Colorado State University Athletics
Saturday, February 7
Fort Collins, Colo.
2:00 PM
Colorado State
18-6,9-4Mountain West
83
vs
54
Wyoming
8-15,5-9Mountain West
1
2
3
4
F
Wyoming
19
15
7
13
54
Colorado St.
24
23
17
19
83
Photo by: CSU Athletics Communications
Stellar Shooting Ends in Border War Bliss
2/7/2026 4:47:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Rams find some new energy before demanding February stretch
There's no such thing as a perfect basketball game, but on Saturday afternoon, everything seemed to fall into place.
And like Colorado State has proven time and again, elite defense can patch over almost anything. So when the offense started to heat up, the stars aligned.
Taking on Border War rivals Wyoming for the first time this season and doing it in front of a sold‑out Moby Arena, the Rams rolled to an 83–54 win to open February. The challenging stretch CSU now faces demands consistency and discipline, but it doesn't mean there's no room for joy.
And rivalry games tend to bring out the fun in everyone.
"I thought we had a great mentality to start the game," coach Ryun Williams said. "The mind, I always say, is a powerful thing. And when it became contagious, we got those first couple to go and then (Hannah) Ronsiek got going and then it became quite fun."
CSU started the afternoon with energy, knocking down five of its first seven attempts and shaking off the shooting struggles which had lingered in previous weeks. By the final buzzer, four Rams had reached double figures—Brooke Carlson, Lexus Bargesser, Madelyn Bragg and Kloe Froebe—with Carlson setting a career high of 23.
The box score told the story: 13‑for‑24 from beyond the arc and 50% shooting overall. Even if players avoid checking the numbers mid‑game, the Moby crowd felt every moment as the arena pulsed long after the final buzzer.
"It was just great to have a support system here and brings in such a great crowd," Froebe said. "And I know they were pushing this game a lot, so it was really nice to see the community show up for us and for women's sports. Being able to have them here meant a lot to us for sure."
While CSU's offense looked as crisp as it has in weeks, the Rams' defensive identity held everything together, and it became even more apparent after halftime.
Williams said the team knew exactly what adjustments needed to be made. After allowing Wyoming to hang around in the first half, CSU tightened its conversion defense and cleaned up breakdowns which had led to open shots.
"Although we had a 13‑point lead at half, we felt a lot of their points were off of our mistakes," Williams said. "Our conversion defense was awful and we let (Jane) Rumpf just get two 3s in that first half, and that was more us. And so we cleaned that up, made a few adjustments on their screen game in the second half.
"But to hold them to seven, I liked that a lot. And the mentality never changed through four quarters. That's kind of been our thing here lately. We've been a little inconsistent with performance in a quarter or two so I thought we were locked in all night long on both ends of the floor."
One of CSU's top goals was shutting down Wyoming's leading scorer, Malene Pedersen—and they did exactly that. She didn't record a field‑goal point until the 1:27 mark in the second quarter. Wyoming found some rhythm through freshman Rumpf, who kept firing and finished with 16, but the Rams' defensive connectedness held strong.
"I do think we did," Carlson said. "I think Lex did a really good job on her today. And as a team, we kind of all worked together. We were in gaps. We switched when we needed to. So I feel like we were pretty connected and that's good for us."
The path ahead won't get any easier. CSU is about to face a gauntlet of some of the Mountain West's highest‑ranked teams, all leading into the conference championships.
This win wasn't just helpful—it was necessary.
"We're learning that you've got to stay urgent," Williams said. "You've got to execute and do your job for four quarters. Whenever you play the games, they're just lined up the way they're lined up. And so our kids have been up for every challenge this year. They've competed in every game this year. So the fact that you've got really difficult ones back‑to‑back, it just sharpened the sword here a little bit."
CSU's 18 assists underscored a team playing unselfishly and in sync. And with two minutes left, up by 29, Moby Arena erupted when Gianna Smith, Caitlin Kramer, Olivia Pawlicki and Jadyn Fife checked in.
Pawlicki wasted no time, launching—and draining—a 3 on her first shot ticking the scoreboard to where it would end at 83.
"We're coming off two losses and so to be able to go out there and play like we know we can play was great," Froebe said. "It was how we see each other in practice and everything, so it was just really great for us to have that moving forward as we get closer to the tournament."
So maybe there's no such thing as a flawless game. But in a rivalry matchup, in a packed arena, in a season which is about to test them more than ever, the Rams delivered something close. And if this is the standard they can return to, then CSU's toughest challenges ahead won't just sharpen the sword, they might reveal just how powerful it can be.
And like Colorado State has proven time and again, elite defense can patch over almost anything. So when the offense started to heat up, the stars aligned.
