Behind fresh faces, Colorado State women could be trouble in Mountain West

FORT COLLINS, Colo. — The pressure was already on when Emma Ronsiek transferred from Creighton to Colorado State as a graduate student. Once she arrived with the Rams, pundits tagged her as the Mountain West Co-Preseason Player of the Year and Preseason Newcomer of the Year. Also, she was named as a member of the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Watch List, among other honors.

However, despite the high expectations, Ronsiek has blended in with a Rams roster filled with fresh faces and high hopes for the upcoming Mountain West schedule.

Judging by Monday night’s 70-52 domination of UTEP, it’s easy to see why there is excitement in Fort Collins as the holidays approach.

“This is a good win,” CSU head coach Ryun Williams said. “Coming off finals week, sometimes it’s a tough week for these ladies. Their focus is in the classroom and practice time is shorter, so I was pleased with how they came out of the gates and got this thing started.”

Among those newcomers making a difference for the Rams is freshman Kloe Froebe, who had 11 of CSU’s 23 first-quarter points as the hosts raced to a 23-5 edge, holding UTEP to just one field goal in the opening stanza as the Miners shot just 1-for-13, including 0-for-7 from three-point range.

“I think it was just our preparation for this game,” said Froebe, who tied a season-high with 15 points. “We spark off of each other, and that’s what led us in that first quarter. When one person starts knocking down shots, I think it is kind of a domino effect.”

Coming off a home win over Gonzaga where the Rams trailed by 20 points at intermission, CSU is now 8-3 on the season against a high level of competition. 

“Our schedule has been really difficult,” Williams said ahead of the Rams playing in a holiday tournament in San Diego and facing SEC member Georgia in the opening game. “This has been as difficult of a schedule as we have had here in a while. To close it out with challenges will help get us into conference play.”

CSU and UTEP played each other evenly the rest of the way, with the Rams shooting 5-for-22 in the second half as the offense often struggled. However, Ronsiek believes the Rams are showing promise even when the result in the moment isn’t beautiful.

“I feel like we have a level of seniority through all grades,” said Ronsiek, who finished with 13 points. “I wouldn’t say that our freshman and sophomores are looking up to the seniors and graduate transfers.

“I think our talent and leadership skills are even throughout the board … I think we all have really good leadership attributes that can help each class or help each teammate who’s going to be in the game.”

For a Rams team hoping to carry the momentum into league play with one of the Mountain West’s stars on its roster, that’s good news for a team looking to get back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 2015-16 campaign.