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As the Colorado State women’s basketball season ended in the first round of the Mountain West Tournament, it’s time to evaluate the season and highlight some of the players. Sophie Webb and Devin Imsirpasic of The Collegian’s sports desk discussed the Rams’ biggest difference-makers throughout this season and how the team performed.

Postseason analysis

Imsirpasic: C+

The team had some big nonconference wins in the earlier part of the year that gave fans some high hopes, but some of those wins didn’t necessarily turn out to be the season-changer people had hoped. CSU had a quality conference record of 13-5 this year, but those five losses came against the best of the best in the Mountain West, and that proved to be telling with an eventual quarterfinal exit in the conference tournament.

A lower C+ grade indicates that the season was definitely disappointing, having championship aspirations after the huge acquisition of Emma Ronsiek over the summer to team up with her sister, Hannah Ronsiek. However, the grade would be lower had the Rams not shown major flashes of what’s to come from first-years Kloe Froebe and Brooke Carlson, as well as their ability to pick up necessary wins all season and rope in another 20-plus win season under coach Ryun Williams — their ninth time reaching that feat during his tenure.

Webb: B-

Although the season ended in just the first round of the MW Tournament, it says something about the team. At the start of the season, it seemed the team was set for success, winning the majority of the games, and Emma Ronsiek’s stats began racking up. It seemed the team was going to go far within the MW Tournament.

Then we saw stunts in the middle of the season, whether it was losing to teams the Rams weren’t supposed to or key players going on three-gamelong scoring droughts. Things like that should have been ironed out at the beginning of the season, but this is not to say the team performed poorly. It seemed something was missing by the end of the year. I think we got to see stars shine, whether it was Emma Ronsiek, Hannah Simental, Carlson or Froebe; but overall, it felt disappointing, which is why they received a B-.

Most valuable player

Imsirpasic: Emma Ronsiek.

Emma Ronsiek transferred in for her final collegiate season, knowing the offense was going to be run strictly through her in the post. Facing nightly double teams and heavy pressure, she never shied away from it, as she came out determined every night to be the main reason for a Rams win. Ronsiek averaged career highs in both points per game, with 17.7, and rebounds per game, with 6.0, and ended her college career on a high note with stellar play to lead her new team to a 22-10 season while earning All-Mountain West honors by doing so.

Webb: Emma Ronsiek.  

Without Emma Ronsiek, I don’t think the team had much of a chance at winning as many games as they did. She scored almost 20 points per game — at least a third of her team’s points each game. She brought out a fire within the team and bridged the gap when McKenna Hofschild left, and I hope we will see her sister, Hannah Ronsiek, take over that role.

Offensive player of the year

Imsirpasic: Simental.

Simental, another player transferring to CSU for her final season, was a flamethrower every game who never backed down from the big moment. Averaging 10.0 points per game on 39.5% shooting from the 3-point line, Simental was always second in line to go get a bucket if Emma Ronsiek was unable to. She excelled in playing that second-option role and was able to play both point guard and shooting guard, giving Williams the luxury of having a reliable player to help the team’s scoring at all the biggest times.

Webb: Simental.

Throughout the season, it was amazing to see Simental grow. In the beginning, she was a nonstarter and decently reliable in her position, and then went from one of the top five shooters on the team to the top two. She was the consistency the Rams needed in the deep area and, similar to Emma Ronsiek, was a key piece of the team. The one thing I wished differently from her would be if she joined the Ramily sooner; with an abrupt ending to the season, it would be hard to see such a strong player not get to explore an international career like she wanted because of a shorter season.

Defensive player of the year

Imsirpasic: Hannah Ronsiek.

Hannah Ronsiek is always playing her hardest, and she shows a lot of that on the defensive side of the ball. Ronsiek is never afraid to guard the opponent’s biggest player and is always keeping her hands active in passing and driving lanes to rack up easy steals. She averaged 1.4 steals and 0.8 blocks per game — leading the team in both categories — and was the key piece to the Rams’ seasonlong success in forcing turnovers. She also earned a spot on the Mountain West All-Defensive team with her outstanding play on the defensive end.

Webb: Hannah Ronsiek.

When talking about the Rams’ women’s basketball team, it comes naturally to mention Hannah Ronsiek. She’s not only been with the team for multiple years but has also led the team in those years. She consistently led in points, steals and blocks, having racked up a total of 44 steals and 27 blocks throughout the season. As her sister is graduating this year, I hope to see Hannah Ronsiek’s name more, and I expect her to be the new top dog.

Newcomer of the year

Imsirpasic: Emma Ronsiek.

Without Emma Ronsiek making the decision to transfer from Creighton and team up with her sister in Fort Collins, this team would have had a much harder time finding an identity. While other newcomers such as Simental, Froebe or Carlson all made their contributions well-known and played their roles well all season, Emma Ronsiek was the main source of offense this year, and every play ran through her. She was the biggest reason this team had a great regular season record, and she played exceptionally in plenty of big games where she was needed with 25-plus point performances, which earns her my vote as the best newcomer on a team full of them.

Webb: Emma Ronsiek.

It was a touching story to see how the Ronsiek sisters played together one last season, and lucky for CSU, Emma Ronsiek is a very skilled player. Her time at Creighton and playing against tough teams and players sharpened her, and I think it would be a mistake for either a WNBA team or an international team not to continue exploring her talent.

But I don’t want to say she was the only newcomer who made an impact on the team; it was a tough decision because first-years Carlson and Froebe also did extremely well in their first year, and Simental was a key player. Overall, the Rams are a team made up of several strong players, but Emma Ronsiek is, without a shadow of a doubt, the newcomer of the year.

Reach Sophie Webb and Devin Imsirpasic at sports@collegian.com or on Twitter @RMCollegianSpts.