Taking on Border War rivals Wyoming for the first time this season and doing it in front of a sold‑out Moby Arena, the Rams rolled to an 83–54 win to open February. The challenging stretch CSU now faces demands consistency and discipline, but it doesn't mean there's no room for joy.
And rivalry games tend to bring out the fun in everyone.
"I thought we had a great mentality to start the game," coach Ryun Williams said. "The mind, I always say, is a powerful thing. And when it became contagious, we got those first couple to go and then (Hannah) Ronsiek got going and then it became quite fun."
CSU started the afternoon with energy, knocking down five of its first seven attempts and shaking off the shooting struggles which had lingered in previous weeks. By the final buzzer, four Rams had reached double figures—Brooke Carlson, Lexus Bargesser, Madelyn Bragg and Kloe Froebe—with Carlson setting a career high of 23.
The box score told the story: 13‑for‑24 from beyond the arc and 50% shooting overall. Even if players avoid checking the numbers mid‑game, the Moby crowd felt every moment as the arena pulsed long after the final buzzer.
"It was just great to have a support system here and brings in such a great crowd," Froebe said. "And I know they were pushing this game a lot, so it was really nice to see the community show up for us and for women's sports. Being able to have them here meant a lot to us for sure."
While CSU's offense looked as crisp as it has in weeks, the Rams' defensive identity held everything together, and it became even more apparent after halftime.
Williams said the team knew exactly what adjustments needed to be made. After allowing Wyoming to hang around in the first half, CSU tightened its conversion defense and cleaned up breakdowns which had led to open shots.
"Although we had a 13‑point lead at half, we felt a lot of their points were off of our mistakes," Williams said. "Our conversion defense was awful and we let (Jane) Rumpf just get two 3s in that first half, and that was more us. And so we cleaned that up, made a few adjustments on their screen game in the second half.
"But to hold them to seven, I liked that a lot. And the mentality never changed through four quarters. That's kind of been our thing here lately. We've been a little inconsistent with performance in a quarter or two so I thought we were locked in all night long on both ends of the floor."
One of CSU's top goals was shutting down Wyoming's leading scorer, Malene Pedersen—and they did exactly that. She didn't record a field‑goal point until the 1:27 mark in the second quarter. Wyoming found some rhythm through freshman Rumpf, who kept firing and finished with 16, but the Rams' defensive connectedness held strong.
"I do think we did," Carlson said. "I think Lex did a really good job on her today. And as a team, we kind of all worked together. We were in gaps. We switched when we needed to. So I feel like we were pretty connected and that's good for us."
The path ahead won't get any easier. CSU is about to face a gauntlet of some of the Mountain West's highest‑ranked teams, all leading into the conference championships.
This win wasn't just helpful—it was necessary.
"We're learning that you've got to stay urgent," Williams said. "You've got to execute and do your job for four quarters. Whenever you play the games, they're just lined up the way they're lined up. And so our kids have been up for every challenge this year. They've competed in every game this year. So the fact that you've got really difficult ones back‑to‑back, it just sharpened the sword here a little bit."
CSU's 18 assists underscored a team playing unselfishly and in sync. And with two minutes left, up by 29, Moby Arena erupted when Gianna Smith, Caitlin Kramer, Olivia Pawlicki and Jadyn Fife checked in.
Pawlicki wasted no time, launching—and draining—a 3 on her first shot ticking the scoreboard to where it would end at 83.
"We're coming off two losses and so to be able to go out there and play like we know we can play was great," Froebe said. "It was how we see each other in practice and everything, so it was just really great for us to have that moving forward as we get closer to the tournament."
So maybe there's no such thing as a flawless game. But in a rivalry matchup, in a packed arena, in a season which is about to test them more than ever, the Rams delivered something close. And if this is the standard they can return to, then CSU's toughest challenges ahead won't just sharpen the sword, they might reveal just how powerful it can be.
Team Stats
UW
CSU
FG%
.339
.509
3FG%
.310
.542
FT%
.875
.933
RB
25
39
TO
6
6
STL
3
4
Game Leaders
Pts
23
FGM
9
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
17
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
4
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballColorado State Basketball (W): Froebe (L) and Carlson (R) Post-Game (Wyoming, 25-26)
Saturday, February 07
Colorado State Basketball (W): Ryun Williams Post-Game (Wyoming 25-26)
Saturday, February 07
Colorado State Basketball (W): Froebe (L) and Carlson (R) Post-Game (Grand Canyon, 25-26)
Wednesday, January 28
Colorado State Basketball (W): Rico Burkett Post-Game (SDSU, 25-26)
Wednesday, January 28