Visitors welcome. The welcome mats will be placed around campus this week as homecoming activities draw families and alumni back to the Seattle Pacific University campus. The women’s basketball team, however, is less hospitable when it comes to entertaining out-of-town guests, and the Falcons hope to extend their respective winning streaks while hosting a pair of Great Northwest Athletic Conference games. No. 2-ranked SPU (9-0, 17-1) greets Western Oregon (1-8, 4-13) Thursday night (Feb. 3) and then faces Humboldt State (3-6, 6-12) in the first game of the homecoming doubleheader Saturday afternoon (Feb. 5). Next week begins with a short trip to Saint Martin’s Feb. 10.

Socially acceptable streaking. Streaking was all the rage in the Seventies, but the Falcon women practice a more socially acceptable form of streaking nowadays. It’s called winning. A lot. Seattle Pacific is piling up consecutive victories on a number of fronts, and it requires a spreadsheet to keep the streaks straight. Currently, the numerology for the various win strings reads like this: 15 games overall (dating to Nov. 26, 2004), 23 home games (Mar. 17, 2003), 38 GNAC home games (Jan. 18, 2001), 51 GNAC games (Feb. 7, 2002) and 52 regular season home games (Jan. 18, 2001). Incidentally, the last time there was anything resembling a losing streak was two consecutive losses in December of 1999.

More ways to win. Great teams have a knack of finding different ways to win. Such was the case last week as Seattle Pacific survived its two worst offensive displays of the season to pull out a pair of important road victories and take sole possession of first place in the GNAC at the halfway point. It holds a one game lead over Western Washington following a 65-58 comeback victory in Bellingham and a 61-47 win at Seattle University. Those results assured SPU of remaining No. 1 in the West Region of NCAA Division II and kept the Falcons at No. 2 in the national rankings behind Drury (Mo.).

Defense the key. Opponents have come to learn that Seattle Pacific can put points on the board in a big way. After all, the Falcons lead the GNAC and rank 10th nationally with a scoring average of 79.7 points per game. However, it is defense which often fuels the flow of points. Constant pressure creates fits for foes, and opens up the floor for the team’s transition game. SPU has held opponents to 68 points or less in each of the past nine games, yielding an average of just 55.4 points and 34-percent shooting over that span. Only three times during that stretch have the Falcons given up more than 60, and they have held opponents to 50 or fewer points eight times this season. Seattle Pacific leads the league in scoring defense (58.1), and is holding opponents to 34.6 percent shooting, which is 19th in Division II.

Senior Amy Taylor scored 19 points in the WWU game. She is the Falcons' "floor general."

Taylor shines under pressure. Floor general Amy Taylor (Sr., 5-8, Shoreline, Wa./Shorewood) put her game management to work in the latter stages of the Western Washington contest. Although primarily a playmaker (she averages 4.1 assists), Taylor took matters into her own shooting hand at Bellingham. Her deft outside touch delivered the go-ahead three-pointer and she scored seven of her 19 points in the final four minutes. She led all scorers in both victories last week, finishing with a combined 30 points and six steals. .At Connolly Center, Taylor seemed to have an answer for nearly every SU rally, hitting a pair of threes in the first half to help fire up a struggling offense. She hit another big trey as SPU built the led up to 18. Taylor totaled 30 points and six steals while making 6 of her 12 three-pointers last week.

Put-backs. Carli Smith (Jr., 5-11, Spokane, Wa./Valley Christian) combined for 21 points and 21 rebounds in the two victories. She moved into a tie for the league lead in double-doubles with her sixth of the season at Western after tallying 10 points and 12 rebounds. Smith leads the GNAC in rebounding (9.4) and is second in field-goal percentage (.551)...Backup point guard Beth Christian (Fr., 5-5, Enumclaw, Wa.) scored a career-high eight points in the win over SU...Smith and center Brittney Kroon (Jr., 6-4, Wasilla, Ak.) flip-flopped spots for the team lead in field-goal percentage for the third straight week. Kroon leads the GNAC with a 56.1 shooting percentage and also leads the conference with 3.61 blocks per game, good for fifth nationally...Taylor moved up to fifth in the GNAC and 37th nationally in three-point percentage (.387). She leads the GNAC with a 1.8 assists-to-turnover ratio and is 11th in steals (1.78). Taylor also took over the team lead in three-pointers made per game (2.28), which is fourth in the league...Mandy Wood (Jr., 5-6, Port Angeles, Wa.) leads the team and ranks 16th in the conference with 12.9 points per game. She is third in the league and 18th nationally with a 42.1 three-point shooting percentage. Wood also leads the Falcons and is fifth in the GNAC with 4.13 assists per game...Seattle Pacific leads the league and ranks seventh nationally with a 21.6 scoring margin...In other national categories, SPU is fifth in free-throw percentage (.777), ninth in rebounding margin (9.6), 12th in three-point shooting (.375) and 15th in three pointers per game (7.06).

Coaching Staff. For the second straight year, Gordy Presnell was voted the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association’s NCAA Division II Coach of the Year for 2004, along with conference and regional coach of the year honors. He has never registered a losing season in 17 years at the helm of the Seattle Pacific University basketball program, including back-to-back perfect records during the regular season the past two years. Presnell took a team that had not recorded a winning record in nine seasons or earned a trip to the postseason and transformed it into a Division II powerhouse. During his tenure, the Falcons have averaged 21 wins per season and qualified for the playoffs 12 times, including Elite Eight appearances in both 1998 and 2004. Returning to Presnell’s staff for her third season is former University of Oregon player Jamie Craighead, who completed her career in 2002 as Oregon’s leader in three-pointers. During her final season, she started all 35 games, averaging 7.9 points.

Tickets, please. General admission tickets for all SPU home women’s basketball games are priced $5, with students, youth and senior citizens $3 with proper identification. Reserved seating for doubleheaders with men’s games are $7 and $6. Teams or groups can qualify for discount rates by calling 206-281-2085 in advance.

Missing links. For the latest and best information on Seattle Pacific University athletics, stay where you're at -- on The Falcons Online. For updated standings and statistics, see the Great Northwest Athletic Conference web site.