LARAMIE — The Wyoming Cowgirls opened the 2026 volleyball season with a pair of home victories, defeating Texas Tech in four sets Friday before sweeping St. Thomas on Sunday to finish the Rumble in the Rockies 2-0.
Wyoming defeated the Red Raiders 25-21, 14-25, 25-11, 25-15 before completing the weekend with a 25-20, 25-21, 25-17 victory over the Tommies at the Arena-Auditorium. The weekend also saw senior Paige Lauterwasser reach 1,000 career points, adding another milestone to an opening weekend in which the two-time All-Mountain West selection helped lead the Cowgirls to a 2-0 start.
Against Texas Tech, the Cowgirls took an early 14-10 lead in the opening set before the Red Raiders rallied to go ahead 16-15. Wyoming responded with a 19-16 advantage and, after Texas Tech pulled within one at 20-19, scored four straight points to take control at 24-19 and close out the set.
Texas Tech responded in the second set, never trailing as it evened the match at one set apiece.
Wyoming then took control in the third set, scoring the first five points and building a 20-6 advantage. The Cowgirls carried that momentum into the fourth set, breaking a 10-10 tie with four consecutive points and holding the lead the rest of the way.
The Cowgirls hit .276 against Texas Tech and held the Red Raiders to a .074 hitting percentage. Wyoming finished with 16 more kills, six more digs and two more blocks than Texas Tech. The Red Raiders held advantages in service aces, 6-5, and serving errors, committing four fewer.
Paige Lauterwasser led Wyoming with 14 kills while hitting .423 and added 13 digs for a double-double. She entered the match seven points shy of 1,000 career points and moved to within that mark after the victory.
Ruby Jensen and Emma Winter each had eight kills, while Addy Thorington added seven. Kristina Bozovic had five kills off the bench while hitting .500. Winter hit .412 and added three block assists. Jensen recorded four blocks, while Rylee Heinz led Wyoming with six total blocks and added six kills while hitting .357. Rya Fingerlin, making her debut as Wyoming’s libero, led all players with 14 digs. Maddy Stucky and Thorington each had two service aces. Stucky also had 17 assists, while Sara Quigley led the Cowgirls with 24 assists.
Wyoming carried that momentum into Sunday’s match against St. Thomas. The Tommies opened the first set with a five-point lead twice, but Wyoming answered with a 7-2 run to tie the set at 14. Another 7-2 run put the Cowgirls ahead 21-17, and Wyoming kept St. Thomas from getting closer than two points the rest of the set.
St. Thomas again took an early lead in the second set, going ahead 9-5. Wyoming responded by taking a 13-11 lead and remained in front. The Tommies tied the set at 21, but the Cowgirls finished with four straight points to take a 2-0 lead.
Wyoming led wire to wire in the third set, building an eight-point advantage before closing the match on a 4-1 run. The Cowgirls hit .437 as a team against St. Thomas, including .542 in the third set. St. Thomas hit .233. Wyoming also held a 6-3 advantage in blocks and had one more service ace while committing one fewer service error.
Lauterwasser and Winter led the attack with 13 and 12 kills, respectively. Lauterwasser hit .660, while Winter hit .706, and the two combined for just one attack error. The victory also saw Lauterwasser reach 1,000 career points.
Reagan Sharp added eight kills while hitting .583 and led Wyoming with four total blocks. Jensen added three blocks. Fingerlin again led the Cowgirls defensively with 15 digs and also recorded a team-high two service aces. Lauterwasser added seven digs. Lauterwasser, Anna Melgren and Quigley each recorded an ace. Quigley finished with a team-high 19 assists, while Stucky had 17.
Wyoming will hit the road for the first time this season when it travels to Utah for the Utah Classic. The Cowgirls will play matches Friday, Saturday and Sunday, opening the tournament against host Utah at 7 p.m. Friday.
