Nationally-Ranked George Fox Defeats Bearcats, 68-37

By Neil Patel, Assistant Athletics Communications Director, (503) 370-6804

SALEM, ORE. -- Melissa Marek-Farris scored 15 points and Katy Campbell added 13, as George Fox University, ranked 18th in NCAA Division III, defeated Willamette University, 68-37, on Friday, Jan. 11 at Cone Field House. George Fox improved to 11-1 overall, including 3-0 in the Northwest Conference. Willamette dropped to 2-10 on the season, 0-3 in the NWC.

The game started quickly for the Bruins, with George Fox scoring the first seven points of the game. George Fox then went on a 11-6 run to take a 18-6 advantage. The run featured three steals and three layups by Tiffany Behary.

After junior guard Molly Fillion (Silverton, Ore./Silverton HS/Linn-Benton CC) scored for Willamette at the 10:30 mark, the Bruins extended their lead by scoring nine points in a row. Kristen Shielee hit a jumper with 6:10 remaining in the half to complete the 9-0 offensive surge and give George Fox a 27-8 lead. The Bruins, who shot 50.0% (13 of 26) in the first half, scored the 13 of the last 21 points of the period to lead 40-16 at the intermission. George Fox achieved a 7-2 edge in assists during the first 20 minutes.

The Bruins opened the second half on a 16-2 run that extended the lead to 40 points at 58-18 with 11:58 remaining. The run was keyed by 3-pointers by Mandee Spotss and Kaleigha Ramey. The Bearcats went on 19-10 run to trim the lead in the final minutes. Jenny Fillion (Jr., G, Silverton, Ore./Silverton HS/Linn-Benton CC) and Laura Payne (Sr., G, Sammamish, Wash./Skyline HS) combined to score 11 points during this run.

Willamette was led in scoring by Jenny Fillion, who totaled 18 points on the night. Laura Payne contributed 9 points and three rebounds. Molly Fillion grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds along with eight points and two steals. The Bearcats shot 26.2% (16-61) and were held to 7.7% (1-13) on 3-pointers. WU made 4-5 free throws, as George Fox was called for just 10 fouls.

The Bruins shot 48.1% from the field (25-52), including 7 of 16 (43.8%) from 3-point range. George Fox sank 11 of 16 free throws for 68.8% at the line.

Melissa Marek-Farris of George Fox was the team's leading scorer, as she hit the nets for 15 points. Campbell supplied 13 points, Behary tacked on 10 points and both Shielee and Ramey scored six points for the Bruins.

The Bearcats are on the road to take on Pacific Lutheran University on Saturday, Jan. 12, in a Northwest Conference game. Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m. (PST).