Whitewater, Wis. -- The No. 8 UW-Whitewater women's basketball team used a massive second half surge to defeat UW-River Falls 68-54 in Kachel Gym Saturday afternoon. The Warhawks were dominant in the paint, outscoring the Falcons 40-18 in the interior leading to the win. 

Trailing by three at the break, UWW regrouped in the locker room and came out with a strong second half performance. Mia Gillis (Mundelein, Ill./Carmel Catholic) knocked down a jumper for the first points of the third. Ashley Schlabowske (Grayslake, Ill./Carmel Catholic) capitalized on a Falcon turnover with a layup to give the Warhawks the lead with eight minutes to go and UW-Whitewater never looked back. Less than two minutes later, the Warhawk advantage swelled to six on a three-pointer from Camryn Nies (Platteville, Wis./Platteville). Near the end of the third, Bri McCurdy (St. Croix Falls, Wis./St. Croix Falls) drained a triple to push the lead into double digits. UW-River Falls tallied the final points of the period as the Warhawks went into the fourth holding a nine-point lead. 

Gillis bolstered UWW's 21-9 third quarter sway with eight points on a perfect 4-4 from the floor. 

River Falls narrowed the gap to one midway through the fourth, but the Warhawks responded in a big way. After a second chance opportunity for the Falcons made it 55-54 at the 4:49 mark, the Warhawk defense held UWRF scoreless the rest of the way. Meanwhile the offense went on a 13-0 run for the 68-54 final. 

UW-Whitewater shot over 65% in the second half while holding the Falcons to under 35% from the field. Gillis paced the Warhawk offense with 17 on an 8-13 night from the floor. She added five rebounds and three steals. Brooke Stenklyft (Cambridge, Wis./Cambridge) posted 12 in the scoring column on 5-8 from the floor with a game-high five assists. McCurdy and Nies hit half of their shots on the day to combine for 22 points. Renee Rittmeyer (Winnebago, Ill./Winnebago) was the most active player on the glass with eight rebounds.