Sometimes winning tastes a little sweeter.
Colorado State women’s basketball defeated UNLV 77-61 Wednesday. With the win, the Rams snapped their 10-game losing streak against the Rebels, dating back to Feb. 26, 2022.
Seniors Marta Leimane and Hannah Ronsiek have never beaten the Lady Rebels in their CSU careers, and with their final chance, they made sure they did.
“(We wanted to) prove that we are a better team, and that we’re tougher than they think we are,” Leimane said. “And I think that shows that to other teams in the conference as well.”
Leimane came off the bench and performed with 12 of the 22 total CSU bench points. UNLV had 10 altogether.
Ronsiek finished with nine points and went 3-of-3 from beyond the arc, two of which came in the fourth quarter to help secure the victory. Leimane totaled 12 points distributed well across the first half and into the second.
“There aren’t many games left, so you just (have) got to take it with some fun in it, you know?” Leimane said. “And I think that was my mentality that I approached this game, and it paid off, and it was really fun to beat the Rebels.”
UNLV has bullied CSU in previous matchups, but the Rams decided enough is enough. Madelyn Bragg set the tone, signaling a new mentality.
Bragg battled UNLV center Meadow Roland, who ended the night with five blocks, for a great portion of the game. With 3:21 left in the second quarter, officials called a shooting foul on Roland. After a brief exchange between the two, Bragg stepped to the line and hit both free throws. Officials distributed technical fouls to both players before the quarter ended.
“With the toughness plays, we won a lot of those tonight, and that’s where Vegas has kind of had our number,” coach Ryun Williams said. “They’ve kind of just punked us a little bit and gone through us and over us and what have you. So, I thought our kids were ready to fight tonight.”
Williams didn’t dwell on Bragg’s two lone points.
He praised her physical presence and highlighted Lexi Deden, Leimane and Ronsiek for protecting the paint. CSU’s defensive cohesion disrupted UNLV’s rhythm the whole game.
“I was on (Roland) the first game as well, and watching film back, I don’t think I performed very well defensively,” Ronsiek said. “I watched those clips and saw what I could do differently, and I kind of took a little more pride in that. I think it was just a collective effort to contain her.”
The Rams played tough defensively. They worked hard to attack and get into the paint, also demonstrated by Brooke Carlson, who went 11-of-11 from the free-throw line.
On offense, four players made it into double-digit points, and Lexus Bargesser topped the group with 19 and sparked a dominant first quarter that ended 29-12 on a 17-3 run.
Williams noted that the team has had four players in doubles frequently over the last few games (two out of the last four in the team’s winning streak).
“It is somewhat of a relief, but I think it’s okay for these kids to pat themselves on the back a little bit,” Williams said. “They should be proud of themselves and grow just a next-level belief in what they can get done.”
The win marked CSU’s third to last regular-season game before the Mountain West Tournament. Coming up, CSU stays home to take on Air Force Saturday and fight to keep their winning streak.
Reach Jenna Jenkins at sports@collegian.com or on Twitter @JennaCollegian
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