LARAMIE, Wyo. — The Wyoming Cowgirls had little problem dispatching Texas A&M – Corpus Christi in the opening round of the Women’s NIT, but they’ll have a much taller task on Tuesday when they face off against Kansas State. The game will mark just the third time in program history that the Cowgirls will play a road NIT game.
Wyoming’s 34-point margin of victory over the Corpus Christi Islanders is the second-highest for the Cowgirls in their WNIT history. With the win, the team improved to 20–9 all-time in the tournament.
Allyson Fertig led the Cowgirls with 17 points, nine rebounds and four blocks in the win over the Islanders. Two other Cowgirls finished in double figures as Tess Barnes and Malene Pedersen added 11 points each. Emily Mellema and Quinn Weidemann added eight points each on the night, while Ola Ustowska had a versatile showing as well, scoring five points, grabbing a career-high six rebounds and dishing four assists.
For the season, Fertig leads the Cowgirls in multiple categories, as the Wyoming native is averaging 13.4 points, 8.8 rebounds and two blocks per game, with each being tops on the team. Two other Cowgirls — Weidemann and Pedersen — are averaging in double-digit scoring this season at 11.2 and 10.9 points per game, respectively. Weidemann leads Wyoming with 30 steals and 53 made 3-pointers this season, while Pedersen boasts a team-best 87.6% mark at the free throw line.
Kansas State is led by First Team All-Big 12 guard Gabby Gregory, who is averaging 18.4 points and 5.4 rebounds per game this season. Gregory is a lethal shooter from long range, and she also possesses the ability to slash her way to the basket. Honorable Mention All-Big 12 honoree Serena Sundell is averaging nearly 14 points per game, and a team-high 5.1 assists and 1.9 steals per contest. Sundell also leads the team with 26 blocks this season. Jaelyn Glenn is the third Wildcat that averages double-figure scoring, at 11.7 a contest, and leads KSU with 5.6 boards per contest.
As a team, the Wildcats score nearly 71 points per game while allowing 68 points per game. One of the team’s weaknesses is rebounding, however, as they have a negative rebound differential on the season.
Wyoming is 3–4 all-time against the Wildcats, winning the last two meetings. The Cowgirls and Kansas State met one previous time in the WNIT, a triple-overtime victory for the Cowgirls in the semifinals of the 2007 tournament.
