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Key takeaways from CSU women’s basketball’s MW quarterfinals loss against Fresno State

Michael Hovey, Sports Editor

March 10, 2025

Collegian | Paige Molenkamp

Colorado State women’s basketball stands together in preparation for what would be its final game of the season against Fresno State March 10. CSU lost 54-52.

LAS VEGAS — Colorado State women’s basketball lost 54-52 in the quarterfinal match of the Mountain West tournament against Fresno State Monday. Following a strong finish to the regular season, CSU fell flat on offense and failed to fight their way back. A lack of scoring diversity and early defensive struggles proved too much to overcome.

FSU clearly took their one-sided loss from the Rams earlier in the season and learned from it.

Key Takeaways:

Offensive regression: After the Rams seemingly discovered a groove in which multiple players thrived on offense, CSU reverted back to forcing shots with Emma Ronsiek.

Emma Ronsiek inefficieny: Despite leading CSU in points, the misses outweighed the makes. The graduate found some consistently open looks but couldn’t capitalize. A poor 3-point shooting performance — shooting 3-of-10 — from the normally sound forward indebted the Rams, and they couldn’t recover.

Exploited defense: CSU’s strategy of clogging the paint worked against them against a nimble FSU attack. The Bulldogs capitalized by raining down threes early and gaining a substantial lead by halftime.

Lack of bench depth: With No. 2 scorer Hannah Simental and No. 3 scorer Hannah Ronsiek failing to find an offensive rhythm, CSU’s bench largely remained quiet in the biggest game of the Rams’ season. Kloe Froebe made noticeable positive impacts crashing boards and providing the physicality that was lacking, but she simply wasn’t afforded many opportunities.

Struggling shooters: Several key players were unable to find their rhythm, the Rams shooting 6-28 from 3, and FSU’s defense held strong. While FSU started the game hot from beyond the arc, CSU couldn’t match the fire. The Rams found themselves on the losing end of a 3-point shootout a few times throughout the match, and dug a hole they couldn’t quite escape.

Bad shot selection down the stretch: With the game on the line, CSU settled for contested shots in the final minutes, unable to get the high-percentage looks they needed.

Worn out: CSU played with a six-player rotation up until halfway through the third quarter. With FSU’s constant use of off-ball screens, the Rams unsuccessfully fought through the weariness. Late substitutions proved futile as players substituted in after halftime combined for zero significant stats.

CSU’s 2025 MW journey ended as quickly as it started. The Rams finished a strong regular season in the quarterfinals trailing from start to finish. With coach Ryun Williams as the new winningest coach in CSU women’s basketball history and the emergence of young talent, the future still looks promising.

Read the full article here.

Reach Michael Hovey at sports@collegian.com or on Twitter @michaelfhovey.

About the Contributor

Michael Hovey, Sports Editor

Michael Hovey is one of the sports editors for The Rocky Mountain Collegian, facilitating the sports desk, collaborating with reporters and writing pieces of his own. He joined the newspaper in February and has greatly appreciated all the opportunities that have come with the organization. After settling on a business administration major with a concentration in marketing, Hovey stumbled upon The Collegian at the recommendation of a friend. Writing news stories gave him a deeper connection to Colorado State University and its community, making his studies that much more meaningful. Having played numerous sports at a fairly mediocre level, Hovey jumped at the opportunity to cover Division I sporting events. He now gets the chance to surround himself with talented writers, artists and athletes while exercising his preferred form of the English language. Hovey’s favorite part of the job is meeting new people and learning about the things they’ve dedicated their lives to. The most surprising part has been the extraneous passions he’s discovered in nearly each one of these people. Hovey’s main goal this year is to foster discovery and allow people in athletics to show a separate side of themselves that may not generally be known. His secondary goal: Try not to stutter on a national broadcast. If not working at The Collegian, Hovey can be found engaging in outdoor activities, finding something tasty or listening to hip-hop.

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