The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater women's basketball team continued its strong play Wednesday night, besting UW-Stevens Point 70-58 in a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference affair in Stevens Point, Wis.
The Warhawks (15-7 overall, 8-3 WIAC) shot 47.2 percent from the floor and held advantages in points off turnovers (16-14) and second-chance points (19-13) to extend their winning streak to seven games and remain one game behind first-place UW-Oshkosh in the league standings.
Senior forward Olivia Freckmann registered a career-high 27 points on 13-of-16 shooting (81.3 percent), the 13th-highest shooting percentage in one game in program history, minimum 10 attempts. She added six rebounds in the effort.
Sophomore guard Emily Schumacher helped Freckmann carry the scoring load with 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting, including 3-of-6 from 3-point range. Sophomore center Johanna Taylor dominated the paint with five points, a team-high 11 rebounds, four assists and four blocks.
The Pointers (8-14, 4-7) ran out to a 9-5 lead through the first three minutes of action, but UW-Whitewater quickly responded as Schumacher nailed a 3-pointer and junior guard Becky Raeder posted a layup to give the team a one-point lead.
The Warhawks took their largest lead of the quarter at 17-13 following a layup by senior forward Sarah Schumacher with 2:32 on the clock and led by two at the end of the period.
UW-Stevens Point started the second on an 8-3 run to take a 24-21 advantage with 7:58 remaining, and the game was tied for a sixth time four minutes later before UW-Whitewater took the lead for good on a 3-pointer by junior guard Megan Corcoran with 2:43 to go in the half.
After a basket by the Pointers, the Warhawks scored nine of the final 11 points in the frame, including six by Emily Schumacher over the final 1:05, to take a 40-32 advantage at halftime.
UW-Whitewater extended its lead to 10 early in the third quarter and used an 11-0 spurt, including seven points by Freckmann, to take a 55-36 lead with 2:51 left in the period.
The Warhawks carried a 59-43 advantage into the fourth quarter, when UW-Stevens Point made an early run to draw within nine points at the 6:56 mark.
UW-Whitewater hit 7-of-8 at the free-throw line over the final 3:50 of regulation for its seventh true road win of the season.
UW-Whitewater hosts UW-Stout Saturday at 3 p.m. at Kachel Gymnasium. The team will honor Freckmann, Becky Deichl, Sarah Schumacher and Juliette Vainisi on Senior Day, the team's final home game of the regular season.