Related Links:
WIAC Championship Web Page
Live Stats
Live Audio (KOOL 106.5 FM WKCH)
Live Video
 
The No. 12 ranked University of Wisconsin-Whitewater women's basketball team looks to defend its Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournament championship starting Thursday at 7 p.m. in a WIAC Championship semifinal at Kachel Gymnasium against fourth-seeded UW-Eau Claire.
 
Tickets for Thursday's game cost $7 each for adults and $3 each for youth, students and senior citizens, and can be purchased at the door.

The Warhawks downed UW-Eau Claire (18-8) twice this season, most recently holding on for a 61-58 triumph on Jan. 27 in Eau Claire. The Blugolds advanced to Thursday's semifinal with a 56-53 home victory over No. 5 seed UW-Stevens Point on Tuesday.
 
UW-Whitewater earned the No. 1 seed in the tournament after placing first in the conference during the regular season with a 22-3 record, including a 12-2 record in WIAC play.
 
UW-Whitewater is making its 20th consecutive appearance in the WIAC Championship, having qualified for the tournament each year since the tournament's inception in 1999.  The team claimed its first title last season after defeating UW-Oshkosh 65-56 in the final.
 
The Warhawks enter the postseason ranked second in the league for scoring offense at 68.9 points per game, while allowing 54.8 per contest, good for second in the WIAC.  UW-Whitewater has relied heavily on its defense throughout the season leading the league in steals per game at 10.56.
 
UW-Whitewater started the 2017-18 season with 10 straight wins, including a win over then-No. 16 Illinois Wesleyan at home.
 
After a loss to Wartburg, which is currently undefeated and ranked second in the nation, the Warhawks came back to win four of their next five contests in the first round of conference play, including a two-point win over No. 23 UW-Oshkosh.
 
Following a four-point loss to UW-La Crosse, UW-Whitewater finished regular season play and the second round of WIAC play on an eight-game winning streak, including victories over UW-River Falls and UW-La Crosse after falling to them in their first meetings.
 
Senior Brooke Trewyn (Whitewater, Wis./Whitewater) enters the week leading the Warhawks with 13.0 points per game, good for sixth in the conference.  She leads the team and is ranked seventh in the conference for assists per contest at 2.36 and is also ranked third in the WIAC for free throw percentage at 82.3 percent.
 
Senior guard Malia Smith (Bolingbrook, Ill./Neuqua Valley) also averages in double figures per contest at 11.2.  Smith follows right behind Trewyn at fourth in the league for free throw percentages at 78.2 percent and is also ranked among the top five in the WIAC for steals per game at 2.08.  Smith is among the top three in the league for 3-point field goal percentage at 41.2 percent.
 
Senior forward Andrea Meinert (West Bend, Wis./Kettle Moraine Lutheran) is among the top 25 scorers in the league averaging 9.4 points per game.  Meinert leads the team and is ranked seventh in the WIAC for field goal percentage at 44.3 percent.  She is fourth in the league for offensive rebounds averaging 2.40 per contest.
 
Sophomore guard Camri Conley (Sugar Grove, Ill./Kaneland) and junior forward Olivia Freckmann (Milwaukee, Wis./Pius XI) average 8.4 and 6.6 points per game, respectively.  Freckmann ranks third in the conference for rebounding at 6.9 per contest, as well as third in the WIAC for offensive rebounds at 2.60 per game.  Conley is shooting 71.8 percent from the free throw line and averages 26.1 minutes per game for the Warhawks.
 
Junior forward Sarah Schumacher (Whitewater, Wis./Whitewater) is a key contributor for the Warhawks, appearing in all 25 games and averaging 6.2 points per contest. She is joined in the frontcourt rotation by junior Becky Deichl (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville), who is averaging 3.9 points and 3.0 rebounds per contest in 22 games.
 
Sophomore guard Becky Raeder (Sheboygan Falls, Wis./Sheboygan Falls) and freshman guard Emily Schumacher (Waukesha, Wis./Waukesha South) have appeared in all 25 contests. Raeder averages 16.9 minutes and 5.4 points per contest.
 
The WIAC Championship final is scheduled for Saturday at the highest remaining seed at 3 or 7 p.m. UW-Whitewater would host the final with a win Thursday.
 
The winner of Saturday's contest earns the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament, which begins next week.