BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Facing a first-quarter deficit for the first time this season, the No. 6 nationally-ranked Western Washington University women's basketball team stormed back in an 81-65 victory over Saint Martin's University Thursday evening to extend the Vikings winning streak to 12 consecutive games.

WWU faced a 22-14 deficit at the end of the first quarter, but used a 13-0 run in the second quarter to pull ahead and never trailed the rest of the way to improve to 12-1 overall and 6-0 in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play. The Vikings out-scored the Saints 20-10 in the second quarter and 47-33 in the second half to record the 16-point win.

The Vikings shot 52.7-percent in the game connecting on 29-of-55 shots and scored at least 80 points for the fifth consecutive game while improving to 5-0 on WECU Court in Carver Gym this season.

Sophomore guard Riley Dykstra scored in double-digits for the third consecutive games with a team-high 16 points (6-for-8 FG) and junior forward Brooke Walling recorded her sixth double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Walling filled up the stat sheet with seven assists, four steals and a pair of blocked shots.

Senior forward Carley Zaragoza (4-for-6 FG) and sophomore forward Truitt Reilly (4-for-8 FG) each contributed 12 points and senior forward Katrina Gimmaka chipped in nine points and eight rebounds. WWU's balanced offensive attack had eight players scoring points and all 10 players that suited up playing at least nine minutes.

The Vikings held a sizeable 44-29 advantage in rebounding and recorded seven blocked shots.

Saint Martin's (4-10, 0-6 GNAC) was led by a game-high 20 points from Anjel Galbraith and 15 points by Kiana Rios. SMU was held to 25-for-70 shooting (.357) and was 3-for-14 from three-point range (.214).

WWU entered the weekend ranked No. 6 (WBCA Coaches) and No. 5 (D2SIDA Media) in the national polls, and No. 1 in the D2SIDA West Region Poll. The Vikings will go for a 13th consecutive victory Saturday night hosting Western Oregon University in a GNAC contest at 7 pm on WECU Court in Carver Gym.

After facing a first-quarter deficit for the first time this season, the Vikings went on a 13-0 run spanning 5:47 in the second quarter to take a 30-26 lead. WWU would not trail the rest of the game, out-scoring SMU 20-10 in the second quarter, 22-17 in the third quarter and 25-16 in the final stanza.

WWU (12-1, 6-0 GNAC) remain at home hosting Western Oregon on Saturday (1/14) with tip-off scheduled for 7 pm on WECU Court in Carver Gym. Fans can gain free admission into the game by donating a gently-used article of clothing that WWU will donate to a local charity. Links on how to follow the Vikings and purchase tickets to home games can be found at wwuvikings.com/Live.

Here is a look at the statistical comparison between WWU and Saint Martin's:

Here is a look at the Vikings record breakdown for the 2022-23 season:

The Vikings won their 32nd consecutive home game vs. Saint Martin's, a winning streak that goes back to the 1992-93 season. WWU has won five straight over SMU and are 49-2 in the series dating back to the 1998 season. The Vikings improved to 78-11 all-time vs. Saint Martin's. The two teams will battle in Lacey in GNAC play on February 11.

The Vikings have a current 12-game winning streak, the 26th double-digit winning streak in program history. The current winning streak is tied for 12th-longest in program history and the longest since a 16-game winning streak spanning the 2020-21 and 2021-22 season. Dating back to the start of the 2019-20 season, the Vikings have combined to go 65-16 (.802) with a 30-10 record in GNAC play (.750).

Here is an updated look at the GNAC standings, complete with Thursday's results from around the conference:

Here is a game-by-game look at the 2022-23 season following the 81-65 victory over Saint Martin's:

One of the premier basketball programs in NCAA Division II, recording a 20-win season in nine of the last 13 full seasons, and 36 times in the 52-year history of the program. WWU has 22 seasons of 20 or more wins under head coach Carmen Dolfo, who is the winningest coach of any sport at WWU and ranks among Division II active and all-time coaching leaders in wins with 655, winning percentage and 20-win seasons. The Vikings have reached the NCAA II Tournament in 18 of 23 possible seasons at the Division II level with three trips to the Elite Eight (including 2022) and played in the 2022 national championship game. The program has 1,087 all-time wins in the 52-year history of the program, and according to available records, is one of less than 20 women's college basketball team across all divisions and levels to reach the 1,000-victory milestone.