WHITEWATER, Wisc. – Calvin upset fourth-ranked Wisconsin-Whitewater 66-64 on Saturday afternoon to improve to 5-0 on the season.

The victory marks Calvin's second win over a top-10 nationally-ranked opponent in less than a year as the Knights also claimed a 61-49 win over (then) No. 8 UW-Eau Claire last December 29^th.

Calvin used clutch three-point shooting by senior guard Sydney Cleary (Middleville, Mich./South Christian HS) and strong defensive play around the rim in the closing minutes to claim the win.

Cleary connected on her second 3-pointer of the fourth quarter with 1:34 remaining, giving Calvin a 62-61 lead.

Whitewater (5-1) had a chance to regain the lead but had a shot at the basket blocked by Calvin senior Gabby Timmer (Caledonia, Mich./South Christian HS) with 21 seconds remaining. After a Calvin turnover, the Warhawks had another chance but missed a contested layup with 12 seconds remaining with Calvin senior Leah Harris (Frisco, Tx./Lone Star HS) grabbing the rebound and going to the free throw line after she was fouled.

Harris calmly nailed two clutch free throws to give the Knights a 64-61 advantage.

Whitewater had a 3-point shot to tie, but the attempt was short. Calvin grabbed the rebound and senior Sara  Nealy (Highlands Ranch, Co./Valor Christian HS) connected on two huge free throws with five seconds remaining to seal the win.

Calvin jumped out to a 19-13 first quarter lead but trailed 34-31 at halftime.

The Knights maintained tight contact with Whitewater throughout the third quarter and trailed just 48-47 head into the final period of play.

Calvin took its first lead of the second half on a 3-pointer by Cleary, giving the Knights a 57-55 lead with 4:42 remaining.

The Warhawks tied the game at 57 on a layup with 3:22 remaining but Cleary responded with a left-handed layup with time ticking down on the shot clock to put the Knights up 59-57 with 2:48 remaining.

Whitewater answered with four unanswered points to take a 61-59 lead with 1:50 remaining before Cleary drained her clutch triple from the left side at the 1:34 mark to keep Calvin up for good.

Timmer led the Knights with 17 points and 11 rebounds to notch her 40^th collegiate double-double.

Harris had 16 points and six boards while Cleary tallied 15 points and three assists.

Sophomore Valerie Dirkse (Vienna, Va./Marshall HS) had four points and a carere-high 10 rebounds. Freshman RyAnn Rohrer (Ludington, Mich./Ludington HS) came up big with seven points and five assists off the bench.

The Knights shot 48.9 percent from the field while holding Whitewater to 39.1 percent field goal shooting. Calvin also held a 37-30 rebounding advantage.

COACHES COMMENT: "We talked about this game being a rock fight with our team and it lived up to its billing," said Calvin head women's basketball coach Mark Christner. "I'm grateful for all three of my assistants, Coach (Heather) DeKleine, Coach (Heather) Swierenga and Coach (John) Ross. They speak life and belief into our players. It has showed through five games, down the stretch in games. Sometimes you need a good bounce and we got that today. Proud to coach this group, and we can get better. Now we need to rest and ready for Wednesday. Go Calvin!"

NEXT UP: Calvin will host rival Hope on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. at Van Noord Arena in its MIAA and home opener. The Flying Dutch are the No. 1 ranked team in the latest D3hoops.com Top 25 poll and will carry a 5-0 record into Wednesday's contest against the Knights.