LACEY, Wa.-Stephanie Urrutia scored 19 points and Gus Balogh had 17 as 17th-ranked Seattle Pacific University handed Saint Martin's a 80-67 loss in a Pacific West Conference women's basketball game Thursday night at Saint Martin's Pavilion.

The Falcons (16-3, 21-3) have won their last 10 in a row and with just three games left to play in regular season, are alone in first place in the PacWest. The winner of the conference receives an automatic bid to the NCAA playoffs March 8-10 at a site to be announced.

Saint Martin's drew first blood twenty seconds into the first half on a short jumper by Nicole Purnell-Davis. It would be the Saints only lead of the game. SPU went into the locker room at intermission with a 36-28 advantage. In the second half, SPU stretched its biggest lead to 19 points on a Balogh lay-up with 6:00 to play, capping a 8-0 Falcon run.

Seattle Pacific out-rebounded the Saints 38-36 and connected on 48 percent (30-62) of its shots to Saint Martin's 43 percent (23-54).

Urrutia (So., Sunnyside, Wa.) assisted on six plays to go with her game high point total and Balogh (Sr., Szombatheley, Hungary) shot six of 10 from the field, including three of four from beyond the three-point arc. Gustafson (Fr., Black Hills, Wa.) dropped in 15 points and pulled down five rebounds. Jana Holme (Sr., Tacoma, Wa./Wilson) led the Falcons on the boards with eight.

Brianne Prescott (Jr., San Jose, Ca/San Jose CC/Mitty) canned four treys for 12 points for the Falcons while Saint Martin's was led by Michelle Carrarra's 17 points and seven rebounds.

Seattle Pacific needs just one more win to clinch their third Pacific West Conference title in the last five years. The Falcons play at Central Washington Saturday. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:00.

SPU: 80, SMC 67

SPU:
Prescott 12, Urrutia 19, Holme 4, Balogh 17, Guppy 6, Beard 5, Daniel 2, Lukkes, Gustafson 15.

SMC:
Johnson 6, Kartikova 5, Purnell-Davis 10, Carrara 17, Koehler 13, O'Neal, Riel 2, Newbury 2, Erickson 7, Anderson 3, Huezo 4.