7th in the NWC) and allows 63.2 ppg (9th) ... Pacific has one player in double-figure scoring: G Amy Pedersen (14.3, 2nd in the NWC) ... Pedersen is the top rebounder (7.3, 7th) â?¦ Trisha Terhar is the assists leader (2.75, 6th) â?¦ Coach Jeff Thompson (Washington State '94) is 32-53 to date in his 4th season ... Pacific next visits Linfield Jan. 19 at 6 p.m. ...
Click here for the latest NWC Standings.
COACH SCOTT RUECK:
Scott Rueck (Oregon State '91) is 191-77 (.713) to date in his 11th season as a college head coach, all at George Fox. He was named Northwest Conference Coach of the Year for the third time in 2004-05 after leading the Bruins to the NWC title and the "Elite 8" of the NCAA National Tournament. He was also NWC Coach of the Year in 1999-2000 and Co-Coach of the Year in 2000-01. Click here for the complete bio on Coach Rueck.
Rueck vs. upcoming opponents:
Willamette - 17-3 (10-0 home, 7-3 road)
Pacific - 19-1 (10-0 home, 9-1 road)
BRUIN BITS:
* Marek-Farris BAA Athlete, NWC Player of the Week
Melissa Marek-Farris has been named the Bruin Athletic Association Women's Athlete of the Week, as well as Northwest Conference Women's Player of the Week for Jan. 1-7, for leading the Bruins to a pair of league wins Jan. 5-6 and into a tie for first in the conference. In a 52-37 win over Whitman Friday, the junior post had her third double-double of the season with 10 points on 4-7 field goals and 2-2 free throws with 10 rebounds, 4 blocked shots, 2 assists and a steal. In a 66-50 win over Whitworth Saturday, she had 15 points on 6-8 field goals and 3-5 free throws, with 8 rebounds, 2 blocks and a steal. For the week, she scored 25 points (12.5 ppg) on 10-15 (.667) field goals (.667) and 5-7 (.714) free throws, with 18 rebounds (9.0 rpg), 6 blocks (3.0 bspg), 2 assists, and 2 steals. In NWC stats, she is 1st in blocked shots (2.36), field goal pct. (.605), 6th in rebounding (7.7), 8th in scoring (11.9), 13th in free throw pct. (.717)shots, and is 28th nationally in blocked shots ...
* 2006-07 Honors:
- Melissa Marek-Farris - Bruin Athletic Association Women's Athlete of the Week (Nov. 13-19, Jan. 1-7); NWC Player of the Week (HM-Nov. 13-19, Jan. 1-7)
- Katy Campbell - Bruin Athletic Association Women's Athlete of the Week (Nov. 20-26, Nov. 27-Dec. 3); NWC Player of the Week (HM-Nov. 20-26, HM-Nov. 27-Dec. 3)
- Robin Taylor - Bruin Athletic Association Women's Athlete of the Week (Dec. 4-10, Dec. 11-21); NWC Player of the Week (HM-Dec. 4-10, HM-Dec. 11-21)
* Polls: Bruins Pick Up More Votes after Two Good Wins
Impressive Northwest Conference wins over Whitman and Whitworth over the weekend led to a few more votes for George Fox in the two D-III national polls this week.
In the USA Today/ESPN Coaches' Poll, the Bruins received 12 votes, up from 3 the week before, and was second among "others receiving votes" in the balloting by 10 head coaches around the country. Puget Sound was 25th with 18 points. Hope was ranked first with 250 points and all 10 first-place votes.
In the D3hoops.com poll, which is voted on by a panel of 25 coaches, sports information directors, and media members, the Bruins picked up 6 votes (3 more than last week) and were included in the "others receiving votes". Pacific Lutheran was 24th with 49 points and Puget Sound was 25th with 45. Bowdoin remained the top-ranked team, edging Hope 610-605.
Complete polls:
USA Today/ESPN Coaches' Poll / D3hoops.com Poll
* Post Players Produce in Win over Pirates
When George Fox defeated Whitworth 66-50 Saturday to gain a share of first place in the Northwest Conference (along with Whitworth, Whitman, Pacific Lutheran and Puget Sound, all 3-1!), it was the outstanding play of the Bruin posts that spelled the difference. The Bruins' four inside players combined to score 45 points, shooting 19-27 from the field, with 21 rebounds and 5 blocked shots.
"Our inside players gave us everything we could ask for," said coach Scott Rueck in praise of starting juniors Melissa Marek-Farris and Katy Campbell, sophomore reserve Kristen Shielee, and freshman backup Elise Kuenzi. "Melissa has improved so much, she is now a major force for us with her quickness and athleticism. Katy has given us great play on the boards and is still a constant threat, inside or outside. Elise had a career night against Whitworth and really gave us an offensive lift when she came in. Kristen, who at 6-3 is the tallest post I've ever had, is healthy now and gives another great shot-blocking threat inside."
