The Wyoming Cowgirls won one and lost one at the St. Mary’s Hilton Concord Thanksgiving Classic in Moraga, California last weekend.

Wyoming (3-2) lost to Iowa State by a final score of 84-63 last Friday, but bounced back with a 67-53 victory over Howard on Saturday.

In their first action away from home, the Cowgirls struggled early against the Cyclones. They missed their first ten shots and hit on only 26 percent from the field in the first half. Iowa State opened the game with a 14-0 lead. A 17-2 run by the Cyclones extended their advantage to 40-18 midway through the first half.

UW had a 10-0 spurt that pulled them within eight points early in the second half, but that’s as close as the Cowgirls would come. For the game, they shot only 34 percent on field goals.

In a release from the university, Wyoming head coach Joe Legerski said, “We came out and missed a number of shots and opportunities early… We played a very good Iowa State team. They can play the game, have great shooters and put a lot of pressure on you.”

Kayla Woodward led the way with 18 points. Kaitlyn Mileto and Marquelle Dent were also in double figures with 14 and 13 points, respectively.

Wyoming won their third game of the season last Saturday behind a career-high 32 points from Dent in the win over the winless Howard Bison.

Dent knocked down four 3-pointers and was also 10-for-11 at the free throw line.

The Cowgirls used a 17-2 run in the first half to take control. Despite a run by Howard, UW led 31-24 at half. Their defense held the Bison to a point over a four minute span in the second period, as Wyoming increased their edge to 48-30. They were never threatened after that.

Legerski said in a university release, “I was really happy that it was a physical game, and we not only responded as a team, but Marquelle Dent really responded… We knew that we had something working and Marquelle was really focused in.”

Kayla Woodward added ten points and nine rebounds, while Jordan Kelley chipped in career-highs of eight points and nine rebounds.

Wyoming’s next action is Thursday at Montana. The game is set to start at 7 p.m. in Missoula.

More From Y95 Country