Mines (0-0, 0-0 RMAC) vs. UAFS (0-0, 0-0 LSC) – Friday, 12 p.m. (CT) – Austin, Texas [Live Stats] [Live Video]
Mines (0-0, 0-0 RMAC) at St. Edward's (0-0, 0-0 LSC) – Saturday, 7 p.m. (CT) – Austin, Texas [Live Stats] [Live Video]
 

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NEW SEASON, WHO DIS?
The Colorado School of Mines Women's Basketball team is set for its 2019-20 season openers this weekend down at St. Edward's University in Austin, Texas. Both games will be a part of the annual crossover event between conferences in the South Central Region. Friday features the Orediggers taking on UAFS out of Fort Smith, Ark., while Saturday provides a rematch between Mines and host St. Edward's. It marks the third straight year the Orediggers have opened their season against these exact same teams and the fourth consecutive year of the conference crossover event. Two wins for Mines would mark its first 2-0 start to the season since the 2001-02 season – nearly 20 years ago. On the other hand, two losses would give the Orediggers their first winless start since the 2015-16 season. The opponents are familiar, but the season is new with much yet to be seen.
 
THE SEASON THAT WAS
Mines' 2018-19 campaign featured an overall mark of 18-11 while going 14-8 in RMAC action. The Orediggers finished tied for fourth in the conference standings and claimed the #4 seed in the league tournament. Mines won its first quarterfinal game in 10 years and advanced to the RMAC Semifinals before bowing out to nationally-ranked and conference champion Colorado Mesa. True freshman Denali Pinto was crowned RMAC Freshman of the Year and First-Team All-RMAC. Nicole Archambeau earned Second-Team All-RMAC honors and Raven Herrera made it an all-conference trio with Honorable Mention All-RMAC distinction. In addition to its first-round win in the RMAC Tournament, another highlight to Mines' 2018-19 season was a perfect, 3-0 mark against CSU-Pueblo including a 66-47 victory on the ThunderWolves' home floor
 
SCOUTING UAFS
For those who don't know, UAFS stands for the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith. The Lady Lions enter the 2019-20 season after a down year in 2018-19 that featured an overall record of 10-18 and a Heartland Conference mark of 7-7. It was a season that ended with a 66-51 loss to St. Mary's in the Heartland Conference Tournament quarterfinals. Both of UAFS's all-conference performers from 2018-19 were seniors, but the Lady Lions do return four key players including Tamera Gulley who averaged 9.1 points per game and 6.6 rebounds per game last season. Additionally, Alexsis Brown put up 7.6 points and 3.1 assists per game during the 2018-19 campaign. As a team, UAFS averaged 63.1 points per game last season while giving up 65.7 per contest. Led by second-year head coach Tari Cumings, UAFS was picked to finish 11th in its league according the preseason coaches' poll out of the new-look Lone Star Conference.
 
KING OF THE BEASTS?
The University of Arkansas at Fort Smith prefers to go by UAFS and has gone by UA Fort Smith and Arkansas-Fort Smith in the past. The institution boasts a lion as it mascot with men's athletics teams carrying the nickname Lions and the women's referred to as Lady Lions. Most commonly known as the king of the jungle, a lion is defined as a muscular, deep-chested cat with a short, rounded head, a reduced neck and round ears. Lions typically inhabit grasslands and savannas.  To date, lions are not considered common in western Arkansas where UAFS is located. One fun fact about lions is that they spend 16-20 hours of the day sleeping, making them one of the laziest of the big cats. Additionally, as of 2015, there were only about 34,000 lions left in Africa. That's half the number that existed 30 years ago. And now you know.
 
