NEWBERG, Oregon- The Howard Payne University women's basketball team (2-1) has finished its Pacific northwest trip on a loss after losing a close contest against the George Fox University Bruins (2-1), 62-52, at the Wheeler Sports Center on Wednesday evening.
Howard Payne struggled from the floor in the first quarter, which let George Fox take the lead. Despite trailing, the Lady Jackets were able to stay in the game with offensive rebounds and turnovers. The Lady Jackets grabbed eight offensive rebounds and caused seven turnovers.
The second quarter played out similarly to the first quarter. The Lady Jackets got down to their largest deficit of the half when the Bruins made it a 12-point game off a three pointer from Ushiro Tara with 1:37 left to play.
At the half, sophomore Center Caitlyn Parsons, senior forward Jerzie Bryant, senior guard Madison Clay and junior guard Hope Hermesmeyer were tied for the lead in scoring for HPU with four points.
Sophomore guard Gabriella Barrera hit the Lady Jackets' first three point shot with 7:33 to play in the third quarter. In the last two minutes, HPU found some offensive momentum and used a 6-0 run to bring the Lady Jackets back within two and trailed going into the fourth quarter, 45-43. Senior guard Kaley Nicholson capped off this run with a three pointer with 0:28 seconds to play.
For most of the fourth quarter, Howard Payne was able to keep it within a one possession game. Unfortunately, the Lady Jackets struggled to hit their shots. HPU shot 23.1% from the field in the fourth quarter and 0-4 from behind the three-point line. In the latter half of the fourth, George Fox was able to pull away with free throws that restored their double-digit lead. Bryant finished as HPU's leading scorer with 13 points. Junior guard Hope Hermesmeyer scored eight points and grabbed seven rebounds. Senior guard Racie Decker also grabbed seven rebounds.
Up Next: The Howard Payne University women's basketball team will return to Texas to play Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas at the Robertson Center on Tuesday, November 17 at 5:30 PM CT.
