Complete Box Score

LOS ANGELES (Dec. 19) – Reserve guard Mandy Wood had 14 points as the No. 9 Seattle Pacific women’s basketball team beat Cal State L.A. 74-66 in the first round of the CCAA/GNAC Challenge on Friday night in Los Angeles. The Falcons (9-0) have now won 42 straight regular-season games.

Wood (So., 5-6, Port Angeles, Wa.) was one of four Falcons in double figures. Amy Taylor (Jr., 5-8, Shoreline, Wa./Shorewood-Oregon) scored 13 points while Valerie Gustafson (Sr., 6-0, Olympia, Wa./Black Hills) and Carli Smith (So., 5-11, Spokane, Wa./Valley Christian) each added 12. Smith also pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds.

SPU’s first-half lead over the Golden Eagles (1-4) was cut to 30-29 with 6:18 left before the Falcons ended the half on a 13-2 run to take a 12-point lead (43-31) into the locker room. SPU took its largest lead of the game (58-41) with 11:17 remaining and Cal State L.A. could get no closer than eight.

Cal State L.A., which outrebounded SPU 42-40, was led by Monica Tokoro’s 23 points and Shanna Demus added 17.

SPU’s Brittney Kroon (So., 6-4, Wasilla, Ak.) recorded five blocks.

The Falcons take on unbeaten Cal Poly Pomona (6-0), which beat Western Washington 81-63 in Friday’s early game, at 2 p.m. Saturday in the tourney’s second round.

SEATTLE PACIFIC – Wood 14, Taylor 13, Gustafson 12, Smith 12, K. Poe 8, Hermanson 5, Kroon 4, Beaumont 3, J. Poe 3, Duffin 0, Soule 0, Strand 0.

CAL STATE L.A. – Tokoro 23, Demus 17, Stricker 11, Tennies 8, Oda 5, Gonzales 2, Herbert 0, Nunez 0, Utz 0.

Halftime – SPU 43, CSLA 31