(Autumn McPherson Photo)
Everything hasn’t necessarily been smooth sailing for head coach Heather Ezell and the Wyoming Cowgirl basketball team to start this season off. Having to fill the shoes of six seniors – including the previous Mountain West Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year – was never going to be easy. However, it has proved to be a rather monumental task so far this season, with the Cowgirls opening play with a disappointing 1-3 start.
Ezell, though, isn’t necessarily shocked by the Cowgirls’ early lumps to start the season. She knew that her team – one that includes four freshmen and three sophomores, many of which have little to no experience competing at the D-I level – would have to go through a trial by fire in the early portions of the season.
“It’ll take a little bit,” Ezell said before the start of the season. “We’ll still be trying to get on the same page and there’s a possibility that our starting lineup will be changing a handful of times just to try and get the right matchups and the right groups together to see where we can be the most successful.”
The Cowgirls opened the season at home against Saint Mary’s, a game that slipped through their fingers after holding a double-digit lead in the second quarter. They followed that with a solid win against Long Beach State, but have since lost two straight road games by a combined 51 points.
Final.
— Wyoming Cowgirl Basketball (@wyo_wbb) November 15, 2025
Cowgirls 45 – 76 Broncos pic.twitter.com/5L9fQjMuSW
Scoring depth has been the primary issue plaguing the Cowgirls so far in the early-goings. Only one player currently averages double-figures, that being All-Mountain West returner Malene Pedersen. Only three other Cowgirls average better than six points a night, with no others averaging more than eight. That has led the Cowgirls to begin the season tied 340th of 359 teams in the nation in scoring offense.
The Cowgirls’ defense has shown much more promise, ranking 114th in the nation through their opening four contests. However, it’s clear that they need to pick up the slack on the offensive end if they want to start tallying more wins in the non-conference slate.
Where can the Cowgirls find that offense?
“Some of our returners, like Kati Ollilainen, Madi Symons and Logann Alvar, they touched the floor a good amount last season but they definitely have to take a bigger role this season,” Pedersen mentioned in the preseason.
Ollilainen, who seemed poised to take over the point guard position for the Cowgirls, has been sidelined with an injury and has yet to see the floor. Both Alvarr and Symons have taken up the positions of second and third leading scorers on the team this year and have markedly improved their production from a year ago – but still, the Cowgirls need more.
The Cowgirls desperately need more production from senior transfers Henna Sandvik and Aurore Eyango. Other returners such as Payton Muma, Lana Beslic and Heidur Karlsdottir need to find their footing as well. Even some of the freshmen who have cracked the rotation early this season, such as Jane Rumpf or Peyton Wohlford could be relied upon to bring some added depth.
Muma open from behind the arch 👌 pic.twitter.com/yrjrZKIVKe
— Wyoming Cowgirl Basketball (@wyo_wbb) November 12, 2025
“We’re going to start seeing it in the stat sheets, it’s just going to take that time where they keep getting those minutes,” Ezell said of her younger players.
Some of the biggest challenges of the Cowgirls’ non-conference slate still have yet to come, either. Road contests against Power-Four teams Minnesota and Colorado both loom on the horizon in December, games that will certainly test this young team’s resiliency.
The Cowgirls round out their current three game road swing Friday night at North Dakota, where they will be looking to get their first road win of the season against a winless North Dakota team. Capping a rather tumultuous road trip with a win will certainly give them some confidence for the challenges they have yet to face.