Individually against Whitworth, Marek-Farris had 15 points, 11 is the first half, on 6-8 shooting with 8 rebounds and 2 blocks. Campbell scored 10 on 5-8 from the field and had 7 rebounds. Kuenzi scored a career-high 17 points, 11 in the second half, hitting 7-10 from the floor and had 4 rebounds. Shielee had a 3-point play on her only shot of the game, secured 2 rebounds, and blocked 3 shots in only 13 minutes.
* NCAA Stats: Marek-Farris in Blocks, Team in Three Categories
In the latest NCAA national statistics (thru Jan. 7), Melissa Marek-Farris is 28th in blocked shots (2.4), and her .605 field goal pct. would rank 7th but she is 6 field goals shy of qualifying for national rankings â?¦ As a team, the Bruins are 39th in defense (52.6 ppg), 40th in free throw pct. (.722), and 42nd in field goal pct. defense (.338) â?¦
* NWC Stats: Bruins Still Best in FG and 3-Pt FG Pct. Defense
Where the Bruins rank in the latest Northwest Conference stats (thru Jan. 9):
Scoring Offense - 6th (59.8)
Scoring Defense - 3rd (52.6)
Scoring Margin - 3rd (+7.2)
Field Goal Pct. - 3rd (.406)
Field Goal Pct. Defense - 1st (.338)
3-Pt Field Goals - 3rd (5.00, T)
3-Pt Field Goal Pct. - 5th (.286)
3-Pt Field Goal Pct. Defense - 1st (.228)
Free Throw Pct. - 2nd (.722)
Rebounding Offense - 5th (39.1)
Rebounding Defense - 6th (35.5)
Rebounding Margin - 6th (+3.6)
Assists - 4th (13.45)
Blocked Shots - 4th (3.36)
Steals - 6th (7.82)
Turnover Margin - 8th (-3.00)
Assist/Turnover Ratio - 6th (0.67:1)
- Robin Taylor is 5th in scoring (12.6), 3-pt field goals (1.45), 6th in free throw pct. (.795), 11th in rebounding (6.3), 12th in 3-pt field goal pct. (.291), 14th in steals (1.36) ...
- Katy Campbell is 3rd in rebounding (8.4), 4th in free throw pct. (.828), 5th in field goal pct. (.471), 8th in assists (2.55, T) 14th in assist/turnover ratio (0.93), 15th in scoring (9.7) ...
- Melissa Marek-Farris is 1st in blocked shots (2.36), field goal pct. (.605), 6th in rebounding (7.7), 8th in scoring (11.9), 13th in free throw pct. (.717) â?¦
- B.B. Gardner is 8th in assists (2.55, T), 12th in assist/turnover ratio (0.97) â?¦
- Nicole Hudson is 11th in 3-pt field goals (1.09, T), 15th in assist/turnover ratio (0.88) â?¦
- Jaime Hubka is 2nd in 3-pt field goal pct. (.444), 11th in 3-pt field goals (1.09, T) â?¦
Click here for the latest NWC Statistics.
* Double-Doubles:
- Melissa Marek-Farris: Career 3, season 3 - 15 pts/12 reb vs. Northwest, 11/18; 16 pts/11 reb vs. Bridgewater at Honolulu, Hawaii, 12/18; 10 pts/10 reb vs. Whitman, 1/5
- Katy Campbell: Career 3, season 1 - 12 pts/13 reb at Puget Sound, 12/2
* Bruins vs. Ranked Teams (2-2):
Dec. 2 - defeated NCAA D-III #17 Puget Sound 58-50 in Tacoma, Wash.
Dec. 8 - lost to NAIA D-I #27 Montana State-Northern 55-72 in Lewiston, Idaho
Dec. 9 - lost to NAIA D-I #8 Lewis-Clark State 59-67 in Lewiston, Idaho
Dec. 18 - defeated NCAA D-III #16 Bridgewater 57-41 in Honolulu, Hawaii
* Career Lists: Taylor in Top 10 in Three Percentage Categories
- Robin Taylor entered the season with the 5th-best field goal pct. in Bruin history (.468, 237-506). She was 6-19 in the last two games and is now at .446 (281-630), ranking 10th ... She entered the season with the 6th-best three-point field goal pct. (.357, 80-224). She was 2-9 in the last two games and is now at .344 (96-279), ranking 10th ... She entered the season with the 7th-best free throw pct. (.760, 114-150). She was 3-5 in the last two games and is now at .768 (149-194), still 7th ...
- Katy Campbell had no free throws in the last two games and maintained a career free throw pct. of .729 (97-133), 11th on the all-time list ...