Cowgirl NCAA notebook

Michael Smith/Wyoming Tribune-Eagle photo

Wyoming senior Justyna Podziemska looks to get past a Pittsburgh opponent in the NCAA Tournament in Albuquerque, N.M.

Cowgirl faithful led the way

By Richard Anderson
Wyoming Sports.org

ALBUQUERQUE -- When is it a home court advantage when you don’t play on your home court?

When the Wyoming Cowgirls are playing in the NCAA Tournament at The Pit.

The Cowgirls couldn’t quite take advantage of the situation, as Pittsburgh pulled away in the final minutes for a tough 63-58 win in the first round of the Spokane Regional.

It wasn’t from the lack of Cowgirl fan support -- from Wyoming faithful and New Mexico fans.
The announced crowd of 6,097 was about 95 percent pro Wyoming, as the Lobo fans cheered for their Mountain West Conference mates.

It didn’t go unnoticed from the Cowgirls or the Panthers.

“It was really big for us,” Wyoming senior forward Justyna Podziemska said. “It was nice into go on the court before the game and see all of the New Mexico fans cheer for us and seeing all of the Wyoming fans who came down. It boosted our confidence and made the game more fun. We want to thank all of the fans for coming and supporting us to the end.”

New Mexico coach Agnus Berenato was told that her team would be the underdog -- in fan support. Pitt‘s band easily outnumbered their fans in the stands.

“Wyoming did bring their fans,” Berenato said. “We said yesterday that we wanted a lot of fans today. I thought they were all cheering for their conference, with is awesome. We would do that in the Big East. Now that we have a game on Monday night, I hope the Wyoming fans stay and maybe they will cheer for us.”

Pittsburgh plays Baylor Monday night for the right to move into the Sweet 16 in Spokane, Wash.

Stepping up: The unsung hero for the Panthers on Saturday was guard Sophriano Sallard.
With second-leading scorer Marcedes Walker in the bench in foul trouble, and reliable scorers Mallorie Winn and Xenia Stewart struggling offensively, Sallard picked things up by hitting all six of her field goal attempts in the first half, scoring 13 of her season-high 15 points.

“When you get to this point in the NCAA Tournament, it is never about one player,” Wyoming coach Joe Legerski said. “You have special players who can make plays, but I thought Sallard was very big in this game. She really came through, 7-of-8 from the field. She really stepped up when Walker went to the bench.”

Sallard went into the game as a defensive specialist and was averaging just 2.3 points a game. Her season high was 10 points early in the season.

Winn, however, had the last laugh, as he 3-pointer -- her only field goal of the game -- gave the Panthers the lead for good at 56-54 with 2:26 left.

“Mallorie really has confidence, and the team has a lot of confidence in her,” Berenato said. “She could miss 10 in a row and I guarantee you that if she’s open, she’s still going to shoot the next one.”

No backing down: Wyoming, a known finesse team that relies on its motion, knew it would have to play physical with the likes of the husky 6-foot-3 Walker.

At times, the smaller and thinner Cowgirls held their own. Walker did finish with 13 points and six rebounds. She scored 11 in the second half.

Wyoming senior wing Hanna Zavecz said it wasn’t easy, but they did a fair job of playing with power.

“We’re not used to playing like this in the Mountain West,” Zavecz said. “The bigs did such a great job on the block-out, they constantly battled with them in the paint. I think our team did great in that aspect.”

Fun facts: There were 12 lead changes and 10 ties. …Wyoming’s largest lead was five points and Pittsburgh’s was seven (in the final seconds)…. Pittsburgh is the only Big East school Wyoming has ever played in school history. …All nine Pittsburgh players had at least two rebounds; eight of the 10 Cowgirls who played scored. The only two who didn’t score were freshman Hillary Carlson and sophomore Megan Mordecai, who played in the final seconds after Zavecz and Dominique Sisk fouled out. …Wyoming senior Jodi Bolerjack’s two 3-pointers gave her 200 for her career.