The No. 4 University of Wisconsin-Whitewater women's basketball team suffered its first loss of the 2023-24 campaign Wednesday - 77-66 at UW-La Crosse. 

The game was tight until the fourth when the Eagles' offense took flight. UW-La Crosse shot 60-percent (6-10) from the floor and 71-percent (5-7) from three-point range to pull away in the final 10 minutes of action. 

The Warhawks battled back from an early seven-point deficit to knot the game by the end of the first quarter. UW-Whitewater went on a 6-0 run with Aleah Grundahl (DeForest, Wis./DeForest) registering an old-fashioned three-point play followed by a Kacie Carollo (Whitewater, Wis./Whitewater) triple that brought the score to 17-17 at the end of the first. 

UWW claimed the lead, 27-25, midway through the second quarter on a Maggie Trautsch (Sun Prairie, Wis./DeForest) coast-to-coast layin following a steal. Another Trautsch layup at the 1:47 mark gave UW-Whitewater its largest lead, 35-29. The Eagles hit a jumper and a three-pointer to cut the lead to one, but Katie Hildebrandt (McFarland, Wis./McFarland) capitalized on a second chance opportunity to send UWW into the intermission with a 37-34 lead. 

The third quarter was a roller coaster of a period with three ties and five lead changes. By the end, UW-La Crosse had flipped the three-point advantage in their favor.

The Warhawks trailed by just two at the halfway mark of the fourth before the Eagles really started to heat up from the floor. Following the final media timeout of the game, UWL hit 4-5 of their shots from the floor, including three from long range, and hit all of their free throw opportunities to keep UWW at bay. 

Grundahl and Carollo combined for 52 points in the game. Grundahl had a double-double in hand by halftime and ended with 27 points, bolstered by 9-10 from the free throw line, and 12 rebounds. Carollo chipped in 25 points on 8-16 from the floor, 4-8 from beyond the arc and 5-6 from the charity stripe. She added six boards and five assists. 

The now 17-1 Warhawks maintain position on top of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference standings with a 6-1 league mark. UWW opens the second round through the WIAC with UW-Eau Claire Saturday, January 27 in Kachel Gym.