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SEATTLE – It takes at least two to make a streak – and the Seattle Pacific Falcons wanted to stop this one before it ever got started.
 
Courtney Hollander pumped in 21 points, getting nine of those to spark a second-quarter rally, and Erica Pagano added a career-high 15 on Tuesday night as 15th-ranked SPU beat Saint Martin's in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's basketball game, 72-59.
 
The Falcons (12-1, 4-1 GNAC) bounced back in Brougham Pavilion from Saturday's 73-66 loss to Northwest Nazarene, their first defeat of the year after opening with 11 straight wins.
 
It was the third game in six days for Seattle Pacific, with just one day of practice following the setback against the Crusaders.

 

"It's hard to come back (from the seven-day Christmas break) and play bang-bang-bang, and it's hard to rebound after a loss sometimes," head coach Julie Heisey said. "We showed our true character, and we had a really good fighting spirit.
 
"So much confidence comes from practice, and we haven't had a lot of practice," Heisey added. "We bounced back on Monday and had a really competitive practice, and today, we had a really good shoot-around, and it carried over into the game."
 
The Falcons close out their seven-game homestand on Thursday against Montana State Billings at 5:15 p.m. That will be followed by the SPU men against defending GNAC champion Western Oregon at 7:30 p.m.
 




BIG FIRST-HALF FINISH
Down 22-14 early in the second quarter, SPU went on a 20-8 run to take a 34-30 lead into halftime. Hollander sparked it with nine points, including two straight baskets to get it started, then hit Lindsay Lee with a nifty feed for an easy lay-in after Hollander stole the ball in backcourt.
 
The Falcons got the final seven points of the half to erase a 30-27 deficit.
 
Much of the turnaround was generated by the defense, which Heisey adjusted after Saint Martin's went up by eight.
 
"What we were doing wasn't working, so we were able to go to the press and change some things on our man defense," Heisey said. "Lindsay came off the bench and gave us some good defensive intensity."
 
SPU led throughout the second half, up by as many as 16 in the third quarter at 53-36 before Saint Martin's (4-9, 0-5 GNAC) put seven straight on the board to get back into it.
 
The Saints got as close as seven at 58-51 with 5:19 left in the game. The Falcons responded with 7-2 burst, stretching it back to double-digits at 65-53, and Saint Martin's never got closer than 10 the rest of the way.

 

Junior forward Hollander (Lynden, Wash. / Lynden Christian HS) was back in form after a season-low five points in Saturday's loss to NNU, and pushed past 600 points for her career, now with 608. She also had five rebounds, three assists, two steals, and a blocked shot in 29 minutes on Tuesday, hitting 8 of 16 from the field.
 
Junior forward Pagano (Happy Valley, Ore.) beat her previous career high of 14 points, which she set on Nov. 18 in a 62-45 win against UC San Diego. Pagano hit 5 of 9 from the floor and bumped her season shooting percentage to 53.4.

 

Junior guard Jordan McPhee (Normandy Park, Wash. / Mount Rainier HS) had a team-leading seven of SPU's 35 rebounds. She also added eight points, moving past 500 for her career. She now has 503. McPhee also had three assists, three steals, and a blocked shot.
 
Senior guard Stacey Lukasiewicz (Centennial. Colo.) and junior guard Lee (Spokane, Wash. / Lewis & Clark HS) each handed out five assists. The Falcons had assists on 23 of their 27 baskets.
 
Sophomore center Julia Haining (Lynnwood, Wash. / Inglemoor HS) had three rebounds, giving her 100 for her career.
 
Seattle Pacific matched its season-low with just 10 turnovers. Of the 16 turnovers by Saint Martin's, 12 were Falcon steals.

 
NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2017
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
 
(No. 15) Seattle Pacific 72, Saint Martin's 59
 
SAINT MARTIN'S (4-9, 0-5 GNAC
Mercedes Victor 5-9 0-1 10, Elin Johansson 8-11 2-3 18, Hannah Reynolds 4-7 3-3 14, Sami Jo Robinson 0-4 0-0 0, Baylee Olsen 2-11 0-0 5, Emma Kennedy 0-0 0-0 0, Makenna Schultz 0-0 0-0 0, Rebekah Baugh 1-5 0-0 3, Shyler Sullivan 1-1 2-2 4, Mallory Kessler 1-1 0-0 3, Shelbie Drey 0-4 2-2 2, Lauren Lindley 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 22-54 9-11 59.
 
SEATTLE PACIFIC (12-1, 4-1 GNAC)
Erica Pagano 5-9 5-6 15, Stacey Lukasiewicz 0-4 0-0 0, Rachel Shim 3-4 0-0 7, Jordan McPhee 4-9 0-0 8, Courtney Hollander 8-16 3-3 21, Jaylee Albert 1-5 2-2 5, Julia Haining 2-2 1-2 5, Brianne Lasconia 1-4 0-0 2, Lindsay Lee 3-4 0-0 7, Hannah Rodrigues 0-1 2-2 2, Carly Rataushk 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 27-60 13-15 72.
 
Saint Martin's      18           12           11           18           -- 59
Seattle Pacific     14           20           19           19           -- 72
 
3-point goals – StM 6-18 (Reynolds 3-6, Robinson 0-1, Olsen 1-7, Baugh 1-3, Kessler 1-1), SPU 5-17 (Lukasiewicz 0-1, Shim 1-2, Hollander 2-5, Albert 1-5, Lasconia 0-1, Lee 1-2, Rodrigues 0-1). Fouled out – None. Rebounds – StM 31 (Johansson 8), SPU 35 (McPhee 7). Assists – StM 11 (Johansson 3), SPU 23 (Lukasiewicz 5, Lee 5). Turnovers – StM 16, SPU 10. Total fouls – StM 12, SPU 15. Technical fouls – None. Attendance – 128.
 
 
Next game
Montana State Billings at Seattle Pacific
Thursday, Jan. 5     7:00 p.m.
Brougham Pavilion