The No. 21 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater women's basketball team used a strong start and a great third quarter Friday night to defeat Luther (Iowa) 70-51 on the first day of the UW-Stevens Point Tipoff Tournament in Stevens Point.
 
The Warhawks (1-1 overall) held the Norse to 31.3 percent shooting for the game, including a 27 percent clip in the second half. UW-Whitewater outscored Luther 15-7 at the free-throw line and shot 46.3 percent from the field, including 52 percent in the second half.
 
Junior guard Camri Conley (Sugar Grove, Ill./Kaneland) posted a game-high 15 points to go with four assists and four rebounds. Sophomore guard Emily Schumacher (Waukesha, Wis./Waukesha South) tallied 12 points and seven rebounds, and junior guard Becky Raeder (Sheboygan Falls, Wis./Sheboygan Falls) and freshman guard Veronica Kieres (Chicago, Ill./Resurrection) collected 11 points apiece.
 
Sophomore guard Adriana Green (Racine, Wis./Horlick) finished with six points and a team-high 10 rebounds, and sophomore guard Sydney Smith (Racine, Wis./St. Catherine's) added seven points.
 
The Warhawks outscored the Norse 22-11 in the first quarter, building their lead all the way up to 13 after a 3-pointer by Schumacher with 2:36 on the clock.
 
Luther (0-1) made a late charge in the second quarter, cutting the UW-Whitewater lead to five before a 3-pointer by Raeder helped the Warhawks take a 35-29 advantage into halftime.
 
UW-Whitewater started the third quarter on a 10-0 run over the first five minutes as Raeder capped the spurt with back-to-back jumpers to make it 45-29 midway through the period.
 
The Warhawks led by a game-high 19 points one minute into the fourth quarter on a 3-point play by Kieres and a layup by Conley to swell their advantage to 54-35.
 
The Norse got no closer than 13 points the rest of the way.
 
UW-Whitewater continues tournament action Saturday at 3 p.m. against Dubuque (Iowa).