The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater women's basketball team opened the UW-Eau Claire Tipoff Tournament Friday night with a 63-51 triumph over St. Olaf (Minn.) in a non-conference affair in Eau Claire, Wis.
 
The Warhawks (2-0 overall) held the Oles to 22.6 percent shooting (12-of-53) and finished with a 54-32 advantage in rebounding, including a 17-9 edge on the offensive glass.
 
The two teams combined to shoot 70 free throws in the contest. UW-Whitewater made 23-of-39 from the line, and St. Olaf (1-1) hit 20-of-31.
 
Junior guard Malia Smith (Bolingbrook, Ill./Neuqua Valley) paced the Warhawks with 11 points, five rebounds and two steals. Junior forward Andrea Meinert (West Bend/Kettle Moraine Lutheran) posted 10 points and seven rebounds.
 
Sophomore forward Olivia Freckmann (Milwaukee, Wis./Pius XI) led the team with nine rebounds and added five points, and freshman forward Kaelynn Lesniak (Pewaukee, Wis./Lake Country Lutheran) tallied seven rebounds and four points.
 
The Oles led by as many as four in the first quarter, but UW-Whitewater closed the period on a 7-1 run to take a 15-13 lead.
 
The Warhawks extended their advantage to nine points following a layup by Meinert with 2:42 left in the second quarter, but St. Olaf narrowed its deficit to 32-26 by the end of the first half.
 
UW-Whitewater led by 10 early in the third quarter following a layup by junior guard Brooke Trewyn (Whitewater/Whitewater) and free throws by sophomore forward Becky Deichl (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville), but the Oles fought back to trim the deficit to 43-39 heading into the fourth.
 
The Warhawks scored the first eight points of the fourth quarter, including four from Deichl, and led by no fewer than five the rest of the way.
 
UW-Whitewater concludes tournament play Saturday at 3 p.m. against Simpson (Iowa).