Cowgirls Beat Nevada In MWC Opener

Junior Kayla Woodward recorded a season high 26 points leading the Cowgirl basketball team to a 72-64 win over the Nevada Wolf Pack, on Saturday afternoon, in Laramie. Wyoming now moves to 10-2 overall on the season and 1-0 in conference action, while the Wolf Pack drop to 6-7 overall and 1-1 in MW play. Woodward also reached 1,000 points for her career and currently sits in 19th place with 1,015.

Besides her 26 points, Woodward finished the night with seven rebounds while shooting 10-17 from the field and 4-9 from beyond the arc. She was followed by Marquelle Dent with a career high 19 points plus six assists and three steals. Fallon Lewis recorded a team high nine rebounds while adding six points. Wyoming was 26-64 (.406) from the field and 15-22 (.682) from the free throw line.

Nevada was led by Emily Burns with 16 points and four rebounds, shooting 6-12 from the field. Terilyn Moe finished with 14 points and a team high seven rebounds followed by Mimi Mungedi with 11 points. The Wolf Pack shot 22-58 (.379) from the field while out rebounding the Cowgirls 41-38.

It was high scoring through the first several minutes of the game as the Cowgirls went ahead by three, 7-4. A three-point field goal by Burns tied it up at seven, but Wyoming scored seven of the next 11 points to go up 14-11 through the first media timeout. Out of the break, UW scored four straight to make it a seven point game, 18-11. A basket by Aja Johnson would end a five minute scoring drought for the Wolf Pack, which was answered with another four points to increase the lead to nine, 22-13. Nevada chipped away at deficit and pulled to within four, 22-18. Baskets by Lewis and Woodward made the lead 26-18 with eight minutes to go in the half. The Wolf Pack answered with a 7-2 run to bring the score to within three, 30-27. A field goal by Woodward at the 3:42 mark gave her 11 points for the game and the 1,000 of her career.  Free throws from Danica Sharp made it 30-27, but the Cowgirls closed out the half on a 7-2 run to take a 37-29 lead going into the locker room.

Woodward led all scorers with 13 followed by Dent with 11 and Mileto with seven. Lewis brought down four rebounds. The Cowgirls shot 15-33 (.455) from the field and 5-7 (.714) from the free throw line. Nevada was led by Burns with nine points followed by Moe with seven. The Wolf Pack shot 10-25 (.400) from the field, while out rebounding Wyoming, 21-14.

Nevada gained some momentum to begin the second half as they went on a 6-0 run to make it a two-point game, 37-35. A three-point field goal by Woodward would end a three minute drought for the Cowgirls. The Wolf Pack would inch closer with an 8-5 run to make it 45-44 with 11:53 left in the game. Jordan Sibrel hit one of two free throws giving UW a 46-44 lead but a basket by Moe evened up the score at 46 all with 10:41 on the clock. Two straight field goals by Wyoming would get them back on top by four, 50-46. The Wolf Pack ran off six straight points to give them their first lead of the second half, 52-50. The Cowgirls responded with a 14-0 run to give them a double-digit lead, 64-52. Nevada wouldn’t go away as they scored the next nine of ten to close the gap to four, 65-61. Wyoming kept their composure and hit five of six free throws plus a field goal down the stretch to take the 72-64 victory.

The Cowgirls heads out on the road for the first time in conference play on Wednesday, Jan. 8. They will face the New Mexico Lobos beginning at 7:00 p.m. in Albuquerque.