St. Louis, Mo. -- The Washington University in St. Louis women's basketball team opened University Athletic Association play on Saturday with a resounding 68-49 victory over No. 10 Chicago at the Field House.

The Bears begin league play with a 1-0 record and improve to 8-4 on the season, while also giving UChicago its first loss of the season (11-1). WashU won the game with a great effort on both ends, forcing 11 Maroon turnovers and scoring 14 points off turnovers.

Defensively, WU held Chicago to just 27 percent shooting and just 13 percent from three-point territory, marking a season-low for the Maroons. In addition, the Bears outscored UC 36-22 in the second half.

Four Bears finished in double figures scoring as Maya Arnott led the charge with a double-double of 15 points and 13 rebounds, both game-highs. Karisa Grandison registered 14 points on 6-11 shooting and Jessica Brooks totaled 12 points and six rebounds.

Sammi Matoush posted 11 points, knocking down a team-best three three-point field goals and collected five boards. First-year Nailah McBeth added six points and 11 rebounds. 

Collectively as a team, WashU out-rebounded the Maroons by a dominant margin of 55-28, including 13 offensive rebounds.

The Bears also scored 38 points in the paint and were 16-21 from the free-throw line in the victory.

WashU used a 7-0 scoring run to regain the lead midway through the opening quarter as the Bears would hold on to a 19-16 advantage after a tight first period. Arnott and Matoush combined for 13 of the Bears' 19 points in the opening frame.

WU would hold UC to just 11 points each in the next three quarters as the Bears maintained a 32-27 lead at halftime.

It was all WashU in the second half as they made quick adjustments and came out swinging. 

The Bears began the third period on a 12-2 scoring run to extend their lead out to 44-31, as six different Bears scored throughout the quarter.

WashU held on to a double-digit lead for nearly the rest of the quarter and maintained a 50-38 edge heading into the fourth.

Chicago tried to rally back into the game but would be denied once again after the Bears' great defense limited the Maroons to just 22 percent shooting on 4-18 attempts.

The Bears continued to pour it on and pushed their lead out to 18 early in the fourth at 58-40. WashU's largest lead in the victory was 21 points, following a pair of free throws from Brooks in the final minutes of the game.

WashU will look to keep its momentum rolling as the Bears return to UAA play on Friday evening at the Field House as they play host to Brandeis at 5:30 p.m.