Late collapse costs Wyoming Cowgirls in 69-61 overtime loss at Air Force

Wyoming’s late-game breakdown at Clune Arena in Colorado Springs cost the Cowgirls a chance to snap a skid, as six fourth-quarter turnovers allowed Air Force to rally and then score the first seven points of overtime in a 69-61 loss on Wednesday. Wyoming led much of regulation but could not get defensive stops down the stretch, and freshman Jane Rumpf’s tying layup with 3.1 seconds left forced the extra period.

ESPN’s box score shows the game by quarter: Wyoming 18-11-15-15 and 2 in overtime for 61, Air Force 14-14-9-22 and 10 in overtime for 69. The Falcons outscored Wyoming 10-2 in the five-minute extra session after taking control early in OT. Referees for the game were listed as Kyle Bacon, Marc Merritt and Rochelle Bennett.

Stat lines underline the paradox of the loss. Wyoming shot 44 percent from the field, 26 of 59, and out-rebounded Air Force 40-35, but committed 17 turnovers to Air Force’s eight. The Cowgirls made only three of 15 three-pointers and hit 6 of 9 free throws, while Air Force made 14 of 18 from the line. Wyoming’s largest lead reached 12 points, but the late mistakes erased that margin.

Senior guard Malene Pedersen led Wyoming with 17 points and opened the fourth quarter with a mid-range jumper. Henna Sandvik scored 14 points on 6-of-14 shooting and provided Wyoming’s lone overtime field goal, a layup. Rumpf finished with eight points and delivered the dramatic layup to tie the game at 59-59. Payton Muma closed the first quarter by scoring the Cowgirls’ final five points in the opening frame.

University of Wyoming coach Heather Ezell assessed the collapse on the Cowgirls Radio Network postgame show, saying, “We just kept giving ourselves a lead and losing it, and that happened too many times. When you do that too many times to a team like Air Force, things aren’t going to go well. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what happened. Credit to them. They made some big plays down the stretch and, unfortunately, we did not.” The Wyoming athletics recap also noted, “Wyoming failed to execute on both ends of the court in the final five minutes of regulation as it committed six fourth quarter turnovers. The Falcons were able to control things in the game's extra frame as UW fell to 0-2 in overtime games this season.”

The loss continued a difficult road stretch for Wyoming; the Tribune Eagle counted it as the program’s 12th road defeat this season and the sixth loss in its past seven games. Postgame records in sources differ: Wyoming athletics and the Tribune Eagle list the Cowgirls at 9-18 overall and 6-12 in Mountain West play, while an ESPN standings snapshot shows 9-19 and 6-13. That discrepancy should be reconciled with the official box score and Mountain West standings, but the on-court indicators are clear: turnovers and late-game defensive lapses are the issues Wyoming must fix as it finishes the regular season.