(Kinsington Dobler Photo)
The Border War between the Wyoming Cowgirl basketball team and the Colorado State Rams hasn’t been a kind matchup for the Cowgirls this season.
The Cowgirls were looking to bounce back after being dismantled in Fort Collins by a final score of 83-54, a game that fell completely out of the Cowgirls’ hands in the second half. The Rams shot over 50% from both the field and deep in that contest. Meanwhile, the Cowgirl offense floundered, shooting just over 30% from the field and deep in the first meeting.
It was much of the same story early on in the Arena-Auditorium for the second meeting between these two teams, as the Rams quickly surged out to a 20-point advantage in the first half.
“I just don’t think we were ready to play. We didn’t have the toughness that we are accustomed to showing up with,” head coach Heather Ezell said.
The Cowgirl offense struggled immensely in the opening 20 minutes of play, as they finished the first half just 8-of-27 (28.6%) from the field and 1-of-9 (11.1%) from deep. A comeback felt like an unlikely feat with how inefficient the Cowgirls were playing offensively and with the roll the Rams were on themselves.
A rather curt halftime speech by Ezell flipped the script, though.
“There were some choice words used at halftime that we’ll just leave in the locker room,” Ezell said. “We had to wake up and definitely bring a different mindset on the court to start the second half.”
That fiery halftime speech by Ezell roused the Cowgirls, who immediately came out with more energy in the third quarter. After making just a single three in the first half, the Cowgirls were able to connect on four triples in just the third quarter alone, outscoring the Rams 20-12 in the third frame to cut the lead down to 10.
The Cowgirls’ impressive comeback effort continued to pour on in the fourth quarter, as a Malene Pedersen three-pointer would force a Rams’ timeout, drawing the Cowgirls within five. Jane Rumpf would eventually trim that margin to just four points at the free throw line. With just around five minutes left in the game, it felt like the Cowgirls had every opportunity to find a way to complete their miraculous rally with a win.
Then, their offense went cold.
The Rams quickly bolstered their slim advantage with a 10-0 lead, as the Cowgirls’ offense went completely absent after trimming the lead four, missing their next seven consecutive shots from the field.
Just like that, the Cowgirls’ valiant comeback effort would all be in vain as the Rams would hold on for a 62-48 win.
“It was good to see that [comeback]. We proved that we’re capable of playing with them, and we should have obviously done it right from the beginning,” senior Henna Sandvik said. “That’s kind of why we’re feeling disappointed, but we showed that we can do it.”
Though the Cowgirls’ offense was much better in the second half, they still finished 18-of-56 (32.1%) from the field and just 6-of-21 (28.6%) from beyond the arc. The Cowgirls bested the Rams on the glass, though, winning the rebound battle 37-31.
Pedersen and Sandvik led the way with 13 and 12 points, respectively. Freshman Jane Rumpf finished with a game-high 12 rebounds.
While today’s result may not have gone the way of the Cowgirls, their effort and results of late have shown drastic improvement from the beginning of the conference slate.
“When we play the way that we are capable of playing, we can play with any team in this league,” Ezell said. “That’s what I keep trying to emphasize to this team, that when we show up and we do the things that we are capable of doing…we can play with anybody here.”
