GOLDEN – The No. 16 Colorado School of Mines volleyball team will kick off postseason play on Tuesday with a first round RMAC Tournament matchup against Fort Lewis at Lockridge Arena in Golden at 7 p.m.
All students who attend the matchup on Tuesday evening will receive free admission, courtesy of the Colorado School of Mines Department of Student Life, with a valid BlasterCard.
The Orediggers (23-5, 17-2 RMAC) earned the top seed in the tournament following the program's second-straight RMAC Championship, which was clinched in a 3-2 win over Metro State on Nov. 9 in Golden.
As the top seed, the Orediggers will host the semifinal and championship rounds of the tournament on Friday and Saturday with a victory on Tuesday over the Skyhawks (10-17, 10-9 RMAC).
Senior Melanie Wannamaker leads the team and sits second in the RMAC with 458 kills on a league-best .390 attack percentage. Her attack percentage mark places her fifth in the nation, while her kills per set mark of 4.49 places her fifth in the nation and second in the RMAC.
She was named the RMAC Offensive Player of the Week on five occasions during the regular season.
Sophomore Danielle Johnson-Hazlewood sits second in the nation and tops in the RMAC with a 12.77 assists per set average. She set a new program record with 1,303 assists on the season in Saturday's 3-1 victory over UCCS.
She has recorded 16 double-doubles on the season and 30 in just under two full seasons in Golden. She was named the RMAC Setter of the Week on five occasions this year.
Freshman Alanna Winfield follows 371 kills at an average of 3.64 kills per set, which places her fifth in the RMAC in average and 7th in total kills. She is also ninth in the RMAC with a .291 attack percentage. She earned one RMAC Offensive Player of the Week award this year.
Senior libero Hannah Margheim leads the team and sits third in the RMAC with an average of 4.78 digs per set, while her 488 digs on the season place her third in the league as well. She currently sits 43 digs shy of tying the program record of 1,888 digs that was set by Sarah Alsbrooks (2002-05).
She was named the RMAC Defensive Player of the Week on two occasions during the 2013 season.
Junior Sarah Pekarek averaged 3.37 kills per set, good for ninth in the league, to go with 344 kills on the season.
Freshman Samantha Fischer sits secondo n the team with 0.80 blocks per set (Wannamaker, 0.87) and freshman Tary Huber sits fourth on the team with 236 digs at an average of 3.65 digs per set. Sophomore Corrine Din and junior Cassie Vick average 2.17 and 2.05 digs per set, respectively, as well.
Mines is 21-12 in 33 meetings against the Skyhawks since 1992, including a 3-0 win at home this season.
2013 RMAC VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT BRACKET
