NEWBERG, Ore. — Occidental College (2-5, 1-4) fell to George Fox University (4-1, 0-0) with a 14–5 loss at the Austin Sport Complex on Thursday. Despite the defeat, the Tigers managed to score with a successful player-up goal in the fourth quarter.
The first quarter began with George Fox securing the initial draw control, but an early turnover disrupted their momentum. George Fox's Merrick Gibson opened the scoring at 7:49 with an assist from Lana Davis, followed quickly by a goal from Davis herself at 7:39, with Ava Bluhm assisting. Occidental responded at 5:33 with
Kelly Peir finding the net, assisted by
Ellie Mahoney. However, the Bruins extended their lead with two more goals, including a free position shot by Lana Davis at 4:32.
Olivia Okamoto scored a free position goal for the Tigers at 1:14, but George Fox maintained a 5–2 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Olivia Okamoto scored early in the second quarter with an assist from
Aubrey Chang, narrowing the gap for the Tigers. However, George Fox quickly responded. Alli Stilp tied the score with a free position goal at 11:13, and Lana Davis followed with another goal to give them the lead. As the quarter concluded, Sasha Thayer extended the Bruins' advantage with a last-second goal, assisted by Lana Davis, ending the quarter with a score of 8–3 in favor of the home team.
George Fox extended its lead in the third quarter, capitalizing early with a goal by Alli Stilp at 14:48, assisted by Naomi Rauch. Just seconds later, Naomi Rauch scored to put George Fox further ahead. Despite efforts from the Tigers, including a crucial save by
Grace Morrow at 13:00 and a turnover caused by
Ellie Mahoney, the visitors were unable to find the net. George Fox took advantage of a player-up situation late in the quarter when Lana Davis scored at 1:28 with an assist from Stilp. The Tigers' attempts to respond were thwarted by Gabrielle McClung, who made a significant save on a shot by
Aubrey Chang with 20 seconds remaining.
The Bruins extended their lead early in the fourth quarter with a goal by Ava Bluhm at 13:07. The Tigers responded with a player-up goal from
Charlotte Franklin at 10:43, narrowing the gap. However, George Fox quickly regained momentum as Audrey White scored at 8:04, assisted by Bluhm, and Bluhm added another at 7:36 with help from Lana Davis, pushing their advantage.
Olivia Okamoto scored for the Tigers with 1:56 left, assisted by
Tirzah Rivera, but George Fox maintained control until the end, concluding the quarter with a 14–5 victory.
Occidental Top Performers
Olivia Okamoto
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- 3 goals
- 5 shots on goal
- 1 free position goal
Charlotte Franklin
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- 1 goal
- 1 free position goal
- 1 player-up goal
Charlotte Dreyfus
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- 6 saves
- 18 shots faced
Occidental has a record of 2-5, 1-4. George Fox has a record of 4-1.
In their next matchup, the Tigers will face Lewis & Clark on Saturday, March 14 at 1 p.m. The action will unfold in Portland, Oregon.
