Cowgirls Return Home and Beat New Mexico in Four
Photo courtesy University of Wyoming Athletics
Winter leads the way with 17 kills in the win
LARAMIE, Wyo. (Oct. 26, 2024) – The Wyoming Cowgirls made it a 2-0 week behind the strength of a four-set win Saturday at home against New Mexico. The Cowgirls came out on top in the contest, 25-16, 19-25, 25-16 and 25-18.
The Cowgirls (13-7, 5-5 MW) hit .274 in the contest and held New Mexico (9-11, 2-8) to just a .140 team hitting percentage in the contest. Wyoming dominated the match at the net defensively and at the service line Saturday. The Cowgirls had a 12-3 advantage in service aces, just one off of a season-best for the Brown & Gold. UW out-blocked the Lobos 14-8 in the win and also recorded seven more digs (59-52) than the league’s top-digging team.
Wyoming controlled much of the match as it led for most of the first set and all of the third set in the contest. The fourth was a little more back-and-forth than the first three sets were, as it featured four ties and a pair of lead changes. However, the Cowgirls still felt like they were in control in the fourth.
Emma Winter paced the UW offense in the victory, recording a career-high 17 kills while hitting .382. Winter also tallied eight digs, two aces and tied a career-best with six total blocks against UNM. Sarah Holcomb and Paige Lauterwasser also finished with double-digit kills and a high hitting efficiency. Lauterwasser ended the day with 14 kills and hit .355 while Holcomb ended with 10 on .364 swinging. Holcomb was also tied for the team lead along with Kayla Mazzocca and Winter with six total blocks in the contest.
Kasia Partyka finished the day with 43 assists and a team-best 14 digs as she notched her 11th double-double of the year. Partyka also led the team with a trio of service aces while adding five kills and four blocks. Sierra Grizzle added 13 digs against New Mexico while Skylar Erickson added eight and also had two aces.
Saturday was the first of four consecutive home matches for the Cowgirls. Wyoming returns to action Thursday against San Diego State on Halloween Night. First serve is set for 6:30 p.m.