UW-Whitewater improved to 6-1 with a 95-65 win over UW-Stout in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opener Saturday afternoon in Kachel Gym of Williams Center in Whitewater, Wisconsin. 

UW-Stout led 2-0, but that would be the Blue Devils' only lead of the game.  Whitewater scored the next 14 points to lead 14-2 with 15:02 left in the half.  Leading 18-6, UW-W used another streak, this time 11-0, to forge a 29-6 margin at 9:58.  The Warhawks went into the lockerroom with a 53-29 lead.

Whitewater shot 50% from the floor in the first half, and 16-20 (80%) from the line.  Stout hit 31% of its field goals and had a six point deficit at the line (10-14).  Whitewater forced the Blue Devils into 18 turnovers.

With 17:02 left in the game the Warhawks' lead had grown to 30, 64-34. Whitewater built a 39 point margin, 79-40 at 10:54, and Stout whittled that back to the final margin, also 30 points.

Stout turned the ball over 37 times.  UW-W was 30-44 from the free throw line, Stout 19-26 in a game where the teams combined for 58 fouls.

UW-W sophomore guard Mary Merg (Greendale/Greendale) led all scorers with 17 points, and senior guard Jamie Swanson (Fox Lake, IL/Grant Community) added 15.  Junior guard Sam Quandt (Hayward/Hayward) chipped in with ten.  Sophomore guard Kaitlyn Thill (Belgium/Ozaukee) led both teams with five steals, and Swanson shared game rebounding honors with seven.

The Blue Devils, 3-5 overall and 0-1 in the WIAC, were led by freshman guard Courtney Hayford's 12 points, including 3-3 from three point range.  Sophomore guard Sami Schoeder tied Swanson with seven boards, and led UW-S with three assists.

UW-W will travel to La Crosse to face the Eagles Wednesday at 7:00.  The next home contest for the Warhawks will be a week from Wednesday, the 14th, with UW-Stevens Point visiting Williams Center for a 7:00 tip-off.