The best to hoop on the hill
CSU-Pueblo’s woemns basketball broke records, ranked high in Division II and played in front of too many empty seats.
By Trysten Garcia
Losing the first two games is usually not an ideal start to any season. However, for the CSU-Pueblo womens basketball team, it may have been just right way to gain motivation.
Head Coach Jim Turgeon scheduled two exhibition games to start the 2016–17 season. Both were against Division-1 schools, and both were eventual losses for the Thunderwolves. In fact, they were the only losses the team suffered until February 10th. In the two games, CSU-Pueblo held their own and lost by just a combined 17 points. Facing such tough competition led the team to expect the most from every opponent moving forward.
The regular season started with an 81–58 blowout victory over Texas A&M-Commerce. One week later, the Thunderwolves scored a season-high 91 points against Alaska-Fairbanks in overtime. Over the course of the next three months, CSU-Pueblo outscored opponents by a combines 389 points, or 15.6 points per game. The high-powered attack led to the Thunderwolves hoisting the RMAC Championship at home, after beating Colorado Christian 80–72 on senior night.
The team’s leading scorer, Tuileisu Anderson, averages over 16 points per game, while sophomore center, Molly Roher, averages just over 15 PPG. The duo brings completely different playing styles to the court each night, but the end result is almost always the same. No matter what opposing defenses do, there has been no answer for the potent CSU-Pueblo offense. Both players spent last year learning a new offense entirely, but have flourished in their second season under Turgeon.
Another weapon for the team comes in the form of senior guard Jaszymn Johnson. She has been absolutely lethal from distance this season with an impressive 32 3-pointers. She offers a serious spark off the bench, having started just two games this season, but she embraces the role on a nightly basis.
Junior guard Katie Cunningham is in her first year with the team, but she is very familiar with the style and tempo of Coach Turgeon’s offense. She is averaging 31 minutes a night, and has been named RMAC Player of the Week three times this year. She is also a nightmare on the glass, leading the team with over nine rebounds per game.
She spent the last two seasons at Iowa Western Community College, where Turgeon coached before moving to CSU-Pueblo. She wasn’t alone in following him to Colorado, as senior Maddie Beagley made the same move last year. His player-focused mentality and high energy level make it impossible for players not to enjoy hitting the gym daily.
Maybe the most important key to CSU-Pueblo’s success this year, is part-time assistant coach and former Thunderwolf, Dee Arrieta. Dee led the Thunderwolves in each of the last three years as the team’s starting point guard, and now leads the team on a nightly basis from the sidelines. After graduating last year, she joined Coach Turgeon and his staff as an assistant. Her time under Turgeon was short, but she believed in his style enough to come back and continue to grow with the team.
There are a number of factors which led to the team’s success this season, but the entire team will face a different test after the RMAC Shootout. Being ranked number one in their division heading in to the national tournament will lead to hefty expectations for a team with little postseason experience. It remains to be seen whether or not the regular season success and unstoppable offense will continue through the national tournament, but there doesn’t seem to be any doubt in the locker room.
Perhaps the most disappointing stat of the season is the low number of people in attendance to witness one of the greatest seasons in all of CSU-Pueblo athletics. After posting an incredible 15–0 record at home this season, the team still played in front of crowds of less than 900 people on average nightly.
The 2016 CSU-Pueblo womens basketball team exceeded expectations, set records, and won championships, but flew under the radar the entire time. Any person in the locker room will talk about the feat and chalk it up as another hard day’s work, but it is much more than that. It is a magnificent effort as the result of high intensity and even higher standards. If this team is able to finish the season with another championship, it will go down as the most impressive season in school history.
