Mines (15-6, 8-5 RMAC) vs. Chadron State (13-7, 7-5 RMAC) – Friday, 7 p.m. [Live Stats] [Live Video]
Mines (15-6, 8-5 RMAC) vs. MSU Denver (16-4, 11-1 RMAC) – Saturday, 5 p.m. [Live Stats] [Live Video]
GAME DAY INFO
New in 2019,
fans can purchase digital tickets online in advance via Mines' new ticketing portal, or buy them at the gate on game day. Ticket pricing remains the same as 2018 at $10 for adults and $5 for seniors, military, and children. Mines students, faculty, and staff are free with their Blaster Card. No pets (except service animals) are permitted inside Lockridge Arena.
ON THE RMAC NETWORK
Every Mines home game and all RMAC contests can be seen live and for free on the RMAC Network at minesathletics.com/tv. The RMAC Network can also be found on Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire, and Android TV devices by going to the app store and searching "RMAC".
WHAT'S ON TAP?
A jam-packed weekend is what's on tap for the Colorado School of Mines Volleyball team. The Orediggers welcome Chadron State and MSU Denver to Lockridge Arena for their final home matches of the 2019 regular season. Additionally, Mines is set to recognize the parents of its student-athletes on Friday as well as their alumni and seniors on Saturday. If that weren't enough, CSC is nipping at the Orediggers' heels in the RMAC standings and MSU Denver is virtually tied for #1 in the league. Needless to say, both matches carry loads of weight in regards to potential seeding for the conference and NCAA Tournaments. It wouldn't be stretch to describe both contests and must-win scenarios.
LOOKING BACK
Mines' most recent weekend of action was a tough one that saw the Orediggers go 0-2 on the road at then #12-ranked Regis and at Colorado Christian. On Friday, Mines found itself dropped in straight sets by the #1 team in the RMAC.
Lindsey Jin led the team on nine kills with a .280 hitting percentage while
Elle Duis racked up 10 digs and three service aces. Saturday featured a five-set thriller at CCU that did not go the Orediggers' way. The final line had
Abby Tiesman at 16 kills and
Rose Stuewe touting 14 kills. In the back row,
Elle Duis and
Gabby Castronova combined for 42 digs in the five-set loss.
SCOUTING CHADRON STATE
After going 8-19 in 2018, Chadron State has showed significant improvement in 2019. The Eagles are 13-7 overall and 7-5 in the RMAC, sitting #7 in the RMAC standings just half a game back of the Orediggers. Despite winning four of its last six matches, CSC is fresh off a straight-sets loss at CSU-Pueblo in which the Eagles hit only .070 on the attack. Chadron State's most notable match of the season was a five-set thriller at home against Colorado Mesa. Despite losing the match, the Eagles proved they were in the running for a RMAC Tournament berth. Individually, Rylee Greiman's 208 kills leads the offense while Shelby Schouten sits right at 200 kills as well. Tori Strickbine appears to be the setter of choice thanks to her 650 assists on the season. Ashton Burditt anchors the back row to the tune of 493 digs and Chandler Hageman dominates at the net, boasting 101 blocks on the year. Burditt ranks #5 in the nation in digs per set. Chadron State is #2 in the nation as a team in digs per set and #1 in attacks per set.
THE MORE YOU KNOW ABOUT EAGLES
The nickname for Chadron State's athletics teams is the Eagles. Most commonly known as America's national bird, the Eagle is a large bird of prey with a massive hooked bill and long broad wings, boasting excellent eyesight and powerful soaring flight. At the top of the food chain, some eagle species feed on prey as big as monkeys as sloths and are able to detect their target up to two miles away. There are nearly 60 species of eagles worldwide but just 14 found in North, Central and South America. Eagles wingspans are about 1.8 meters or nearly six feet. With such a large body, eagle's nests can be quite large with the biggest being 13 feet deep, eight feet wide and over 1 ton in weight. And now you know.
SCOUTING MSU DENVER
The Roadrunners of MSU Denver have been nearly untouchable in RMAC play – nearly. At 16-4 overall and 11-1 in the league, MSU Denver's lone conference loss came to none other than South Dakota Mines in four sets. Oredigger fans can relate. That being said, the Roadrunners have won 12 of their last 13 matches going back into non-conference action including a win over then #1-ranked Tampa. Their most recent wins were a four-setter at CSU-Pueblo and a sweep at New Mexico Highlands. Kayla White leads the offense thanks to 217 kills, but only hits .179 on the attack. At setter, it's a 6-2 system featuring Jessa Megenhardt and Joli Sadler with 411 and 371 assists, respectively. Meggenhardt and White have also teamed up for 72 service aces as Meggenhardt ranks #6 in the nation in aces per set. Defensively, Caiden Rexius is tops in digs, boasting 246 and Alyssa Kelling has knocked down 85 total blocks.
