CWC's women's basketball team was on the road this past week, making stops in Salt Lake and Ephraim, Utah. Thursday and Friday, they participated in a classic hosted by Salt Lake Community College, and then bussed down to Snow College to take on the Badgers for a third time this season. 

Salt Lake CC, another team that Central Wyoming has played multiple times already in their short non-conference play slate, was the first opponent the Rustlers were set to take on. The Rustlers started out red hot, shooting 57.1% and 42.9% from behind the three point line in the first and second quarter (respectively). But the Bruins had an answer for every CWC and more. SLCC shot 50% from behind the arc themselves, and sprinted out to a 56-30 halftime lead. Central Wyoming cooled off in the second half, but so did Salt Lake. Turnovers stunted any potential second half comeback for the Rustlers, as they totaled 30 the entire game. SLCC ran off with a 93-61 win and handed them their eleventh loss of the year. Natalia Ballin was the leading scorer for CWC, with 22 points on 9-of-16 shooting from the field.

Friday's game was a breath of fresh air for the team, and they faced a Colorado Northwestern Community College team who they had not already played once (or twice) this season. But this new opponent brought on a different challenge for the Rustlers. After a game the previous day against SLCC where the Rustlers couldn't miss, now CWC were struggling with the opposite. Through the first three quarters of the game, they only made one three pointer on 18 attempts and shot 26% from the field. The covers seemed to be on both hoops, with CNCC's offense struggling to get going as well. It wasn't until the beginning of the fourth quarter did either team start to kick it into gear. By then, CNCC held a 45-35 lead, and after a back and forth battle in which the Rustlers actually out scored the Spartans 28-27 in the fourth quarter alone, it wasn't enough to elevate them to victory. Ballin once again led CWC in scoring with 29, and Esperanza Vergara and Sophie Wilkinson both had double doubles in points and rebounds. 

Their last stop before heading back to Riverton was Ephraim, Utah, home of the Snow College Badgers. Saturday afternoon was the Rustler's third matchup against Snow College in three weeks, and each team was rightfully acquainted with one another at this point. The 11-3 Badgers stymied CWC on both ends of the court in this game, allowing no more than 25 points in either half and scoring over 40 in each half themselves. Vergara and Ballin led the offense with 12 and 10 points (respectively), but a 24.6% shooting performance hindered the Rustlers too much, dropping them to a 3-13 overall record with their 91-46 loss to Snow College.

The Rustlers will be at home this weekend, hosting their last classic in the Rustler Gym before Christmas break. They will play McCook College on Friday, Decemeber 13 at 7:30pm, and Otero College Saturday, Decemeber 14 at 4pm.