WHITEWATER – The Lakeland University women's basketball team held its own inside and gave a good account before falling to the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater 70-56 in both teams' regular season openers Tuesday night at Kachel Gymnasium.

The Muskies stayed within striking distance for more than three quarters but couldn't overcome 28 turnovers in falling to one of the better teams from the strong Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The Warhawks qualified for the NCAA Division III tournament last year and were just outside the top 25 in preseason national rankings.

Lakeland out-rebounded Whitewater 36-32 and played to a draw inside, with both teams scoring 24 points in the paint. Maddy Doll (Jr.-Florence, Wis.) scored 13 points and added eight rebounds and four blocked shots, and Tori Lauren (Fr.-Gwinn, Mich.) added seven points-all in the first half to lead the team as it trailed 33-20 at the halftime break.

The Muskies were unable to stop Brooke Trewyn, who scored a game-high 24 points and hit four three-pointers in easily leading the Warhawks in scoring. Whitewater hit 8 of 20 from three-point range and also was nearly perfect at the free throw line, making 18 of 20 foul shots.

UW-Whitewater looked ready to turn the game into a rout in the third quarter when an 8-1 run resulted in a 47-27 lead, but the Muskies finished the quarter strong. Emma Lehr (Fr.-Wautoma, Wis.), Kayla Clark (Sr.-West Bend, Wis.) and Bailey Grayvold (Sr.-Norway, Mich.) all hit three-pointers and Lakeland trimmed the deficit to 49-37 at the end of three periods.

Lakeland was unable to get any closer, and the Warhawks finally rebuilt the lead to 20 points in the final minutes The Muskies continued to chip away right to the end, though, scoring the game's final seven points for the final 14-point margin.

Grayvold led Lakeland with 14 points and added four rebounds, Rachel Stankevich (Jr.-Goodman, Wis.) added five points and six rebounds and Clark posted a game-high four assists. The Muskies shot 42.1% from the field (16 of 38) and 20 of 25 from the free throw line (80.0%).

Malia Smith was the only other Whitewater player besides Trewyn to score in double figures, finishing with 10 points. The Warhawks shot 33.3% (22 of 66) but had 16 offensive rebounds and committed just 12 turnovers.

The Muskies next will host their Lakeland Tip-Off Tournament this weekend, opening with Mount Mary University at 6 p.m. on Friday. The University of Dubuque and Calvin (Mich.) College will meet in the other semifinal Friday at 8 p.m., with consolation and championship games to follow Saturday.