POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y.Senior point guard Taryn Scinto and freshman forward Krystal Hammond combined for 26 points to lead Union to a 55-38 victory over Vassar in an Upstate Collegiate Athletic.

The victory leaves the Dutchwomen with an overall record of 20-3 and gives the Mary Ellen Burt-coached program its first back-to-back 20-win seasons since women"s basketball became a varsity sport at Union in 1975. The Garnet was 22-5 last year.

More importantly, however, the win gives Union a conference record of 12-1 heading into Saturday"s regular-season finale at Rensselaer. A win by the Dutchwomen would give them their first UCAA championship and the right to host the conference tournament next Friday and Saturday (February 27 & 28). The winner of that event earns the UCAA"s automatic berth in the NCAA tournament.

Union, up by two at the half, 27-25, scored 22 of the game"s first 25 points to start the second 20 minutes and secure the victory. Hammond opened the run with a basket off the feed of Erika Eisenhut at 15:44 and Eisenhut closed the deal with 4:45 remaining with a driving layup that gave the Dutchwomen a 51-31 advantage. Junior forward Emily Scott led the charge with seven points, an assist and a couple of rebounds while Hammond contributed six of her 12 points during the run.

The first half was a sloppy affair with the teams combining for 25 turnovers, 10 of which were committed by the Dutchwomen. Scinto led Union with nine of her game-high 14 points while Nicole Cerniglia, whose three-point basket with 48 seconds left gave Union a 27-23 lead, scored five markers in her 13 minutes of court time.

Tied at 17-17 with 8:28 remaining in the opening half, Scinto"s second three-point field goal started a 7-0 run that was fueled by Kate DeSorrento"s driving layup and a jumper by Eileen Lowry as the Dutchwomen enjoyed their biggest lead with 6:56 left. However, Vassar crept back into the contest by outscoring the Garnet 8-3 down the stretch.

Vassar, which fell to 1-12 in the conference and 4-19 overall, was led by Erin Harper and Lizzie Evans, each of whom finished with nine points.