It was a fast-paced affair in the season opener in Page Arena, but the Falcons of UW-River Falls came up just short against UW-Stout, dropping a hard fought affair by a score of 84-77.

The first quarter was a back and forth contest as freshmen Colie Justice scored the first four points for the Falcons. Throughout the quarter, the Blue Devils maintained the lead for most of the time, leading by two once the stanza ended.

In the second, the lead for the Blue Devils ballooned to as much as nine, forcing a timeout for the Falcons. The team responded, opening up the pace and scoring at will in transition, with freshman Kate Karch leading the way with three makes. When the halftime horn hit, it was UW-River Falls in the lead by a score of 48-47.

In the second half, both teams exchanged blows back and forth, with the Falcons dominating on the break, but the Blue Devils controlling the rebounding battle. Despite scoring surges from transfer Macy Nilson and freshman Bethany Vasecka, the size advantage for UW-Stout proved to be the difference as they held on for a 84-77 victory.

Justice led all scorers with 16 points in her first career game, while Nilsen poured in 14. Jenna Zeman score 13 of her own, and Vasecka put in 12.

The two teams will run it back and play again on Friday, February 5 at 7:00pm, this time at UW-Stout.