March Madness is back in Colorado.
The Rams will compete in the 2026 Women’s NCAA Tournament after winning the Mountain West title. This is Colorado State’s seventh appearance in the Big Dance in history.
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Here’s every game Colorado State plays in the NCAA Tournament:
1996
The Rams entered the NCAA Tournament for the first time, advancing as the No. 8 seed with a 25-4 record before the big dance. Colorado State made an immediate impact, beating No. 9 Nebraska in the first round behind Teresa James’ 22 points.
The Rams then lost 94-63 to host No. 1 Stanford (which reached the Final Four that season), with freshman Katie Cronin scoring 16 points.
1998
Returning after a year, Colorado State advanced to No. 12 and defeated No. 5 Drake 81-75 in the first round. Cronin had 22 points and 11 rebounds, while Becky Harmon scored 33 points.
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The Rams then lost to the No. 4 team 77-63 and faced Purdue at home in the second round. Harmon scored 23 points in that game.
1999
The fantastic season has Colorado State with a 31-2 record and a No. 2 seed heading into the NCAA Tournament. It earned CSU the right to host, and the Rams defeated No. 15 Cal State Northridge 71-59 in a first-round game at Mobile Arena.
Mobile then defeated seventh-ranked Southwest Missouri State 86-70 to advance to the Sweet 16 for the first time in history.
In its two NCAA tournament games, Colorado State averaged 8,741 fans at Mobile Stadium.
The Rams faced off against the third-ranked Bruins there, but lost 77-68. Cronin hit six 3-pointers in that game.
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2001
After a year’s hiatus, the Rams are back again. They were the No. 9 seed and defeated No. 8 Maryland 86-69 in the first round. Jackie Campbell took five of his six 3-point attempts in the game.
The Rams then faced rival No. 1 seed UConn, and the home team lost 89-44 in front of more than 10,000 fans.
2002
Another group made consecutive appearances in the NCAA tournament. The Rams are the seventh seed and will face Tulane at Stanford.
Colorado State University fell behind by 27 points at one point and chased the difference to 3 points in the last minute, but failed to complete the reversal and the Rams lost 73-69. Angie Gorton scored 16 points and Ashley Augsburg had 10 points and 7 rebounds.
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2016
After a long absence from the NCAA tournament, the Rams broke through for the first time under Ryun Williams and entered the big dance with a 31-1 record.
Colorado State is the No. 11 seed and faces No. 6 South Florida. The Rams started the game 10-0 and South Florida stormed back in the second half to take a 12-point lead.
review: Click here to learn about the progress of the 2016 competition.
The Rams attempted an open 3-pointer in the final seconds but missed, and Colorado State lost 48-46. Jamie Patrick scored 17 points and Ellen Nystrom had 12 points and eight rebounds.
2026
The Rams won the Mountain West Tournament with an overall record of 27-7, ensuring a return to the NCAA Tournament.
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Colorado State is a No. 12 seed and will face No. 5 Michigan State on March 20 at 5:30 pm in Mount Norman, Oklahoma.
CSU’s NCAA Tournament Number
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NCAA Tournament appearances: 7
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NCAA tournament record: 5-6
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Farthest advanced: Sweet 16
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Biggest upset win: No. 12 Colorado State over No. 5 Drake in 1998
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Colorado State lowest seed: 12 (1998, 2026)
You can find sports reporter Kevin Lytle on social media including X, Instagram and Threads @Kevin_Lytle and Bluesky.
This article originally appeared in Fort Collins Colorado: A look back at Colorado’s women’s NCAA tournament history
