SEATTLE, Wash. – For the fourth consecutive season, the Northwest Nazarene women's basketball team will play in the conference tournament.

The Nighthawks used a big third quarter to roll to a 90-71 victory Saturday at Seattle Pacific to clinch a spot in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference tournament.

NNU (21-1 overall, 13-1 GNAC) leads the seventh-place team by seven games with six games to play.

On Saturday, after a ho hum first half the Nighthawks outscored the Falcons by 14 in the third quarter, using a 16-3 run to blow the game open.

"We were a bit undisciplined in the first half," NNU coach Steve Steele said. "They got us out of sorts, but we were able to make a few tweaks on both sides of the ball. Halftime allowed us time to regroup and make some adjustments that ended up working out."

NNU got a big boost at the second quarter buzzer when Jordan Pinson hit a halfcourt shot. It came just seconds after the Falcons had hit a 3-pointer to pull within five.

"That gave us a nice lift and deflated them a bit," Steele said.

In the third quarter, the Falcons (7-14, 6-8) pulled within 54-44 with 5 minutes, 50 seconds remaining.

McKenna Walker then hit a 3-pointer, Ellie Logan a jumper, Zoe Wessels and Logan made two free throws, Maya Rodgers a jumper, Pinson a 3-pointer and Danielle Jardine a layup.

Just like that it was 70-47 and NNU was well on its way to another victory.

"Everywhere we go now, teams are more prepared for us just because there is so much film on us now," Steele said. "I was very proud of how they adjusted. They didn't panic and really executed, especially in the third quarter."

Logan scored a game-high 15 points and grabbed four rebounds, while Avery Albrecht had 12 points. Raquel Jardine had 10 points, four rebounds and three steals, while Danielle Jardine added 10 points, three rebounds and two assists.

The Nighthawks host Central Washington at 7 p.m. Tuesday.