UW-Whitewater, ranked twelfth and thirteenth in the two National Division III polls, made an eight point halftime lead stand up in a 65-57 win over UW-Oshkosh Wednesday night in Kachel Gym of Williams Center in Whitewater, Wisconsin.

box score

photo gallery (courtesy of Tim Gumz; all photos are for sale)

The Warhawks jumped ahead 8-0, holding the Titans scoreless for the first 2:48, but the Titans responded with a 9-0 run to take the lead at 13:32.  After four lead changes over the next three minutes, UW-W came out in front 18-15 with 9:06 left, then upped the margin to 25-16 with a 7-1 streak.  With the score standing at 25-21 Whitewater went 9-1 to take the largest lead of the half, 34-22 with 2:35 remaining.  The Warhawks led 34-26 at halftime.

UW-W senior center Dana Thompson (Belleville/Belleville) led both teams at the break, with 14 points and nine rebounds.  The Warhawks out-rebounded Oshkosh 18-13, and UW-W turned the ball over just five times.

The first ten minutes of the second half belonged to UW-W.  Whitewater continued to build on the lead in the second half, hiking the margin to 19, 54-35 with 9:49 showing on the clock.  The final ten minutes of the second half belonged to Oshkosh.  The Titans slowly chipped away, cutting the deficit to 59-50, but with just 2:59 on the clock.  

The Warhawks made 17-20 from the free throw stripe to Oshkosh's 11-14. UW-W's defense blocked five shots (Oshkosh none) and held UW-O to 34% shooting from the field while Whitewater shot 40%. 

Whitewater's Thompson led all players, notching a double-double with 28 points and 14 rebounds in the contest while adding three blocks. Junior forward Chantel Burg (Hartford/Hartford Union) contributed 11 points. Freshman guard Kaitlyn Thill (Belgium/Ozaukee) tallied four steals, bringing her season total to 76 which matches Kelsey Hendrickson's mark from the 2007-08 season for fourth place in the UW-W record book.

Sophomore guard Megan Wenig scored 16 points for the Titans.  Senior guard Michelle Boeder was the only other player in double figures for UW-O, with 10.  Shelby Churchill and Kelsey Myklebust had six rebounds each for UW-O, and Sarah Stecker contributed three steals.

The Warhawks improve to 13-2 this season including a 5-1 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference record. Oshkosh falls to 8-7 overall and 3-3 in the WIAC.

UW-W will go on the road to face UW-Eau Claire Saturday, January 15 at 5:00 pm. Whitewater will return to Kachel Gym Saturday, January 29 for a WIAC match-up versus UW-Stout.

For additional information: Keri Carollo, UW-W head coach