SALT LAKE CITY — The Wyoming Cowgirls went 1-2 at the Utah Classic, rebounding from a three-set loss to host Utah with a four-set victory over Eastern Illinois before falling to Long Beach State in five sets Sunday after taking the first two sets.
Wyoming fell to Utah 25-15, 25-14, 25-23 on Friday before bouncing back Saturday with a 25-15, 15-25, 25-20, 25-19 victory over Eastern Illinois. The Cowgirls then jumped ahead of Long Beach State 27-25, 25-12 Sunday before the Beach won the final three sets 25-19, 25-13, 15-10.
Utah controlled most of Friday’s opener, using a 13-0 run in the second set to take a 2-0 lead. Wyoming battled in the third, taking leads of 21-20 and 22-21, but the Utes closed the match with a 4-1 run. Paige Lauterwasser and Reagan Sharp each had seven kills, while Lauterwasser hit .312 and tied Rya Fingerlin for the team lead with six digs. Maddy Stucky led Wyoming with 14 assists, Sara Quigley added nine and Rylee Heinz recorded a team-high three blocks. Utah hit .309 compared with Wyoming’s .110 and held advantages of 10-4 in blocks and 8-3 in service aces.
The Cowgirls responded Saturday against Eastern Illinois, taking control early in the first set and leading by as many as 11 points. After the Panthers evened the match in the second set, Wyoming broke a 6-6 tie with a 5-1 run in the third and later built a 22-16 advantage before closing the set with three straight points. The Cowgirls never trailed in the fourth set, leading by as many as six points on multiple occasions to secure the four-set victory.
Ruby Jensen and Lauterwasser led Wyoming with 10 kills apiece, while Jensen recorded the first double-double of her career with 10 blocks. Sharp added nine kills while hitting .318 and finished with six blocks. Fingerlin led the Cowgirls with 16 digs, while she and Lauterwasser each recorded two service aces as Wyoming finished with seven as a team. Stucky had 23 assists and Quigley added 16 as the Cowgirls hit .261 and held Eastern Illinois to .133. Wyoming also dominated at the net with a 12-1 blocking advantage.
Wyoming carried that momentum into Sunday’s finale against Long Beach State, taking a thrilling opening set after facing set point at 25-24 before scoring three consecutive points. The Cowgirls then used a 6-0 run in the second set to turn a 14-7 lead into control of the match and closed the frame with five straight points to take a 2-0 advantage. Long Beach State, however, controlled much of the final three sets to rally for the five-set victory.
The Cowgirls hit .106 in the loss, while Long Beach State hit .139 and held a 17-8 advantage in blocks. Both teams finished with six service aces, but Wyoming committed 14 serving errors compared with eight for the Beach.
Rylee Heinz had a career performance in the finale, recording a career-best 14 kills while hitting .360 and tying her career high with six total blocks. Jensen, Sharp and Addy Thorington each added seven kills, while Kristina Bozovic and Thorington recorded three blocks apiece. Quigley and Stucky each finished with more than 20 assists, with Quigley recording 22 and Stucky adding 20 assists, eight digs and two aces.
Lauterwasser led Wyoming with a season-high 16 digs, while Fingerlin added 11 from her libero position.
The Cowgirls return home next week for the UniWyo Invite, which includes three matches inside the UniWyo Sports Complex. Wyoming opens the tournament at 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 10, faces South Dakota at 6 p.m. Friday and hosts Colorado State at 7 p.m. Saturday for the 2026 edition of the Border War.
