It was quite the short turnaround for the Wyoming Cowgirl volleyball team after they narrowly escaped with a thrilling 3-2 win over Border War rival Colorado State on Thursday night.
The Cowgirls controlled much of the early portions of that contest against Colorado State, cruising to a 2-0 set lead before the Rams were able to claw back a pair of their own sets to even things out at two a piece. Then, in dramatic fashion, the Cowgirls were able to finally put the nail in the coffin with an emphatic 15-13 victory in the final set.
The raw emotion of the rivalry win was on full display after junior outside hitter Paige Lauterwasser’s kill put the Rams away for good. This win meant more than just the connotation of opening Mountain West play with a victory–this one was vengeance for last year’s squad, who was swept in the season series against the Rams a year ago.
Nothing like a Border War dub at home 🤠🏔️ pic.twitter.com/42jH7OCQQz
— Wyoming Cowgirl Volleyball (@WYO_Volleyball) September 26, 2025
How does the team rebound and prepare for another important conference match-up in just a single day after a win like that?
With an absolutely dominant 3-0 win over Air Force at home, of course.
“I think we did good at acknowledging that win, but then putting it to bed right away,” senior middle blocker Sarah Holcomb said. “The most important opponent is our next opponent, so I think we did really good at shifting our mindset.”
The Cowgirls were always a step ahead of the Falcons at every level in the sweeping win, as the Falcons were never able to eclipse more than 20 points in any of the sets. The Falcons were limited to an astounding .088 hitting percentage, as the Cowgirls were in complete control of the net, finishing with a total of 19 blocks while forcing 27 attack errors.
“I think in the first set, it took us a long time from a blocking standpoint to get our timing right,” head coach Kaylee Prigge said,” but I thought we settled in really nicely.”
Holcomb was the biggest menace at the point of attack, as the senior finished with nine kills and 10 total blocks, handily leading the Cowgirls in both categories. The rest of the statistical load was shared mostly equally amongst the rest of the team, including both freshmen setters Maddy Stucky and Sara Quigley finishing with 16 assists a piece.
While depth hasn’t been much of an issue for the Cowgirls, they will now especially need more contributions from their supporting cast as sophomore Evelyn Uduzue will miss the remainder of the season with an ACL tear.
Against Colorado State, it was freshman Jillian Gregory who steped up, as she finished with a career high 16 kills to carve a path towards that incredible win. Today, it felt like much more of a team effort in carrying the load as no other Cowgirl besides Holcomb finished with more than six kills or five blocks.
With the trajectory of the season so far, there’s no telling who will be called upon in a dire moment.
“I think it’s kept everyone on the team very, very engaged because they see the opportunities happening in front of them,” Prigge said of her team’s depth.
The Cowgirls will continue conference play with a pair of road tilts against Grand Canyon and New Mexico next week, where the Cowgirls will look to achieve a 4-0 start to Mountain West play.
