TACOMA, Wash. — It was another staunch defensive effort from the Pacific Lutheran University women's basketball team on Friday night. The Lutes bogged down visiting George Fox University but in the end the Bruins were able to do just enough to scratch out the win, escaping Olson Gymnasium with a 50-32 victory. 
 
"Our effort was strong despite losing a few to injuries. We've learned we can rely on our defense to keep us in games but it's hard to win when you shoot it the way we did," said Head Coach Lee Aduddell. 
 
Ashley Akamine hit a layup with 6:03 left in the first quarter, staking the Lutes (1-19, 1-10 NWC) an early 6-5 lead. George Fox (9-11, 6-5 NWC) led by just two after one quarter of play before pulling away in the second, taking a 30-15 lead into the intermission and holding a double-digit spread the entire second half.
 
Taylor Schmidtke finished with nine points and seven rebounds while Kasidy Javernick came off the bench and added nine. PLU won the turnover battle but was unable to turn that advantage into points on the scoreboard with the Bruins enjoying a 15-8 edge in points off turnovers despite coughing the ball up three more times than the Lutes. 
 
PLU limited GFU to shooting just 38.0 percent from the floor (19-for-50) but also struggled from the field, hitting just 23.4 percent (11-for-47) of its chances.
 
The Lutes close out their weekend homestand tomorrow, hosting LInfield University at 4 p.m.