Dec. 11

By Ashley McCallum

The UW-Whitewater women’s basketball (8-1 overall, 2-0 in WIAC) team faced the UW- Stevens Point Pointers (5-2 overall, 1-1 WIAC) at home Wednesday night. The ’Hawks beat the Pointers 80-69.

“We knew it would be tough,” head coach Keri Carollo said. “[We also knew] it was going to be a great game for the fans to watch.”

The two teams kept it close in the first half with the Warhawks leading by only one point at half time, 42-41. The ’Hawks made 12 out of 16 free throw attempts while the Pointers only went to the line twice.

While the team outscored the Pointers in the first half, the Pointers led in offensive and defensive rebounds, as well as three point field goals.

“We played together as a team which is really important,” Carollo said.

Trouble came to the ’Hawks late in the first half when senior forward Amy Mandrell injured her foot and was taken out of the game. Mandrell walked back on the court at halftime, but this time sporting a pair of crutches.

Carollo said the team was upset for Mandrell, but confident that they had strong enough players to support the loss. Carollo expects Mandrell to return before the season is over.

The ’Hawks powered through the first half with a strong effort by senior guard Mary Merg, leading the team with 10 points and four rebounds, which led the team that half. Merg also led in total points for the game, finishing with 17, followed closely by senior point guard Kaitlyn Thill’s 16 points.

A significant difference between the ’Hawks and the Pointers in this match up was in free throw shooting. The ’Hawks made 65.6 percent of its free throws, compared to the Pointers’ 27.3 percent.

The season is still in its early stages for the ’Hawks, but the team has started strong going 2-0 in the WIAC play thus far. The next WIAC match for the team will be against UW-River Falls on Jan. 4 at home.