PORTLAND, Ore. - Junior Margaret Dowling had her best game of the season on Saturday night against the George Fox Bruins for the Northwest Conference Tournament Championship, scoring a season high 23 points and pulling down 13 rebounds. Despite her efforts the Pioneers were unable to hold off the Bruins who earned the NWC Tournament Championship 76-68 after one overtime period.
The win earned the Bruins the conference's automatic qualifier to the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Tournament. The Bruins improve to 22-5 on the season. The Pioneers still have a chance at making the NCAA Tournament with an at-large bid. The Pioneers are currently ranked as the second best team in the West Region, ahead of the Bruins. The Pioneers will learn their fate on Monday when the selections are announced through NCAA.com.
Dowling ended the night 7-12 from the floor, including 5-7 from behind the three-point arc. She was just as effective from the charity stripe, hitting four of her five attempts. Defensively, the 5-10 junior pulled down nine offensive boards and collected four more on the defensive side of the court. Dowling also managed to come up with three steals in her 41 minutes of action.
Senior Christina Herring ended the night with 18 points for the Pioneers, while sophomore Kristina Williams chipped in 17 points. Sara Villanueva contributed nine points to the Pioneers in the loss.
Hannah Munger scored a team-high 17 points for the Bruins, while collecting a game high 14 rebounds. Keisha Gordan scored 11 points for George Fox and teammates Hayley Cusick and Bree Rhinehart-Young each scored 10.
