LARAMIE, Wyo. (May 8, 2026) – Cowboy basketball head coach Sundance Wicks announced the addition of four players to the program on Friday. Parker Gerrits is a guard and comes to UW from Washington State, Mattia De Martin is a guard from Indian Hills Community College, Linus Ruf comes to Wyoming from Germany and forward Renars Sondors coming to UW from Louisiana Monroe.
 
 "Recruiting our current roster was priority number one this off-season and that was extremely successful," Wicks said.  "Bringing back KB, Naz, Gaz, Uriyah & redshirt Neil Summers, we return 50% of our production, so now the emphasis is on finding F.I.T.S.  Recruiting players who have high feel, intelligence, toughness, & skill to compliment a core of Cowboys who are committed to competing for a championship.  We are going to be very intentional about finding OKC's who can build upon the character and culture that the 2025-26 Cowboys established."
 
Wicks on Gerrits

"We got a gem out of the evergreen state. I personally have known Parker since recruiting him out of Olympia High School in Washington.  Parker is a winner, a culture carrier, is an elite connector on the floor and FITS exactly what we are trying to do with this roster next year.  He can really shoot the basketball and that gravity will be a massive weapon.  We really narrowed our focus when it came to finding the right person to connect our core and Parker was the perfect fit for us.  You know we love the overlooked, underdog mentality and PG was just looking for the place that Believed in him and what he can do when given more of an opportunity.  I'm not sure you will find a young man who will play harder than him on the floor.  His motor runs hot and he is an absolutely relentless competitor!"
 
Gerrits, a 6-2, 190-pound guard is a native of Olympia, Wash. He has appeared in 63 games over the last two seasons at Washington State. In just under 10 minutes a game, Gerrits has averaged 1.7 points per game and has recorded 31 steals. This past season, he averaged 1.8 points per game and shot nearly 38 percent from behind the arc.    He also added 1.1 rebounds per game and recorded 27 assists. He scored a season-high 11 points against Portland going 4-of-5 from the field.
 
He is a graduate of Olympia High School and led his team to the state championship game. He was an All-State selection.
 
Wicks on De Martin

"What an absolute steal we found in Mattia.  He is going to be the ultimate connector for us at multiple positions.  The thing that really gets me going about Mattia is his passing ability and his ability to stretch the floor.  Mattia has great gap gravity and he can really see it and passing is the quickest way to see if a player has good feel or not.  At 6'8 he is a swing wing (1-4) who has great offensive and defensive versatility.  You know we love guys who come from winning and Mattia has won at every level he has been at in Europe and at Indian Hills.  We also love guys with scars and Mattia's journey hasn't been all sunshine and gumballs, as he was struck by the injury bug right before he was coming over to the states.  That is just going to be extra fuel for his fire and desire to prove the people that believe in him right!  Let's welcome the Italian Stallion to Cowboy Country!"
 
De Martin, a 6-8, 205-pound guard from Vicenza, Italy spent last season at Indian Hills Community College in Iowa. He appeared in 15 games missing time with an injury. He averaged 3.2 points per game along with 1.5 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. He shot nearly 53 percent from behind the arc for the season and 44 percent from the field. He scored 12 points against Highland going 4-of-5 from behind the arc in the contest in only 19 minutes.
 
He represented Italy in the U20 Euro Championships in 2025. He averaged six point per game and 1.2 rebounds. He scored 14 points against Iceland going 5-of-6 from the field. 
 
Wicks on Ruf
 
"The Pokes went across the pond (Germany) once again to find one of the most important F.I.T.S. for next year's roster.  Landing an experienced big man that can quickly assimilate to the Mountain West is no small task and we found that player in Linus Ruf.  I love the person and player we got in Linus. Linus is already classically trained in a ballscreen dominant offense and does an excellent job of playing out of the different windows and reads that happen via the variety ballscreen coverages.  Standing at 6-11 he gives us an inside presence defensively that can disrupt opposing teams, as well as playing with his back to the basket when we need to get some man buckets.  I believe Linus has an under-rated skill set playing out of open concepts and a beautiful shooting touch.  We could not be more excited to have Linus and his fiancé join our family here in Laradise.  Let's give a wild west welcome to Linus Ruf and his fiance Samira!"
 
Ruf (Lean-us Roof) is a 6-11, 230-pound center from Speyer, Germany. He comes to Wyoming after playing for Reasta Vechta and the Artland Dragons in Germany's Pro A League. He averaged 7.1 points per game and 3.9 rebounds per game in only 21 minutes of action for Reasta Vechta and 6.9 points and nearly four boards per game for Artland. Playing in Germany's second league in 2024-25, he averaged 8.3 points and 4.5 rebounds per game in only 14 minutes per night. 
 
He represented Germany at the nation level in numerous tournaments.
 
Wicks on Sondors

"Aim small, miss small.  That was our approach when looking for a Stretch 4/5 with size, real gravity and had proven it at the Division I level.  Renars was an early target and someone we knew after getting to know was going to be a great FIT for our culture.  We are 3/3 on great human beings and one area you cannot miss on is character because that drives your culture forward faster.  Knowing he was playing out of position as he is a natural connect the flow 4 man, it was easy to see him have the translatable skill sets to move our program forward next year and add great positional size with shooting.  The gap gravity he possesses is real and so is his feel."
 
Sondors (Ray-Nars, sawn-Doors), a 6-9, 215-pound forward is a native of Riga, Latvia. He spent the last two seasons at Louisiana Monroe. He has played in 38 games in his collegiate career averaging 9.4 points per game along with 4.1 rebounds. This past season, he averaged 10.7 points per game in 25 starts. He knocked down 44 three pointers and grabbed 4.2 rebounds per game. He scored a career-high 19 points against Arkansas State. He had a career-high 14 rebounds against Georgia Southern.

He Won the Gold Medal at the 2023 Under 18 European Championship in Matosinhos, Portugal as a member of the Latvian national team. He participated in the Adidas Next Generation Tournament in Munich, Germany in January 2023.