Cowgirls and Rams Set for Border War Round One Saturday in Laramie
Courtesy photo
2 p.m., tip in the Arena-Auditorium
LARAMIE, Wyo. (Jan. 23, 2025) – The Wyoming Cowgirl basketball team returns home for round one of the 2025 Border War as Colorado State comes to town for a 2 p.m., battle Saturday.
Saturday’s game will be broadcast live on the Mountain West Network and can be heard across the Cowgirl Radio Network with David Settle on the call.
ABOUT THE COWGIRLS
Wyoming (11-8, 5-2 MW) is coming off a 62-50 win on the road Wednesday at Air Force. The Cowgirls shot 64.3-percent (27-42) from the floor in the win over the Falcons, which is the fourth-best shooting percentage for a single game in program history. Malene Pedersen led all scorers with 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting. It was the second consecutive game Pedersen shot 7-of-8 from the field. Allyson Fertig and Emily Mellema also scored in double digits in the victory going for 15 and 13, respectively. Fertig, who shot 7-for-10 on the night, recorded her 15th consecutive game shooting 50-percent or better. That is the second-longest active streak in the country and is a Mountain West record for most consecutive games shooting 50-percent-plus.
Fertig continues to rank highly amongst the league statistically. Fertig is in the top three in the league in 11 different statistical categories, with nine of those she ranks first or second in the Mountain West. Mellema continues to rank in the top five in the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.45), assists per game (3.6) and steals a contest (2.21). In all games this season, Pedersen’s 12.4 points per game ranks 13th-best in the MW while her 14.1 per during conference play, she ranks 11th. Pedersen is 28 points shy now of becoming the 30th member of the 1,000-Point Club in program history.
The Cowgirls lead the league this season in assists per game (15.5), scoring defense (60.4) and team field goal percentage (46-percent). UW also ranks second in fewest fouls committed this season, committing just 13.6 per game. The Cowgirls are third in the conference with a 1.06 assist-to-turnover ratio and blocks a game (3.6).
SCOUTING COLORADO STATE
Colorado State is led by the Co-Preseason Mountain West Player of the Year in Emma Ronsiek, who is third in the league in scoring at 18.1 points per game. Ronsiek, who is a transfer from Creighton, was a two-time All-Big East performer with the Bluejays the previous two seasons. Ronsiek leads the Rams with 61 assists and 47 made 3-pointers. Ronsiek’s sister, Hannah, leads CSU in rebounding with 6.3 per contest and along with Hannah Simental, is second on the team scoring 9.2 a contest. Hannah Ronsiek leads the team with 26 steals and 14 blocks.
Colorado State is averaging 69.8 points per game on offense and is allowing 60.7 a contest. The Rams shoot it at a clip of 42.6-percent overall and nearly 36-percent from 3-point range. CSU opponents are shooting 36.7-percent on the year and just 28.3-percent from beyond-the-arc. The Rams are minus-three in rebounding margin but are tops in the league in assist-to-turnover ratio. Colorado State averages 15.2 assists per game, only trailing the Cowgirls in that category and turns the ball over just 9.6 times per game, the lowest in the league.
SERIES HISTORY AGAINST COLORADO STATE
The all-time series between the two longtime rivals sits at 57 wins for each school. Last season, the two teams split with each winning on its home floor. The Cowgirls have won the last three meetings in Laramie.