BURNABY, B.C. - Sara Zahler and Rylee Peterson combined for 50 points as the Western Oregon women's basketball team defeated Simon Fraser 84-74 in GNAC action Thursday, Jan. 6.

Senior guard Sara Zahler (Newberg, Ore./Newberg) and junior forward Rylee Peterson (Newport, Ore./Newport) registered 25 points apiece, career-highs for both, in the victory. The two each connected on five three-pointers as Peterson was 5-for-6 from downtown while Zahler was 5-for-7. Zahler also grabbed a game-high eight boards, and Peterson added six.

The win keeps WOU (6-6, 4-0 GNAC) atop the Great Northwest Athletic Conference standings and continues the program's best-ever start in conference play. Simon Fraser falls to 3-6 (0-4 GNAC) with the loss, their fifth straight.

Western would find themselves in a back-and-forth affair early. The game was tied seven times in the first half, and neither team led by more than four points until WOU sophomore guard Lorrie Clifford (Eagle River, Alaska/Chugiak) put home a fast-break lay-up to put the Wolves up 37-32 with 57 seconds left. After a missed jumper by SFU, Zahler would connect on a shot from long distance to give WOU an eight-point lead (40-32) going into the locker room.

Peterson notched 19 of her points in the first stanza and was a perfect 5-of-5 from long range. Western also assisted on 13 of their 15 first-half field goals while commiting just six turnovers.

"We were on fire from three-point range," WOU head coach Greg Bruce said. "That really stretched their defense and allowed us to get some shots inside. We did a great job of keeping possession of the ball and moving it around."

Zahler would hit back-to-back shots to start the second half, pushing Western's lead to 13. The Clan would answer with a three-pointer to climb within ten points, but another trey from Zahler put WOU up 48-35 with 17:29 remaining. The Wolves led 71-51 with 8:14 left to play, but would not make a field goal over the next 4:49 as Simon Fraser crawled back to within 11 points. A jumper by Zahler would stem SFU's tide, but the Clan would make four straight free throws to find themselves trailing 75-66 with 2:53 remaining. Zahler would hit a jumper and Peterson would finish two consecutive lay-ups to increase WOU's lead to 13. A quick 4-0 run from SFU was crushed by a three-pointer from WOU's sophomore guard Hannah Whitsett (Hermiston, Ore./Hermiston), which put the game away for good.

Zahler scored 18 of her points in the second half, connecting on 4-of-5 three-point attempts. The Wolves shot 50-percent in the second stanza, and Clifford and senior forward Danielle Bellando (Eugene, Ore./Willamette) were a combined 7-for-8 from the charity stripe.

"We started the second half well," continued Bruce. "We got too tentative against their zone and started turning the ball over unnecessarily, but Sara and Rylee hit some shots to keep us going."

Both teams shot well from the field, as Western made 45.6-percent (31-68) of their shots while SFU made 51-percent (26-51) of theirs. WOU also made 55-percent (11-20) of their three-point attempts. The Wolves dished out a season-high 22 assists; the last time WOU registered more than 20 assists was Feb. 5, 2009. The 22 assists to only 18 turnovers was the second time this season Western had a positive assist/turnover ratio. The Wolves outrebounded the Clan 39-32 and grabbed 16 offensive rebounds, the third straight game, and fourth in the last five, that WOU has snagged more than ten offensive boards.

Simon Fraser was led by sophomore guard Kristina Collins who recorded 23 points, five rebounds, five assists, and three steals. SFU sophomore forward Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe was held to just 13 points on 3-of-9 shooting; she came into the game averaging 21.5 points, the most in the GNAC.

The Wolves will conclude their road swing with a game against No. 18 Western Washington on Saturday, Jan. 8. WWU beat Saint Martin's tonight to improve to 4-0 in GNAC play, making Saturday's game a showdown for the conference's top spot. Tip time is set for 3:00 pm.