LARAMIE – If you watched Payton Muma's mic'd up practice video it's obvious the sophomore guard is already quite comfortable being a vocal leader in her first season at Wyoming.

The Gonzaga transfer can play, too.

Muma scored a career-high 11 points to give the Cowgirls (2-3) a spark off the bench during the 80-54 victory over Colorado Cristina last Friday at the Arena-Auditorium.

"The minute I came here all of them were very nice and I felt very comfortable with them, just like opening up to them about my experiences at Gonzaga," Muma said of being welcomed by a roster that returned 10 players, including six seniors, from last season. "I came here and felt very comfortable with a lot of them and as time goes by, we're all getting so much closer, and team oriented even more than we were before."

Muma had five points, one assist and one steal in 10 minutes during her return to Spokane, Wash., on Nov. 17, but the Cowgirls lost 62-51 to Gonzaga.

"It was tough, very emotional I would say," Muma said of facing her former team. "But I'm very thankful to be with my teammates. They all have my back, and they told me that and I was very fortunate. Although we didn't win, I still feel like we played a great game as a team."

UW was on point defensively against Gonzaga. Part of the problem on the other end of the floor was Tess Barnes and McKinley Dickerson were out of the lineup due to injuries.

Emily Mellema scored a career-high 27 points and made four 3-pointers, but there wasn't enough firepower on the perimeter to prevent the Bulldogs from double-teaming Allyson Fertig, who was held to six points on 3-for-8 shooting.

"We really missed Tess, not just as a player but as a leader out on the court on defense and offense. It was really great to see her come back because she's such a solid player," Fertig said after Barnes and Dickerson returned against Colorado Christian. "And then McKinley is such a stud muffin so it's great to see her come back and give the extra offensive boost that we need."

Muma made three of UW's nine 3s against Colorado Christian and led the way for the bench, which finished with 40 points. Head coach Heather Ezell wants her to keep shooting open shots without hesitation.

"She's got to have that confidence," Ezell said. "With the ability she has to shoot the ball she's got to have that confidence to step up."

The Cowgirls will need to lean on their depth and experience over the next three days at the Puerto Rico Shootout where they play Drake on Thursday, Norfolk State on Friday and Virginia on Saturday.

That means more Muma time.

"You can see it on the court, she has some swagger," Fertig said. "Just like that excitement and adding that fun attitude to the game. When she's confident and doing well it just springs the mood of the team. I think she's doing a better job now, even when she's not getting the looks, she's still bringing that energy and cheering on her teammates and bringing that – stealing a little bit from Sundance (Wicks) – juice."
 
After facing three quality opponents in three days in San Juan, Puerto Rico, UW will continue its challenging road schedule at Missouri State (Dec. 6), South Dakota (Dec. 15) and Creighton (Dec. 17).
 
The Cowgirls' next home game is against North Dakota on Dec. 21 before hosting Utah State in the Mountain West opener on Jan. 1.
 
"We're playing great teams and it's going to be great competition," Muma said. "Practicing at such a high altitude here it's easier when we go to other schools. I feel like we can run for days, and it will be good. We've got a great non-conference schedule coming up and we're working together to make improvements and get ready for conference."
 
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