The Warhawk women's basketball team, ranked tenth and fifteenth in the two national Division III polls, opened the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference season with a 75-71 win over previously unbeaten, and eighteenth ranked, UW-Stevens Point Saturday afternoon in Williams Center in Whitewater, Wisconsin.

Box Score

UW-W trailed most of the first half, by as many as eight at 29-21 with 3:44 remaining.  The Warhawks used a 13-2 run up to intermission to take a 34-31 lead in to the locker room. 

Neither team could make a run in the second half, exchanging the lead several times, with the largest lead a five point spread by Point, 43-38 at 14:51. 

Whitewater led 71-68 with 0:47 on the clock.  Point's Laura Neuenfeldt brought Point within one with a layup.  Tiffany Morton (Beloit/Memorial) hit a pair of free throws to make it 71-68 Whitewater with 0:47 left, but Haley Houghton hit a three to knot the score 71-71 with fifteen seconds left.  A layup by Kelsey Hendrickson (Monroe/Monroe) with eight seconds left put the Warhawks back on top, 73-71.  Point turned the ball over on its next possession and fouled Trisha Thill (Belgium/Ozaukee) to stop the clock, but the strategy didn't work as Thill made both.

The statistics bear out how close the game was.  Whitewater shot 46%, Stevens Point 45%.  Whitewater made 5-15 free throw, Point 5-12.  Whitewater had 31 rebounds, Point 30.  Whitewater made 20 free throws, Point 18.  The only noticeable differences were in turnovers, where Whitewater had 15 to 23 for UW-SP, and steals, where the Warhawks were credited with 16 and Point 6.

UW-W center Tiffany Morton (Beloit/Memorial) led both teams with 20 points, hitting 7 of 11 from the field and 5-6 from the line.  Nicole Bundy (Fredonia/Ozaukee) added 13 and Kelsey Hendrickson (Monroe/Monroe) 11 for Whitewater.  Morton also grabbed a game high eight rebounds.  Neuenfeldt scored 15 for the Pointers, followed closely by Chelsea Kranz and Houghton, with 14 and 10, respectively.  Houghton also led the Pointers with three assists.

UW-Whitewater is 5-0 overall, 1-0 in the WIAC.  Stevens Point is 5-1 and 0-1. 

The next game for UW-W will be Wednesday, December 5 with UW-Oshkosh visiting Williams Center for a 7:00 tipoff.