Big game hunters.  For the second time in this early season the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater women's basketball team knocked off a nationally ranked team on the road.  UW-W defeated UW-La Crosse , unbeaten and ranked seventeenth in the ESPN/USA Today Division III Poll, 83-62 in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opener for both teams at Mitchell Hall in La Crosse, Wisconsin Wednesday night.  The Warhawks, in the "others receiving votes" category of the national poll, also upset then sixth ranked Illinois Wesleyan in Bloomington, Illinois last Tuesday.

box score

La Crosse took its first lead of the game at 11-10 on a three pointer by Taylor Larson at the 15:07 mark.  A layup by Cortney Kumerow (Bartlett, IL/South Elgin) at 12:17 put the Warhawks in front 14-13, a lead they did not give up for the rest of the half.  UW-W built a fourteen point margin twice in the late going of the half, but the Eagles cut it back to single digits, 43-34, by the time the teams went to intermission.

Freshman guard Kaitlyn Thill (Belgium/Ozaukee) had six steals for UW-W in the first half, leading the defense that forced 15 turnovers by UW-L.  Whitewater shot 56% from the floor for the first twenty minutes, and the Eagles were close at 48%.

La Crosse bolted out the door with a 5--0 burst to start the second half, cutting Whitewater's lead to 43-39 on a Melissa Lang three-pointer at 18:36.  Whitewater responded with a 7-0 streak to bump it back up to 50-39 at 17:14.  The Eagles clawed all the way back, taking a 54-53 lead on Danielle Frank's bucket in the paint with 11:35 left. 

Just when UW-W could have folded like a cardboard box left out in the rain, the Warhawks bounced back with a 10-0 run --- with five players contributing points, to regain the lead 63-54, forcing La Crosse to call a timeout at 8:13.  Nothing changed coming out of the break, with Chantel Burg (Hartford/Hartford Union) scoring on a layup and a basket from beyond the arc to make it 71-56 Whitewater with 5:37 remaining.  The run would continue one more basket, giving UW-W a 19-3 streak after they had fallen behind earlier in the half.  The final score was the largest margin in the game. 

Only one stat showed any appreciable difference between the two teams ... Whitewater 13 turnovers, La Crosse 27.

Burg and Kumerow led UW-W in scoring with 17 points apiece, with Thill adding 12 and Mary Merg (Greendale/Greendale) 11.  Thill's line also included six rebounds, seven steals, five assists -- and no turnovers from her point guard position.  Burg chipped in with six boards.

The Eagles were led  by Danielle Frank's 12 points and game high 14 rebounds.  Lindsey Litrenta and Dana Churchill added 11 and 10 points, respectively.

UW-W is 4-1 overall, 1-0 in the WIAC.  La Crosse is 6-1 and 0-1. 

Whitewater's next game will also be on the road, at UW-Stout in Menomonie Saturday at 6:00.

For additional information:  Keri Carollo, UW-W coach