ROADRUNNER FACTS
Roadrunners, along with being MSU Denver's nickname, are members of the cuckoo family. They are found chiefly in arid country which fits the Denver climate. Despite being considered a bird, Roadrunners are unable to stay airborne for more than a few minutes due to their short wings. The bird can run up to about 17 miles per hour thanks to the unique x-shaped footprint they bear. Roadrunners also have the ability to lower their own body temperatures by going into torpor at nighttime.
LOCKRIDGE ARENA
Fondly referred to as "The Lock", Mines' home court for volleyball, men's basketball and women's basketball features seating for 3,000 at Oredigger home athletics events. The venue has also twice hosted the NCAA Division II Men's Basketball South Central Regional Tournament. Additionally, Lockridge Arena hosts numerous major campus events and has been graced by the presence of Barack Obama, Neil DeGrasse Tyson, Bill Nye and many others.
SERIES HISTORY
Under head coach
Jamie Magalei, Mines is 20-0 against Chadron State and has dropped only five sets in those 20 meetings. The team's most recent showdown was last season on Oct. 20 where the Orediggers took care of business in straight sets. Tiesman closed the match with 14 kills and Stokes pumped out 38 assist while
Elle Duis gathered 15 digs.
Amanda Donais also racked up five service aces. Mines' record against MSU Denver in the Magalei era is a bit more even. With Magalei at the helm, the Orediggers are 12-14 against the Roadrunners after posting a 2-1 record versus MSUD last season. Mines defeated its foe from Denver in the regular season before bowing out of the RMAC Tournament in five sets at the hand of "Metro". However, the Orediggers had the last say as they ended MSU Denver's season in the first round of the NCAA Tournament thanks to Tiesman's 15 kills and
Elle Duis's 24 digs. Prior to Magalei's arrival at Mines, the Orediggers had only defeated MSU Denver four times in 52 tries.
OREDIGGER SENIOR CLASS
Saturday marks the celebration of Senior Day of the Colorado School of Mines Volleyball team. The 2019 senior class is made up of
Delaney Duis,
Courtney Richardson and
Abby Tiesman. Since their arrival at Mines in 2016, the senior trio as racked up a combined record of 89-25 overall and 56-11 in RMAC action. With Duis, Richardson and Tiesman on the roster, the Orediggers have won three RMAC titles with two in the regular season and one in the conference tournament while appearing in three consecutive NCAA Tournaments. Also noteworthy is each of the three seniors hail from different states with Duis from Texas, Tiesman from Illinois and Richardson serving as the lone Colorado native of the class.
TOPS IN THE NATION
Despite an off weekend at Regis and Colorado Christian,
Drew Stokes continues to lead all the nation in assists per set, dishing out dimes at a clip of 12.34 per frame. That #1 ranking applies to NCAA Divisions I, II, and III. Stokes' 901 total assists ranks #17 in NCAA Division II. It has also helped Mines earn the #3 spot in DII in total assists per set. To cap it all off, Stokes ranks #1 in the RMAC in both total assists and assists per set, boasting 249 more assists than the #2 setter at a clip of nearly 2.0 more assists per set. Did we mention Stokes is the defending RMAC Setter of the Year, RMAC Freshman of the Year and National Freshman of the Year? She does okay.
FUN COACH FACTS
Head Coach
Jamie Magalei's success at Mines is well known and well documented. But that success started long before arriving in Golden and even before her playing days at the University of North Dakota – and it wasn't just in volleyball. That's right, we're digging deep and going all the way back to Magalei's days as a Coyote at Williston High School at Williston North Dakota where she was named 2001 Class A Miss North Dakota Volleyball and the North Dakota Gatorade Player of the Year – but that's not all. According to her bio on the University of North Dakota website, Magalei (then Skadeland) was a FIVE-year varsity volleyball player who helped lead the Coyote's to a second-place finish at the state tournament in 2000 where she earned all-tournament honors. That came on top of three all-conference nods, two all-state selections and four conference all-tournament selections. Remember when we said it wasn't just volleyball? Yeah, Magalei was also an all-conference basketball player as a senior and claimed the North Dakota West Region tennis singles championship in 2000. We would be remiss if we didn't mention that she also played on Williston's 1999 state champion tennis too. So there's that.
LOOKING AHEAD
Mines' next action will be on Colorado's Western Slope at Colorado Mesa and Western Colorado on Nov. 8 and 9. Live stats and video of both matches will be available at www.minesathletics.com.
Keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all season long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics. Fans can also follow Mines Volleyball on Twitter using the handle @MinesVolleyball.
