Some things just take time and a few tweaks. In the case for Fresno State women’s basketball, they took a 86-64 shellacking from New Mexico in March earlier this year to end the 2025-26 season. It was different on Wednesday night though.
New Mexico underwent a massive roster shakeup and brought in a new coaching staff, similar to Fresno State a year ago. Tonight, Fresno State got the best of their old Mountain West foes, some efficient offense and 14 steals defensively paced Ryan McCarthy’s Bulldogs to a 74-56 victory.
“Our ladies are just coming together, because we revamped too. We were in the same position. We went out and got 11 new players, like Jada and Lola and Mekiah and Ivy, and the list goes on. We got a really talented recruiting class to come here and ladies that signed up knowing that this was going to be the hardest thing they did in their life, and hopefully we can prove that every game,” McCarthy said.
The driving force on Wednesday was not any one player but rather a collection of playmakers that made the Bulldogs octane offense run. Seven different Bulldogs scored 9+ points on Wednesday: Lola Donez had 11 points. Ashlyn Rean, Ava Marr and Jada Hunter each had 10 and Zawadi Ogot, Rubi Gray and Ivy Brown all had nine. Mekhia Chase added six points, two assists, eight rebounds and four steals to complete an all-around Bulldog performance.
“It’s a good problem,” McCarthy said. “It helps us from a depth standpoint. It’s hard to scout when you don’t have just like two or three dominant players. I think a lot of programs have that, and if those two or three cannons don’t fire that night, you’re going to be in the 50s or 40s. We have a lot of ladies, and we’ve all given them the green light.”
Hunter, a St. Mary’s transfer has fit in nicely into McCarthy’s fast-paced offensive style that allows her to work in transition.
“It plays into how I like to play because point guards like me and Mekiah, we get a lot of options to go to score the ball. He’s a tough coach, but I feel like he’s the best coach I’ve had in my college career because he wants me to get mine. He makes it known that I can get mine. I was overthinking things at my previous school,” Hunter said.
The guard added that she’s coming into the season with “a dog-like mindset” at both ends of the floor, whether it’s getting her teammates involved or wreaking havoc for her opponents, something she’s been very good at this season. The reigning Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week is up to 10 steals already on the season.
“I definitely take pride in defense. I feel like that’s my thing, and then if I play hard on defense, the offense is going to come to me,” Hunter said.
Key Players
Lola Donez (FS): 11 points (5-of-9 FG), 2 rebounds, 4 steals
Ashlyn Rean (FS): 10 points (4-of-8 FG), 4 rebounds, 3 blocks, 1 steal
Laila Abdurraqib (UNM): 17 points (6-of-14 FG), 6 rebounds
What happened
A slow start for both of the teams in the first quarter with Fresno State leading 8-6 through the first six minutes. The Bulldogs then went on a 12-2 run including a triple from the corner via sophomore Ava Marr. A layup at the other end from Lobos forward Drew Jordan cut the deficit to 20-10 to close the first quarter.
Marr kept things going in the second quarter, nailing a 17-foot pull-up jumper to give the Bulldogs a 28-12 lead with 5:31 left in the half before a media timeout.
New Mexico went on a 9-2 run to close the gap but another strong quarter gave Fresno State a 37-26 lead at halftime, while forcing 12 Lobos turnovers. Fresno State shot 45 percent in the first half overall but made just 2-of-13 from beyond the arc.
Fresno State continued to outpace the Lobos in the third quarter, raising the Bulldog lead to 16 points. Rubi Gray drained a pair of deep triples in the quarter.
Early in the fourth quarter, point guard Mekhia Chase drove to the basket for an acrobatic layup. At the other end, forward Ashlyn Rean jumped into the passing lane to pick off a poor Lobos pass, taking it coast-to-coast for a layup. Fresno State went on to win 74-56.
What’s next
The Bulldogs stay home this weekend as they welcome Northern Arizona to the Save Mart Center this Saturday for the first matchup of a doubleheader (the men’s team plays UC Riverside afterwards) tipping off at Noon.
The Lumberjacks opened the young season with a 79-52 loss at Arizona State last week and fell to 0-2 yesterday, Nov. 10, with a 76-74 loss at home to UC Irvine.
Fresno State will then get a 10-day break before a trip to Fort Myers where the Bulldogs will play at Florida Gulf Coast on Tuesday, Nov. 24th at 11 a.m. PT. FGCU is the alma mater of McCarthy’s wife and assistant coach Jenna McCarthy, who played two seasons with the Eagles before transitioning to the coaching staff where she coached for four years.
Game recap written by Al Scott, photos captured by Ryan Sepulveda (Fresno Sports Magazine). For more pictures and updates on Fresno State Athletics, follow @AlScott1998 on Twitter (X) or @AlScottSports on IG.