Cowgirls and Aztecs Ready for Mountain West Championship Game
Courtesy photo
Wyoming in search of second tournament title
LAS VEGAS, Nev. (March 12, 2025) – The Wyoming Cowgirls will play for a Mountain West Championship Wednesday night as the second-seeded Cowgirls face-off with the No. 4 seed, San Diego State at 8:30 Mountain Time. Wednesday features the two hottest teams in the league, as the Cowgirls have won six straight while the Aztecs have won seven in-a-row.
Wednesday’s game will be broadcast live on CBS Sports Network and can be heard across the Cowgirl Radio Network with David Settle on the call.
ABOUT THE COWGIRLS
Wyoming (22-10) is coming off a 57-45 win over Fresno State in the Mountain West Semifinals Tuesday night. For the second consecutive night at the tournament, the Cowgirls put together a strong second half, outscoring the Bulldogs 33-22 in the second half and led by as many as 19 late in the contest. Allyson Fertig led the Cowgirls with 17 points and 18 rebounds. It is Fertig’s 27th consecutive game with 14-plus points in a game. That streak is the third longest in Mountain West history and is the second-longest active streak in the nation, trailing only USC’s JuJu Watkins’ 35 straight. It marks the eighth time this season that Fertig has had at least 15 points and 15 rebounds in the same game, which is the most in a single season in league history.
Malene Pedersen and Emily Mellema also scored in double figures, scoring 14 and 11, respectively. Pedersen also set a career-high with eight assists in the win while Mellema had nine rebounds and a pair of steals. Ola Ustowska had nine points on the night, hitting a trio of 3-pointers. She also added four boards and three assists.
During their current six-game winning streak, the Cowgirls are allowing just 51 points per game. On the season, Wyoming is allowing a league-best 58.4 points per game. UW, which had 17 assists Tuesday, continues to lead the league averaging 16.3 assists per game. The Cowgirls also lead the MW with a 46.1-percent team shooting percentage in 2024-25. This is Wyoming’s fourth Mountain West Championship Game appearance (1-2) and second in the last three seasons. The Cowgirls won the 2021 tournament title.
SCOUTING SAN DIEGO STATE
All-Mountain West Team member Veronica Sheffey leads a balanced San Diego State offense averaging 11 points per game. Sheffey also leads the Aztecs with 80 made free throws, 96 assists and 46 steals this season. Naomi Panganiban and Adryana Quezada also average in double figures, scoring 10.3 and 10.1 points per game, respectively. Cali Clark leads SDSU with 8.2 rebounds per game and 39 blocks. Kim Villalobos does it all for the Aztecs, averaging 8.8 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.4 steals per game.
The Aztecs, who have won seven straight games, are averaging 69.3 points per game and allowing just 60.2. San Diego State is shooting 44-percent from the floor and 35-percent from 3-point range. Opponents are shooting 38.3-percent and just 29.2-percent from beyond-the-arc. SDSU has a near-plus-two rebounding margin on the season and averages 13.3 assists. The Aztecs force their opponents into nearly three more turnovers per contest. SDSU allows just 11.2 assists per game.
SERIES HISTORY AGAINST SAN DIEGO STATE
Wyoming leads the all-time series with the Aztecs, 39-31 and won both contests during the regular season. The Cowgirls have won 4-of-5 of late in the series, dating back to the 2022-23 season. This will be the seventh time UW and San Diego State will meet at the Mountain West Tournament. The last meeting came in 2019, an overtime victory for Wyoming. The Cowgirls are 2-4 against SDSU in the tourney.