Cowgirls Rally Past Fresno State

FRESNO, Calif. – Reed Copeland posted a career-high 13 blocks, while Kayla Slofkiss recorded a team-high 12 kills to lead Wyoming to a four-set victory over Fresno State on Wednesday night.

Despite dropping the first set, UW (22-6, 12-4 MW) rallied to claim the last three and win 3-1 (18-25, 25-22, 29-27, 25-20) against the Bulldogs (14-16, 6-10). Wyoming has won six-consecutive matches and it was the third-straight in the Save Mart Center for the Cowgirls.

Copeland has now led UW in blocks 22 times this year, five of which have been in double figures. It was the team-leading 11th double-double for Slofkiss as she added 13 digs against the Bulldogs. Laura Beach helped power the offense with 11 kills on the evening, while Copeland and Bridget Shanahan each added nine kills for Wyoming.

Courtney Chacon recorded her ninth double-double with a team-high 25 assists in addition to 14 digs. It proved to be the seventh time this year Chacon has had at least 25 assists. Allison Waldvogel led the Cowgirls once again with 19 digs, as Cori Aafedt had 18 assists and seven digs against Fresno State.

Kayla Henderson had a solid night for the Cowgirls with six kills as well as six blocks. Freshman Mattison DeGarmo had eight kills for the Cowgirls, as sophomore Lily Austin scooped up eight digs against the Bulldogs.

The first set went the Bulldogs way behind four service aces. Beach led all players in the first frame with five kills. Aafedt passed out seven assists, while Waldvogel scooped up six digs. Copeland led UW to its winning ways with four blocks and four kills in the second frame. After intermission, Slofkiss recorded four kills in the third, and six digs in the fourth set. Chacon also added seven digs in the final set to seal the victory for Wyoming.

UW returns home for its final two MW matches. The Cowgirls host UNLV on Saturday at 1 p.m. MT before closing out the regular-season with the senior night match at 6:30 p.m., against Border War rival Colorado State on Tuesday in the UniWyo Sports Complex.

 

 

 

 

 

Cowboys Head to No. 7 Nebraska

LARAMIE – The University of Wyoming wrestling team continues its road swing this weekend heading to regional rival No. 7 Nebraska on Saturday evening. It is the second dual in the Pokes’ three-dual road swing.

The dual is set to start at 6 p.m. MT in the Bob Devaney Sports Complex in Lincoln, Neb. Other Cowboy wrestlers will take part in the UNK Open in Kearney, Neb. Fans can watch the dual with the Huskers on Big Ten Network plus.

 

A Look at Wyoming

A trio of Cowboys find themselves in the national rankings. Junior Ben Stroh, who moved to 174 pounds is ranked as high as 11th in the nation by Intermat Wrestling. He is also ranked 14th by FloWrestling and 13th by The Open Mat. Senior 285 pounder Tanner Harms is ranked 17th by Win Magazine and 20th by Intermat Wrestling. Junior Drew Templeman is ranked 19th by The Open Mat at 125 pounds.

Head Coach Mark Branch made history twice on Friday. He led the Pokes to their first win as members of the Big 12 Conference. He also earned his 75th dual win as head coach of the Cowboys.

 

A Look at Nebraska

The Huskers head into the weekend ranked seventh in the latest USA Today/NWCA Top-25 Poll. The Nebraska lineup features all 10 wrestlers in national rankings. The Husker’s top-ranked wrestler in 165-pounder Austin Wilson, as he ranks as high as fourth in the country by various publications. The Huskers are 3-0 this season in duals with wins over Lock Haven, Oregon State and Lehigh.

 

He Said it

“This will be a very tough dual and Nebraska is a tough team,” Branch said. “You look at it two ways that they are a great team, which is true, but we look at this dual as an opportunity to do something special and show that we are here to compete.”

“We want to wrestle the best teams we can and our schedule shows that,” Branch said. “You have to believe you can win and step out on the mat believing in what we are capable of as an individual and team.”

 

Series History

The Huskers defeated the Cowboys 22-13 last season in Laramie. Junior Jake Elliott and Stroh won their matches against the Huskers with UW winning four total matches on the afternoon.

Nebraska leads the series 35-14 over the Cowboys.

 

Probable Matchups

125: #NR/NR/19 Drew Templeman vs. #11/11/11 Tim Lambert (Neb.)

133: Gunnar Woodburn vs. #10/9/9 Eric Montoya (Neb.)

141: Bryce Meredith vs. #9/8/10 Anthony Abidin (Neb.)

149: Jake Elliott vs. #5/5/5 Jake Sueflohn (Neb.)

157: Archie Colgan vs. #12/14/15 Tyler Berger (Neb.)

165: Chaz Polson vs. #4/5/4 Austin Wilson (Neb.)

174: #11/14/13 Benjamin Stroh vs. #20/NR/14 Micah Barnes (Neb.)

184: Jace Jensen vs. #7/6/6 TJ Dudley (Neb.)

197: Brandon Tribble vs. #14/11/15 Aaron Studebaker (Neb.)

285: #20/NR/NR Tanner Harms vs. #13/14/16 Collin Jensen (Neb.)

*Rankings reflect the latest InterMat/FloWrestling/The Open Mat individual polls.

 

 

 

 

 

Cowgirl Basketball Hosts Saint Mary’s on Friday

Game is set for 7 p.m. in the Double A

LARAMIE – The Wyoming women’s basketball team will continue its homestand on Friday by hosting the Saint Mary’s Gaels. The game is set to begin at 7 p.m. MT. Live stats, audio and video can be found on the women’s basketball Gameday Central page located on the GoWyo.com website.

Fans may purchase tickets through the Wyoming Athletics Ticket Office at 877-WYO-FAN1 (877-996-3261) or online at GoWyo.com.

Senior Jordan Kelley finished with a double-double to lead the Wyoming basketball team (1-0 overall) to an 81-53 victory in its home opener over the Chadron State Eagles (0-1 overall) on Sunday.

Kelley recorded a season-high 14 points and 12 rebounds. Freshman Marta Gomez and sophomore Skyler Snodgrass each had career highs with 14 and 12 points respectively, while senior Marquelle Dent added ten points and a game-high seven assists. Wyoming shot 29-of-64 (.453) for the game, 9-of-25 (.360) from beyond the arc and a perfect 14-of-14 (1.00) from the free throw line. The Cowgirls also outrebounded Chadron State 42-27.

The Gaels enter the weekend with a 2-0 mark on the season with victories over Cal State Northridge and San Jose State. Sydney Raggio leads the way averaging 20.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per contest. As a team, SMC is averaging 92 points and 24 rebounds per contest.

This is only the second meeting between the two teams with Wyoming winning the previous meeting. The last time the two teams met was Dec. 29, 1986 with the Cowgirls coming out on top with a 76-47 win. The Gaels are coached by Paul Thomas who is in his tenth season with the program. He has an all-time record of 173-116.