The 2023-24 WIAC Women’s Basketball season will be remembered as one of the more competitive down the stretch. Though Oshkosh and Whitewater led the pack for most of the season, Stout proved this past week that they weren’t a team to overlook.
Through their first 12 games of the season, the Blue Devils went 11-1, with their only loss coming against a formidable Gustavus Adolphus team.
However, what started out as a solid season looked to be in peril midway through January when the Stout squad lost 5 games in a row, all to conference opponents.
Though the team was on a losing skid, the athletes and coaches never gave up hope. A bounce-back for the Blue Devils came on January 24 when Stout finally got back in the ‘W’ column following a win over the River Falls Falcons.
From there, they returned to form, going 7-1 to close out the regular season. This late-season surge was enough to punch their ticket to the WIAC tournament.
Starting at home, Stout made quick work of River Falls in the first round, winning 70-54. From there, they were on the road for the final two games of the tournament.
They moved on to Whitewater to face the 8-seeded Warhawks. Raegan Sorenson would lead the charge against the Birds, scoring 22 points en route to a 69-59 victory.
Then came perhaps their toughest matchup of the season, as they traveled to Oshkosh to face the Titans in the championship game. Stout had lost both prior games to the Titans during the regular season, making for a showdown between a proven winner in Oshkosh, and an underdog hopeful in the Blue Devils.
Whatever the storyline was, it did not matter when the Ladies in Blue stepped onto the court.
Again led by Raegan Sorensen, with 21 points and 13 rebounds, the Blue Devils tamed the Titans, winning the championship game with a final score of 77-65.
This is UW-Stout’s fifth time winning the WIAC tournament, and the first time since 2007.
Even though they could not hoist the WIAC trophy, Whitewater and Oshkosh will each have a chance to dance in the NCAA D3 Basketball Championship in March, as the Warhawks, Titans, and Blue Devils all earned a trip to the tournament.
UW-Stout will face its first test Friday, March 1 in a matchup against Washington University. The team will travel south to St. Louis, where they hope to start their deep postseason run.
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