Record setting crowd watches Pack win

CSU-Pueblo 79, Mesa State 58

PUEBLO, Colo. - On an emotional "Senior Night" for the ThunderWolves, a record-setting crowd of 3,119 were on hand to watch the Pack secure a home playoff game with its dominant 79-58 win over Mesa State Saturday.

CSU-Pueblo will host Metro State in the opening round of the RMAC Tournament on Tuesday, Mar. 3 at Massari Arena.  Game time is 7 p.m.

The Pack relied on a standout game from Rachel Espinoza (So., Pueblo, Colo.) led all scorers in a 23-point effort, going 8-for-9 from the field, logging five assists and three steals.  She was also lights out from the line, going 5-for-5 from the charity stripe.

But the sophomore's performance didn't temper that of the seniors in their regular season hurrah, as Jonnie Draper (Sr., Littleton, Colo.), Mary Rehfeld (Sr., Juneau, Alaska), Michelle Ambuul (Sr., Colorado Springs, Colo.) and Shandryn Trumble (Sr., Green River, Wyo.) combined to score 33 in the their final regular season games.  Even Danielle Pritchett (Sr., Stockton, Colo.), who had her season ended with a knee injury early in the season, got some ceremonial minutes at the end of the game with the win at hand.

The Pack were also feeding the ball well, recording 19 assists, its third highest assist total this season.  Backup point guard Kendall Babler (Fr., Rifle, Colo.) contributed to that, adding a career-high four assists.

With the regular season over, CSU-Pueblo will prepare for Metro State, which it defeated in December in Denver.