NEWBERG, Ore. – Lewis & Clark College women's lacrosse battled back in the second half but came up short in a 17-12 loss to George Fox University in a crucial Northwest Conference matchup Friday at the Austin Sports Complex.
 
THE BASICS
 
George Fox 17, Lewis & Clark 12
(Lewis & Clark 11-6, 4-4 NWC)
(George Fox 12-4, 8-0 NWC)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
Sophomores Aviana Gonzales and Sage Swegle each scored four goals to pace the Pioneers on Friday, while junior Kate Meinhard chipped in two goals and two assists. Swegle added two assists for a six-point outing, and Gonzales finished with five points after recording an assist.
 
First-years Kaedance Stubbs and Kaitlin McRae each scooped up four ground balls, and sophomore Lauren Elliott led the Pioneers with five draw controls as Lewis & Clark edged George Fox 17-16 in the draw control battle. McRae also recorded eight saves in goal, while first-year defender Ava Mullen forced a team-high four turnovers.
 
George Fox seized early control, racing out to a 6-2 lead after the first quarter. Meinhard opened the scoring for Lewis & Clark with an unassisted goal at the 10:12 mark, but the Bruins answered by scoring six of the next seven goals.
 
Swegle netted a goal late in the first quarter to keep the Pioneers within reach, and the offense began clicking in the second. Gonzales and Meinhard each found the back of the net, trimming the deficit to 10-6 at halftime.
 
Lewis & Clark mounted a furious rally early in the third quarter. Swegle scored off a feed from sophomore Evelyn Burnett, and Gonzales followed just six seconds later off an assist from Swegle to make it a 10-8 game with 14:13 left in the period.
 
However, George Fox responded with four straight goals to push the lead back to 14-8 entering the final frame. Ava Bluhm and Morgan Maxfield each scored four goals to pace the Bruins' attack.
 
The Pioneers continued to fight, with Gonzales netting her fourth goal at the 11:27 mark of the fourth quarter. First-year Mack Searle and Swegle added goals midway through the period, and Burnett capped the scoring with 5:06 remaining to bring the final margin to 17-12.
 
Lewis & Clark's defense locked in during the final quarter, limiting the Bruins to just three goals over the final 15 minutes.
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• No Northwest Conference team scored more than nine goals against George Fox during the regular season. The Pioneers played the Bruins' second-closest game in just their first season and first countable meeting against them.
• Swegle finished the regular season with a career-high 70 goals and 80 points.
• Gonzales posted 53 goals and 28 assists for a team-leading 81 points.
• McRae wrapped up her first regular season with 99 saves in 17 games, including eight saves and four ground balls Friday.
• Lewis & Clark won the draw control battle 17-16, led by Elliott (5), Swegle (4), and Searle (3).
• The Pioneers fired 31 total shots, with 24 on goal, while George Fox finished with 34 shots.

WHO'S NEXT
 
Lewis & Clark ends the regular season in a three-way tie for fourth place in the NWC standings. The Pioneers will await tiebreaker results to determine if they earn a spot in the NWC Tournament, which will be hosted by George Fox in Newberg.