Senior guard Jaya Perkins (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville) hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 35 seconds remaining Thursday to lead the No. 12 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater women's basketball team to a 76-73 double overtime victory over 25th-ranked Luther (Iowa) in a non-conference contest at JustaGame Fieldhouse in Wisconsin Dells.
 
The Warhawks improved to 11-0 with the win in their non-conference finale, entering Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play next week with an unblemished mark for the first time since the 2007-08 season.
 
Fifty seconds after Luther (8-3) took a two-point lead in the second overtime, sophomore guard Brooke Trewyn (Whitewater/Whitewater) passed to the corner for Perkins, who put UW-Whitewater ahead 74-73 with her first 3-pointer of the contest.
 
Following a missed layup by the Norse, sophomore forward Andrea Meinert (West Bend/Kettle Moraine Lutheran) hit a pair of clutch free throws to make it a three-point game with nine seconds left.
 
A game-tying 3-point attempt by Luther missed at the buzzer.
 
Senior guard Abbie Reeves (Salem/Westosha Central) tallied 16 of her game- and season-high 19 points after halftime and collected eight rebounds to lead the Warhawks. Meinert registered 11 points and eight rebounds, while Trewyn and sophomore guard Andrea Olsen (East Troy/East Troy) posted nine points apiece.
 
UW-Whitewater held a 32-14 advantage on points in the paint to offset the Norse's 25-10 edge in made free throws.
 
Both teams started slow offensively as the Warhawks held Luther to just 18.8 percent (6-of-32) shooting in the first half. UW-Whitewater led by as many as seven in the opening frame before entering the locker room with a 25-21 advantage.
 
The Norse made a run early in the third quarter and led 33-27 at the 6:51 mark of the period. The Warhawks closed the quarter on a 14-4 run to take a 41-37 lead entering the fourth.
 
A 3-pointer by Reeves gave UW-Whitewater a 58-56 lead with 12 seconds remaining in the fourth, but Luther beat the buzzer with a layup to send the contest to overtime.
 
Reeves started the extra frame with a 3-pointer and hit another with 1:21 on the clock to draw the Warhawks within 68-67. She gave UW-Whitewater a one-point lead with a layup on the team's next offensive possession, but the Norse hit a free throw with six seconds left to send the affair to a second overtime.
 
Perkins tallied five of her seven points in the second overtime to lift UW-Whitewater.
 
The Warhawks open WIAC competition Wednesday against UW-Stout. Tip-off at Kachel Gymnasium is scheduled for 7 p.m.