Breann Lujan-Halcon
blujanha@uwyo.edu
The University of Wyoming Cowgirls’ basketball team put in overtime on the road last Tuesday night in Fullerton, California to pull out a win against Cal State 61-56. The road victory lifted the Cowgirls to 2-1 overall and dropped the Titans to 2-3.
“This is going to be a rollercoaster of a ride. It may be from game to game or within games,” Cowgirls head coach Joe Legerski said in a press release. “In the first quarter, Fullerton tried to pick us up full court, we broke the pressure and were able to get easy shots. They went to a half court zone in the second quarter, we had some looks and for this young group they got tight.”
The Cowgirls were driven by a career-high night from freshman forward Marta Gomez with 24 points. Gomez went 8-for-13 from beyond the arc and 8-for-17 from the field. Gomez also had three offensive rebounds and one steal.
“Marta stepped up and hit big threes in the overtime to give us enough breathing room. Then we hit just enough free throws to be able to seal the victory,” Legerski said. “We needed every one of those shots that Marta hit tonight, because we did struggle from beyond the arc. At times, we may need to rely on her and tonight she kept her composure.”
Senior guard Marquelle Dent recorded 15 points during her 45 minutes on the court. Dent was 5-for-15 from the field and 5-for-12 from the charity stripe. She had four assists and three defensive rebounds but went 0-for-4 from the three-point line.
“There is no doubt we struggled from the free throw line,” said Legerski. “And sometimes you have to figure out how to fight to get a win.”
As a team, the Cowgirls made 50 percent of their free throws over the entire game. Their best shooting of the game came in overtime, shooting 2-for-3 (.667) in three pointers, 3-for-6 (.625) in field goals and 5-for-8 (.50) in free throws, making the best percentages of the game.
The Cowgirls led the Titans in the first half by as much as 12 points. The Titans fought back and took their largest lead in the third quarter by six points. There were 10 lead changes and Wyoming and Cal State were tied up seven times over the matchup.
Wyoming saw 22 of their 61 points come from out of the paint, 24 from turnovers and two from off of the bench.
The Cowgirls returned to the Arena Auditorium three days later to take on the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos. The Branding Iron will have coverage of the 76-67 victory tomorrow. The Cowgirls will return to action on Friday at the AA against the Gonzaga Bulldogs.