SCOUTING ST. EDWARD'S
Last season, SEU went 16-14 overall while posting a conference mark of 7-7. That record led the Hilltoppers into the 2018-19 Heartland Conference Tournament as the #5 seed where they knocked off fourth-seeded Rogers State, 65-53, in the first round. St .Edward's saw its season come to an end in the semifinal game where it fell to eventual DII National Champion Lubbock Christian by a score of 62-46. Two Hilltoppers were named all-conference in 2018-19 but only one returns this season. That is Maryam Wilcher who averaged 11.9 points, 3.9 rebounds and nearly 1.0 blocks per game as a transfer from NCAA Division I Indiana State. In addition to Wilcher, the SEU roster features two other seniors in Lexi Cunningham and Fairen Sutton. As a duo, they combined for 10.5 points per game and nearly 2.0 assists per contest as juniors. Overall, the Hilltoppers scored 65.5 points per game while holding the opposition to 61.8. Led by eighth-year head coach J.J. Riehl, St. Edward's was projected to finish ninth in its league according the preseason coaches' poll out of the new-look Lone Star Conference.
 
WHAT'S A HILLTOPPER
St. Edward's University uses the nickname Hilltoppers for its athletics programs. The institutions mascot is a mountain goat. While there are no mountains in the Austin, Texas, area, the nickname originates from the school's location which is atop a hill overlooking downtown and Lady Bird Lake. A mountain goat, also known as the Rocky Mountain goat (insert more irony here), is a large-hoofed mammal. It is defined also as a sure-footed climber commonly seen on cliffs and ice – neither of which are common in Texas. The only justifiable reason for using a nickname/mascot related to rocks and hills is the nearby Texas Hill Country which draws many for camping, hiking, and water sports on Lake Travis. However, it's still a stretch as to how appropriate Hilltoppers may be for a team in central Texas.
 
THE RCC
The home court for St. Edward's University volleyball and basketball is the Recreation and Convocation Center, or the RCC. It also serves as the home for one co-ed team and campus recreation sports such as intramurals. Built in 1987, the competition gym received a new floor for the first time in the summer of 2016 and the building recently underwent a remodel during the 2018-19 school year. The lone gym inside the building seats up to 1,300 spectators with chair-back, padded seating on the north side and bleachers on the south side. With nearly a 20-foot gap between the fan seating and benches, visiting teams enjoy plenty of space between them and opposing fans. The building also features administrative offices, a fitness center, student-athlete weight room and athletic training room. An additional note is that the Colorado School of Mines Men's Basketball team played in the exact same gym less than a year ago at the 2019 NCAA South Central Regional Tournament, facing off against Lubbock Christian.
 
CONFERENCE CROSSOVER HISTORY
The 2019-20 season marks the fourth year Mines will face UAFS and SEU in the conference crossover with the Orediggers carrying an overall record of 3-3 in the event. Mines is 2-1 against St. Edward's including a 78-71 overtime win in 2016. Most recently, Mines dropped 69-62 decision to SEU inside Volk Gymnasium on Nov. 10, 2018.  On the other hand, Mines is 1-2 against Arkansas-Fort Smith. The Orediggers got their first win over UAFS in the conference crossover last season, taking down the Lady Lions, 53-40 in their 2018-19 season opener. Another decision against UAFS includes a 76-75 heartbreaker in 2016-17 that came on a last-second, three-point, buzzer-beater. Overall, Mines averages 62.0 points per game in the conference crossover while giving up 61.66 points per game to the opposition.
 
HOSTILE TAKEOVER
Both St. Edward's and UAFS are two of the newest members of the new-look Lone Star Conference. However, the southern duo originally came into NCAA Division II as members of the now defunct Heartland Conference. The Hilltoppers were founding members in 1999 while UAFS did not join until 2009. What happened to the Heartland Conference you ask? Well, as of this academic year (2019-20), it merged with the LSC in a somewhat hostile takeover as the new league grew to 19 schools. That is the largest conference in all of NCAA Division II. While some sports, such as men's soccer, were relatively unaffected due to a preexisting relationship, the initial conversations and foray were not so smooth. Multiple programs were nearly left without a conference and some of the schools did not make the transition including Newman and Rogers State. At the same time, the University Texas at Tyler transitioned into DII and joined as the 19th program. The overall makeup is interesting with a mix of football and non-football schools along with public and private institutions. Additionally the geography is intriguing, at best, with a 1,000-mile width from Fort Smith, Ark., to Silver City, N.M., and a height over 600 miles from Laredo, Texas, to Oklahoma City. And we thought the Big 12 had it bad.
 
