By Charlie McGuire, Athletics Communications Assistant
NEWBERG, Ore. – The Willamette University women's basketball team put together a strong finish to split the season series with George Fox University, posting a 63-57 road win on Saturday, Feb. 12. The Bearcats outscored the hosts, 20-10, in the final quarter to improve to 11-12 overall and 6-8 in the Northwest Conference while the Bruins slip to 11-11 and 7-6.
The teams went back and forth in the early minutes with the Bearcats taking an 11-9 lead on an Amanda Carpenter (Grad., G, Beaverton, OR/Sunset HS) three-pointer, just before the first media timeout. The Bruins scored five straight out of the break before Ashlyn Ascuena-Mercil (Jr., F, Boise, ID/Timberline HS) knotted the game with another Willamette three-pointer.
George Fox led 19-16 at the end of the first quarter behind five points from Alexa Borter, including a 3-for-3 start from the free throw line. Ascuena-Mercil led the Bearcats with five points while Carpenter pulled down three rebounds in the opening 10 minutes.
Carpenter knocked down a three to tie the game at 22, with 7:20 remaining in the half. The score remained close with Ascuena-Mercil continuing to play well on both ends of the floor. She ended the half with six points, three rebounds, and a key blocked shot in the final seconds.
Carpenter led the Bearcats with eight points before the break, going 2-for-2 from beyond the arc. Sami Riggs (Jr., G, LaVerne, CA/Bonita HS) hit some big shots, adding eight points as well. Erin Yoshitake hit back-to-back three-pointers to give the Bruins a 32-28 lead at halftime.
Riggs followed up her own miss with a layup to put the Bearcats on the board first in the second half. Alyssa Wells answered with a three-pointer and George Fox would stretch the lead to 39-32. Megan River found Riggs for a layup and converted a pair of free throws to keep the Bruins in striking distance.
Senior Claire Bonnett (Jr., G, Boise, ID/Boise HS) pulled the Bearcats even again with a three-pointer at the 4:42 mark. The teams traded baskets before Ella Roberts added a three-pointer and Cassidy Posey converted a layup and free throw around a pair of Carpenter free throws to give GFU a 47-43 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Carolyn Ho (So., G, Parker, CO/Ponderosa HS) banged a three-pointer to open the fourth, cutting the deficit to one. CarolAnn Edwards (So., F, Spokane, WA/University HS) sandwiched a pair of field-goals around a Roberts' layup to put Willamette in front 50-49, with 7:15 remaining.
Rachel Parks put the Bruins back in front with a pair of free throws, but Ascuena-Mercil came right back with a tough shot in the paint as the teams continued to trade the lead in the early minutes of the fourth.
River hit two free throws and Edwards made another strong shot inside to give the Bearcats a five-point advantage at the midpoint of the quarter. The Bruins battled back to within two at 56-54, but Ascuena-Mercil would take over down the stretch. She came up with another huge block and then buried a clutch three-pointer to make the score, 59-56, with just 30 seconds to play.
Carpenter and River added free throws down the stretch to secure the 63-57 win and keep the Bearcats' postseason hopes alive as they challenge for the final playoff spot in the standings with two games remaining.
The Bearcats had three players reach double-figures with Carpenter and Riggs each finishing with a game-high 12 points. Riggs was perfect from the line, going 4-for-4, adding five rebounds.
Ascuena-Mercil finished with 11 points, five rebounds, and two blocked shots. River went 6-for-6 from the line, scoring eight points to go with five rebounds and three assists. Edwards controlled five rebounds as well, adding six points on the night.
As a team, Willamette was just under 85 percent from the line, converting 11-of-13 free throws. The Bearcats return home to host Pacific University on Friday night at 6:00 p.m. before heading to Linfield University for a 4:00 p.m. tipoff on Saturday.
