WOMENS BASKETBALL…Women Up Mark to 6-2 with Win Over Yellowjackets

Sometimes it's the little things.  UW-Whitewater defeated UW-Superior 87-76 Saturday afternoon in Mortorelli Gym in Superior, Wisconsin.

The game was tied 9-9 at 16:36, when two threes by Emily Bestor keyed a 9-0 streak that put UW-W ahead to stay.  Later in the first half the Yellowjackets managed to climb back within six, 34-28, but again the Warhawks streaked away, 11-0 to boost their lead to 45-28 with 5:27 left in the half.  The halftime score, 57-35, was Whitewater's largest lead of the half.

For almost seven minutes at the start of the second half Whitewater maintained a lead of at least 20 points, three times up to 26 points.  After one of those leads, 69-43 on another Bestor three at 14:38, Superior got it together -- in a big way.  UW-S sprinted to a 15-0 scoring streak over the next four minutes, lopping points off the lead like leaves in the fall.  When it was done, Whitewater's lead was down to 70-60 with a lot of time left, 9:24.

That seemed to be the point where equilibrium took over.  Whitewater had a 15 point lead three times in the remaining minutes, but it was also eleven several times. 

In the end it was those little things.  Whitewater had an advantage in almost every category, but just by a small margin.  Whitewater made seven threes, Superior five.  Whitewater made 24 free throws, Superior 21.  Whitewater had 17 turnovers, Superior 21.  Whitewater blocked five shots, Superior 2.  Whitewater had nine steals, Superior six.  The one area that wasn't so small was rebounding, where it was 43-34 in favor of the Warhawks.  All those little things added up to the eleven point win.

Bestor, a junior guard, scored 19 points, her career high.  She went 5-6 from the field --- all of them three pointers.  Senior center Dana Thompson recorded a double double with 14 points and 14 rebounds.  Junior guard Jamie Swanson was also in double figures with 11 points.  Freshman point Kaitlyn Thill earn game honors with six assists, and her two steals move her just one steal from thirtieth place in the UW-W single season record book.

UW-S junior forward Hailey Hart led all scorers with 21 points, netting 10-15 from the line.  Jjunior forward Bri Davis led both her team with 12 rebounds, while also scoring 20 points.  Sophomore guard Connie Urmansky contributed 17 points. 

UW-Whitewater is 6-2 overall and 3-1 in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.  The Warhawks will host the University of Dubuque Tuesday at 6:00 in Kachel Gym in Williams Center.

For additional information:  Keri Carollo, UW-W coach, 262-472-5782.