BURNABY, BC ---

On Thursday night in the West Gym, The Simon Fraser Women's Basketball team topped the visiting Seattle Pacific University Falcons by a final score of 71 to 54. With the win SFU moved to 9-6 on the season, and 3-0 since the winter break.

Looking back on last weekend, Simon Fraser went 2-0 in Oregon with a 56-45 victory at Concordia on Thursday and a 64-57 win at Western Oregon on Saturday. On the trip, Jessica Jones averaged 17.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. She opened the week with 13 points, six rebounds and an assist at Concordia then tacked on 22 points and seven rebounds at Western Oregon, shooting 8 of 14 from the field and 4 of 6 from three-point range against the Wolves. 

Also in action last week, Seattle Pacific dropped a 78-47 game to Alaska Anchorage on Thursday before turning things around to top Alaska Fairbanks, 83-70, on Saturday. Ashlynn Burgess led the Falcons to their first win in conference play as she registered a double-double of 27 points and 11 rebounds while adding three assists against the Nanooks. Burgess connected on 10 of 13 from the field and 7 of 8 from the free throw line. She ranks 15th in the GNAC in scoring with 12.7 points per game.

In Thursday nights action, it was back and forth in the opening minutes, and overall the two teams came out defending well and limiting fast break opportunities. Halfway through the first quarter, SPU held a slim lead at 6-5. Things remained much the same throughout the rest of the 1st quarter, and after one period of play, SFU led 11-10. After ten minutes, both teams were shooting less than 35% from the field, and each team was only able to record a single made three-point shot.

Simon Fraser opened things up strongly in the 2nd, starting the quarter with an 8-0 run, which put them up 19-10. Simon Fraser continued to roll through the remainder of the quarter, and at the half, Simon Fraser was up ten points at 34-24. Tayler Drynan was the top scorer for SFU in the first half with 8 points, and Sophie Klassen added 6 points and 3 rebounds. After a slow start, SFU was shooting 47% from the field at half, and limiting SPU to 29% shooting.

Simon Fraser maintained their ten-point advantage throughout the third. Then, as the clock was winding down to end the quarter, Jessica Jones hit a three-point shot which put SFU up by 14, at 53-39, headed to the final frame.

In the 4th quarter, Simon Fraser did a good job controlling the pace of the game, and were able to consolidate their advantage. Seattle Pacific did their best to bring the game back within striking distance, but Simon Fraser's balanced scoring and disciplined defensive approach was too much for the visitors to contend with, as SFU held on for a 71 to 54 victory. 

Leading the way for SFU was Tayler Drynan with 16 points and 4 rebounds. Jessica Jones added 10 points of her own. Crucially, SFU outrebounded SPU (historically a very good rebounding team) by a 43 to 27 margin. 

Up Next, Simon Fraser is back in action on Saturday night at home against Saint Martin's. Game time is set for 7PM.