On the eve of the opening game of the season for the women’s basketball team, the stage was set for the Colonials to announce their return with an experienced and healthy roster after an injury-plagued 2009-2010 season.

Instead, GW fell flat in its debut, losing twice in the Best Buy Classic in Minnesota, first against Wisconsin-Green Bay Saturday and then to Northern Illinois in the consolation game Sunday, marking the first time in five years that the team opened its season with a loss.

“We’re disappointed,” head coach Mike Bozeman said. “We came to get a win, one if not two, and we didn’t get either.”

The Colonials (0-2) struggled mightily on offense against Wisconsin-Green Bay Saturday, shooting 27.8 percent from the floor. While GW struggled with its shooting, the Phoenix shot 46.8 percent from the floor against the Colonials.

Wisconsin-Green Bay was especially effective scoring in bunches, opening the game with a 7-0 run and closing the first half with a 9-0 run that turned a three-point Phoenix lead into a 12-point lead at halftime. GW couldn’t get closer than 11 points for the entire second half and eventually fell 75-51.

“[Playing Green Bay], we ran into an old machine, they’ve got a lot of experience,” Bozeman said. “We didn’t show as well yesterday. I’m thinking that yesterday was more about us getting a fresh start. The whole weekend was a fresh start.”

Sunday’s game had a more promising start for the Colonials, who dominated on both ends of the floor and had a six-point lead entering halftime. GW shot just over 44 percent in the first period and junior center Sara Mostafa had 13 points.

The Colonials went cold in the second half though, allowing the Huskies to close the game with an 11-3 run on their way to a 66-60 win. GW shot just 29 percent after halftime and Mostafa, who had been a force in the first half, was held scoreless by Northern Illinois in the second half.

“There were things we were doing in the first half that were successful that we got away from,” Bozeman said. “There were times when we were stopping them and weren’t scoring. If we had scored a bucket it would have change the whole tide, complexion of the game.”

Even though his team wound up on the losing end Sunday, Bozeman said he was pleased with his team’s performance.

“I’m pleased with the effort and the better execution,” Bozeman said. “Today was a great bounce-back effort.”

The Colonials were led largely by players who struggled through injuries last season. Sophomore guard Danni Jackson, who suffered a broken leg last season, was GW’s high-scorer Saturday with 13 points to go with her four assists. Redshirt senior Ivy Abiona, who missed last season with a torn ACL, was dominant Sunday, recording her third career double-double with 11 points and 15 rebounds.

Bozeman stressed that the Colonials’ need to build upon their opening efforts as they look to the rest of the season and the home opener against Coppin State Thursday.

“We played well today for 35 minutes of the game, we’ll build on that and add 5 minutes to it and have a good 40-minute game,” Bozeman said. “Every game is a crucial game for us. 35 minutes is not enough when playing against a hungry opponent.”