New Mexico State was looking to enter next week’s Conference USA Tournament on a high note, and did just that this week.
The Aggies (17-14, 10-8 CUSA) defeated Louisiana Tech and Sam Houston this week at home, closing out their regular season with a 64-56 victory over the Bearkats (12-16, 5-13) on Saturday. It was senior day for NM State, and it held a ceremony after the game to honor each of them.
NMSU women’s basketball’s 9 seniors: Diarrah Sissoko, Molly Kaiser, Loes Rozing, Sianny Sanchez-Oliver, Jaila Harding, Tylie Jones, Fanta Gassama, Sylena Peterson and Noah Garcia. pic.twitter.com/ekldPpGfJT
— Nick Coppola (@Nick_Coppola__) March 8, 2025
The Aggies have nine seniors, just like their men’s team, all of whom have played different roles this season. Several like Molly Kaiser, Fanta Gassama, Sianny Sanchez-Oliver and Jaila Harding have played key roles for the Aggies by starting several games, while others like Diarrah Sissoko have mostly had to contribute as reserves. Sylena Peterson has been in both roles, beginning the season as a starter before transitioning to a bench role in the last 11 games of the regular season.
Each got a chance to celebrate their careers on Saturday, and they got to do it after a win.
“Getting the win tonight means a lot,” Peterson said. “Ending the regular season on the win means a lot, because we can take this momentum going into (the conference tournament). It’s also a big day (because) it’s me and Molly’s last time down on the New Mexico State court, so it was a good feeling to get that.”
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Two of them have reached significant milestones this season. Kaiser climbed into the top three on the Aggies’ all-time leading scorers’ list behind NM State Athletics Hall of Famers Anita Maxwell and Brooke Salas, while Gassama’s six rebounds against the Bearkats gave her 404 total rebounds across her collegiate career.
For Kaiser, she feels NM State has given as much to her as she has to NM State.
“I chose New Mexico State, but New Mexico State also chose me,” Kaiser said. “They’ve been loyal to me, just like I’ve been loyal to them. You don’t really get that at a lot of places, and people can say, ‘We’ve been blessed to watch you for the last five years.’ I’ve been blessed to even be a part of this program and be around people who have truly invested in me, not just as an athlete, but as a human, and this is not the end of it.
“I’m not leaving here. I’m not gonna leave and forget about New Mexico State. New Mexico State is always going to be home. I’ve lived here for five years. I love it. I love the community. I love the people. I love my coaches. I love my teammates. At the end of the day, this is one special moment, but there’s so much more that goes into this.”
Kaiser has had to look at the banners around the Pan American Center featuring NM State’s past conference titles in her five-year Aggies career, specifically four recent Western Athletic Conference titles in a stretch from 2015-19. It’s motivated her to win a conference title herself each time she sees them.
She’s already made her mark individually, but now she wants to leave another by putting another banner up in the arena.
“I want to see 2025 up there and understand, ‘Hey, my name goes behind that after five years,'” Kaiser said. “I’m just excited, I’m happy, and it’s been amazing. I thank Aggie nation for just embracing me and loving me the way that they have, and I can’t thank them enough. And I thank God, because He’s carried us through this journey. I’m the blessed one.”
NM State achieved an impressive statistic against the Bearkats by holding them to 0-for-10 from 3-point range. It’s the most 3-point attempts a team has shot against the Aggies in a game without a make since Utah Valley shot 0-for-11 from beyond the arc against them on Feb. 12, 2022.
What’s next?
NM State clinched the No. 4 seed in the CUSA Tournament by defeating Louisiana Tech on Thursday and will face No. 5 seed Louisiana Tech at 11:30 a.m. next Thursday. The Aggies faced the Lady Techsters this past Thursday in an 87-80 victory in Las Cruces and have gone 1-1 against them this season. NM State lost to LA Tech 67-58 on the road earlier this season.
“We did this last year with (Florida International) at home,” said NM State coach Jody Adams, referring to when the Aggies faced the Panthers to start their CUSA Tournament campaign last season after facing them in the last week of the regular season. “(At) this time of the year, it’s a game of inches. Answers are really important. These guys know that. You know what you have repped… There’s a tightening up with things and making sure these guys (have) the mind where it needs to be and be locked in.”
This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: NMSU women’s basketball gives its seniors a winning sendoff
