2019 NCAA Division II Women's Soccer Championship (at Dallas Baptist)
First Round - #16 Mines vs. St. Edward's, Thursday, 1 p.m. CT [Live Video] [Live Stats]
Second Round - #16 Mines at #9 Dallas Baptist, Saturday, 1 p.m. CT [Live Video] [Live Stats]
Tournament Central
 

---

GOING DANCING
For the 12th straight year, Colorado School of Mines is off to the NCAA Tournament, and they're at a familiar site in Dallas Baptist for Thursday's first round game against St. Edward's. Should Mines advance, they would face the host DBU on Saturday in the second round; both matches are at 1 p.m. Central/noon Mountain. Each game will be streamed live on the Lone Star Digital Network; fans can find the app on their smart TV device by searching "LSC Digital Network" or watch on a computer or mobile device.

THE BRACKET
The South Central region has third-seeded Mines vs. St. Edward's in the first round with the winner facing second-seeded DBU in the second round; on the other side of the South Central, top-seeded UCCS will play the winner of Texas Woman's and Dixie State.

MINES IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
The Orediggers hope to make another deep run in the NCAA Tournament after a second-round exist at the hands of DBU in penalty kicks last year. Mines has appeared in the NCAA Tournament every year since 2008, and has advanced out of the opening weekend six times, including national quarterfinal appearances in 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2016, and a Final Four berth in 2014.

FAMILIAR FOES
Mines' first-round opponent, St. Edward's, is a familiar foe as the Orediggers beat them 1-0 on Karolina Sidebaeck's overtime golden goal back on Sept. 13 in Austin. The two teams have met once in the NCAA Tournament, a 1-0 win by Mines in the 2014 second round at Stermole Stadium. Mines and DBU have met five times in the last seven NCAA Tournaments; the Orediggers are 2-1-2 in those games, advancing once from the two ties. Last year, the two tied 1-1 in Golden before DBU advanced 3-1 on penalty kicks.

LIFTING THE CUP
Mines lifted its eighth RMAC Tournament cup in nine years on Sunday, but none of the eight were as dramatic as the Orediggers' 2-0 win over previously unbeaten and #1-ranked UCCS. Mines had first-half goals by Chaney Brugman and Eliot Edwards, and tournament MVP Shannon Mooney made seven saves to record her sixth straight shutout. The win earned Mines the RMAC's automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.

SAWAGED, MOONEY LEAD ALL-RMAC TEAMS
Defensive Player of the Year Giselle Sawaged and Goalkeeper of the Year Shannon Mooney highlighted six Orediggers on the year-end All-RMAC teams, announced last week. Sawaged and Mooney were joined by Nicole LaTourette and Emi Higgins as First-Team All-RMAC selections, while defenders Jordan Barnhart and Mickey Hostetler were named Honorable Mention All-RMAC.

FOUR OREDIGGERS EARN ALL-REGION
Mines had four players named to the D2CCA All-Region teams on Wednesday as Shannon Mooney and Giselle Sawaged earned first-team spots, and Nicole LaTourette, and Emi Higgins were named to the second team. The Orediggers' four honorees were second-most in the region.

NONE SHALL PASS
When Mines takes the field on Thursday, it will have been more than a calendar month since they allowed a goal. Shannon Mooney and the defense have not given up a goal since Oct. 20 against MSU Denver, working six straight shutouts since that match including three in the RMAC Tournament. Mooney has a streak of 540:49 of scoreless soccer to her credit heading into the NCAA Tournament.

IN THE POLLS
There was no new national poll this week as Mines was #16 in the most recent United Soccer Coaches' national poll. The Orediggers have been nationally ranked in 73 of the last 81 polls. DBU checked in at #9.

SCOUTING ST. EDWARD'S [SERIES: Mines, 4-1 / NCAA: Mines, 1-0]
St. Edward's (13-6-2) advanced to the Lone Star Conference Tournament final, losing to DBU 2-1. The Hilltoppers are led by all-region picks Jenna Lipscomb and Sarah Preston; Lipscomb has headed a defense that has logged nine shutouts with a 0.67 GAA, while Preston has 16 points on seven goals and two assists out of the midfield. Sarah Gunderson leads the team with eight goals; Annabel Sweeney has a 0.72 GAA and .818 save percentage in goal.

SCOUTING DBU [SERIES: Mines, 4-2-3 / NCAA: Mines, 2-1-2]
The region's only unbeaten team at 17-0-2, DBU did the double in the Lone Star Conference winning the regular season and tournament titles. Like Mines, they combine a potent offense (2.42 goals per game) with a very good defense (0.63 GAA). Delaney Schmidt leads the team with 10 goals and 24 points while Kaci Parks has eight goals and a team-high five assists. Hope Koym owns a 0.62 GAA and .833 save percentage in net.

BITS AND PIECES
Mines is in the NCAA Tournament for the 12th consecutive season … Head coach Kevin Fickes is now 171-30-23 overall and 106-15-10 in RMAC play in his 10th season … Fickes entered the season third on the NCAA Division II active coaching list for winning percentage (.811) … Mines averaged 2.67 goals per game to just 0.38 allowed … Mines' scoring average is on pace to be a program single-season record … Mines has outscored opponents 56-8 this season  … Mines' win over UCCS was its first over a #1-ranked team in four tries … In addition to MVP Mooney, Giselle Sawaged, Chaney Brugman, Eliot Edwards, Nicole LaTourette, and Lindsey Tornabene also earned all-RMAC Tournament honors … Nicole LaTourette leads Mines with 20 points off eight goals and four assists … She and Emi Higgins co-lead the team in goals … LaTourette has taken a team-high 64 shots … LaTourette is tied with Jordan Barnhart and Kaylee Kennedy for the team assists lead at 4 … Sawaged's goal against CCU became the new fastest goal in program history at 49 seconds, just one second quicker than Mickey Hostetler's strike against CSU-Pueblo earlier this year … LaTourette continues to move up the Mines record book as she is now fourth all-time goals (25) surpassing former teammate Jennifer Kendall, fifth in game-winning goals (9), and now fourth in points (60) surpassing Emily Garnier … Shannon Mooney is now third all-time in saves (165), second in shutouts (36), and second in career GAA (0.43) ... Mines has five Texans on its roster, with Brooke Patterson (Rockwall) and Chaney Brugman (Trophy Club) playing close to their homes in suburban Dallas.