Center Lexy Harris goes for a layup in a game last season. (Anna Calvo | Staff Photographer)

With only five minutes left in the WashU women’s basketball season opener, junior guard Sidney Rogers fed a perfect pass to junior center Lexy Harris, cutting into the key. Harris delivered, pushing through two University of Wisconsin–Whitewater defenders to make the layup. The WashU bench exploded. The Bears had pulled within 2 points of the Warhawks, their smallest deficit since 3:21 in the first quarter. While UW–Whitewater had been in control for most of the game, in this moment, the Bears flipped the script.

However, their momentum didn’t last. In the five minutes that followed, WashU’s offense collapsed, turning the ball over six times while only making three field goals. Ultimately, they fell short, losing 63-58.

The match against UW–Whitewater marked the Bears’ 2025 season opener, which, despite the final score, resulted in two small victories for WashU. The Bears gained valuable experience against a difficult opponent, and discovered key areas of improvement looking ahead in the season.

“Coming out and playing such a good and physical team — and honestly not playing great in one of the halves, not near our potential — just kind of goes to show that we have so much ability, and we have so much potential,” Harris said.

The Warhawks started the game strong, leading for the majority of the quarter. The Bears, on the other hand, struggled to maintain possession as they turned the ball over five times in the first quarter. The Warhawks made two big three-pointers at the end of the first, putting the UW–Whitewater ahead 19-14.

The Warhawks continued their lead in the second quarter, as the Bears continued to struggle with turnovers. The Bears improved, though, after Rogers made a crucial three-pointer with 44 seconds left in the half. The half ended with the Bears trailing 29-24.

“The first quarter, and honestly the first half, we weren’t really playing how we usually play,” Harris said. “I’m not sure if that was nerves or just because it was our first game and we didn’t really know what to expect.

Entering the third quarter, the Warhawks did not waver, quickly extending their lead to 13, the largest lead of the game. A jump shot by Rogers and a layup by Harris with seven minutes left in the 3rd quarter tightened UW–Whitewater’s lead to 37-28. However, the Warhawks continued to convert at the 3-point line and ended the quarter up 44-37.

The Bears finally found their footing in the fourth quarter, and played as if they might have a chance at finally pulling ahead of the Warhawks. With nine minutes left in the game, Harris got fouled while making a layup. The additional point converted at the free-throw line shrank the Warhawks’ lead to six.

Senior forward Jordan Rich, junior guard Alyssa Hughes, and Harris made crucial conversions midway through the fourth quarter to allow WashU to be an arm’s length away from victory; with less than six minutes left of the game, the Bears were only down by two.

The game remained close to the final buzzer, and the Bears resorted to fouling in hopes of forcing a Warhawks turnover. However, the UW–Whitewater converted all six of their free throws, pushing the game out of reach for the Bears. Rogers hit a deep three-pointer with only 0:05 left in the game, but by then, it was too late. The Warhawks ultimately came out victorious, winning 63-58.

Despite the loss, WashU played well down the stretch, outscoring the Warhawks in the fourth quarter 21-19. Harris led the Bears on the offensive end, putting up 26 points and 12 rebounds for a double-double. Rogers also stepped up, scoring 11 points with two key three-point shots.

“We did a really good job of getting the ball to the post players, where they could go to work in the paint and score,” Harris said, “Just reading the defense and understanding what they would do was pretty helpful for us.”

Ultimately, though, the Bears struggled from behind the arc, shooting just 19% in the game. This will certainly be an issue to address for Stone’s team as they look ahead in the season.

“I think being more consistent in how we play throughout the game… it’s obviously going to have ups and downs each game,” Harris says, “But just being able to kind of snap back from the downs and have more ups, … I think we’re going to be really successful during the season.”

Rich led the Bears defensively, with three blocks and two steals. However, the Bears gave up far more turnovers than they forced — their 20 turnovers led UW–Whitewater to score 15 points. This marks another area of improvement for WashU moving forward.

Still, the Bears will have plenty more opportunities to prove themselves, starting with their home opener against Benedictine University in the 24th annual McWilliams Classic on Nov. 14. The classic is set up as a tournament, meaning the Bears will then play either Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology or Elmhurst University on Nov. 15, depending on the results of Friday’s games.

For a team with NCAA Tournament aspirations, the McWilliams Classic will again provide valuable experience for the Bears, allowing them the opportunity to play in a higher-pressure environment early in the season.

“I think it’s reassuring to understand that we have what it takes to beat every team we play this year,” Harris said. “We just really have to execute, stay composed, and do what we know how to do.”