BELLINGHAM, Wa. (Feb. 7) ­ Amy Taylor had 17 points to lead the No. 4 Seattle Pacific University women's basketball team past Western Washington 71-58 Saturday in a matchup of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference’s top two teams.

The Falcons (20-0, 11-0 GNAC) have now won 35 straight conference games and 53 consecutive regular season matchups while the Vikings (15-5, 8-3 GNAC) fell three games back of SPU in the GNAC standings.

Taylor (Jr., 5-8, Shoreline, Wa./Shorewood-Oregon) scored 15 of her game-high 17 in the second half and added seven assists for SPU. Valerie Gustafson (Sr., 6-0, Olympia, Wa./Black Hills) and Michelle Beaumont (Jr., 5-11, Bellingham, Wa./Sehome) pitched in 12 points apiece while Carli Smith (So., 5-11, Spokane, Wa./Valley Christian) pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds.

The teams were tied 8-8 with 16:52 to go in the first half before SPU scored ten unanswered points to take an 18-8 lead with 13:51. Western would get no closer than six the rest of the half as the Falcons led 41-31 at the break.

In the second half, SPU went on an 11-2 run to take its largest lead of the game at 56-38 with 11:24 left. The Vikings trimmed the lead to nine (67-59) with 1:09 remaining, but the game was already out of reach.

Seattle Pacific outrebounded Western 35-29 and held the Vikings to 40 percent shooting. Both teams turned the ball over 24 times. The Falcons hit on 43 percent (23-53) from the field.

Jodi Gerald led four Vikings in double figures with 15 points. Tessa DeBoer scored 14 while Jenn McGillivray and Devin Dykstra had 10 apiece.

The Falcons are in action Thursday when they play host to Alaska Anchorage.

SEATTLE PACIFIC WA 71, WESTERN WASHINGTON 58

SEATTLE PACIFIC WA (20-0, 11-0 GNAC) Taylor,Amy 5-9 4-4 17; Beaumont,Michelle 5-11 0-0 12; Gustafson,Valerie 6-8 0-0 12; Kroon,Brittney 2-3 4-6 8; Smith,Carli 1-4 6-6 8; Poe,Kristin 2-11 4-4 8; Strand,Rachel 1-1 0-0 2; Poe,Jenny 1-2 0-0 2; Wood,Mandy 0-3 2-4 2; Hermanson,Trisha 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 23-53 20-24 71.

WESTERN WASHINGTON (15-5, 8-3 GNAC) Gerald,Jodi 6-13 1-2 15; DeBoer,Tessa 6-10 2-2 14; McGillivray,Jenn 4-9 2-4 10; Dykstra,Devin 4-11 1-2 10; Hubbard,Samantha 1-5 3-4 6; Donahue,Tina 1-6 0-0 3. Totals 22-54 9-14 58.

Halftime: SPU 41, WWU 31 3-point goals-Seattle Pacific WA 5-13 (Taylor,Amy 3-4; Beaumont,Michelle 2-4; Poe,Kristin 0-2; Wood,Mandy 0-3), Western Washington 5-19 (Gerald,Jodi 2-7; Dykstra,Devin 1-5; Donahue,Tina 1-3; Hubbard,Samantha 1-4). Fouled out--Seattle Pacific WA-None, Western Washington-None. Rebounds-Seattle Pacific WA 35 (Smith,Carli 12), Western Washington 29 (Donahue,Tina 6). Assists-Seattle Pacific WA 12 (Taylor,Amy 7), Western Washington 14 (DeBoer,Tessa 4; Donahue,Tina 4). Total fouls-Seattle Pacific WA 14, Western Washington 19. A-1260