SIMPSON'S SEASON OPENERS
Brittany Simpson is the head coach of Mines entering her eighth season at the helm. Since the 2012-13 season, Simpson has gone 3-4 in season openers. However, Mines has only opened at home once since 2015. Her most recent win in a season opener came last year in the 53-40 win over UAFS. Prior to that it was 2014-15 in a 60-58 nail-biter against Eastern New Mexico. The eighth-year head coach also boasts an 80-74 win over then #22 Alaska-Anchorage in her first year at the helm. Simpson's teams average exactly 57 points per game in their first game of the season while giving up 63.4 points per game to the opposition.
 
BASIC BREAKDOWN
According to the numbers, Mines has seen its defense improve and the offense maintain since winning the RMAC title in the 2015-16 season. The Orediggers have outscored their opponents every season over the last four years with a top mark of plus-6.9 in the 2018-19 campaign. After holding the opposition to 59.1 points per a game in 2015-16, Mines dropped that number to 57.9 points per game last season. On offense, the Orediggers have hovered around the 65 points-per-game plateau all four years with a high of 69.1 in the 2016-17. However, Mines' most impressive asset is its rebounding ability. Just like scoring, Coach Simpson's teams have out-rebounded their opponents every year for the last four years, boasting a mark of 11.8 to the positive in 2017-18. Overall, Mines' sits around 42 rebounds per game during that span. Notably, the Orediggers' rebound margin of 9.1 ranked #10 in the nation in the 2018-19 season.
 
RETURNERS AND NEWCOMERS
Coach Simpson's 2019-20 squad features 13 Orediggers with nine returners and four newcomers. The class breakdown features one senior, three juniors, six sophomores and three freshmen. Heidi Hammond is the lone senior on the squad. Liz Holter is among the juniors as a fresh-face transfer from NCAA Division I Incarnate Word. The three freshmen include Ashley Steffeck, Loralee Stock and Shelby Nichols. Returning starters feature sophomore Denali Pinto, redshirt junior Raven Herrera and junior Courtney Stanton. Pinto is the Orediggers' top returning scorer after leading the team in 2018-19 as well. Herrera brings back the most rebounds per game at a clip of 6.3 per contest. Gone from the squad are Anna Kollmorgen, Nicole Archambeau, Madelene McDonald and Cassidy Budge.
 
PRESEASON POLLS
The Colorado School of Mines Women's Basketball team was picked to finish third in the RMAC Preseason Women's Basketball Coaches' Poll. The Orediggers earned 192 points and one first-place vote in the poll after going 18-11 overall and 14-8 in the RMAC in 2018-19. The only teams ahead of the Orediggers are preseason favorite and defending champion Colorado Mesa (215 (9)) followed by Westminster (209 (5)). MSU Denver (180) rounds out the top four. Additionally, Denali Pinto and Sammy Van Sickle were tabbed as Preseason Players to Watch. Pinto averaged 14.2 points and 5.4 rebounds per game as a true freshman. Van Sickle put up 9.5 points and 7.8 rebounds per game, also as a true freshman.
 
RMAC Preseason Women's Basketball Poll

1. Colorado Mesa – 215 (9)
2. Westminster – 209 (5)
3. Colorado School of Mines – 192 (1)
4. MSU Denver – 180
5. Black Hills State – 151
6. Western Colorado – 150
7. Regis – 141
8. CSU-Pueblo – 135
9. Dixie State – 122 (1)
10. UCCS – 108
11. Fort Lewis – 79
12. Colorado Christian – 67
13. South Dakota Mines – 64
14. Adams State – 45
15. Chadron State – 42
16. New Mexico Highlands - 20

 
LOOKING AHEAD
After opening weekend, Mines will take a week off before heading to Seattle, Wash., for games against Seattle Pacific and Concordia (Ore.). Live stats and video of both games 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.