NEWBERG, Ore.– Cal Lutheran faced off against No. 8 George Fox in the second of three consecutive contests against Northwest Conference opponents in the state of Oregon, but fell to their nationally-ranked foes after first-half shooting struggles would plague the Regals in their 80-60 defeat.
Mackenzy Iwahasi paced the Regals offensively with 13 points on the night. Natalie Ruhl also reached double-digits, recording 10 points. Jozie Tangeman had an efficient 3-4 night from the floor as she poured in eight points while Kamakani DeBlake also got in on the action, knocking down a pair of threes and tallied eight points in the contest.
The Regals struggled on the offensive end in the opening 10 minutes, going 0-7 from the field to start the game. George Fox took advantage and quickly got out to a 9-1 lead. A three-pointer from Cameron Mallory finally ended the drought as she scored the first field goal for CLU. Tangeman knocked down a three of her own to then cut the lead to just two despite the slow start from the visitors.
Cal Lutheran finished the first quarter just 3-21 from the floor but forced 10 turnovers on the defensive end to stay within striking distance. The Bruins would jump out to a 17-11 lead after capitalizing from the free-throw line, going a perfect 8-8 in the quarter. Solid defense from the Regals would leave them with just a six-point deficit despite their shooting woes.
George Fox started to pull away in the second quarter, pushing their lead to 15 points (37-22). Triples from Natalie Ruhl and Alexis Rodriguez would stop the bleeding momentarily, but the Regals would shoot just 21.2% in the first half as they couldn't quite find a rhythm offensively.
CLU would begin to find the shooting stroke in the second half as back-to-back baskets from Iwahashi, including a three-pointer, would force a timeout from the hosts. Momentum would stay with the Regals as a layup from Tangeman and a three from DeBlake shaved the lead under double-digits. The Bruins would eventually take advantage of some Cal Lutheran foul trouble at the end of the quarter as Iwahashi picked up her fourth foul. The hosts extended their lead to 13 points heading into the final 10 minutes.
A strong fourth quarter from GFC would propel them to a 20-point victory over the Regals. Foul trouble and the talented Bruins would prove to stifle CLU in the final period as they couldn't quite get back into the game.
Cal Lutheran look forward to their third and final game in Oregon as they take on Pacific (Ore.) Nov. 25 at 2 p.m.
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Release by Jeff Rebello, Assistant Sports Information Director