GOLDEN, Colo. – The Colorado School of Mines Women's Basketball team ground out a 62-57 victory over CSU-Pueblo on Friday night and punched its ticket to the RMAC Tournament Semifinals for the first time in 10 years.
 
Senior Nicole Archambeau flashed her newly-minted, Second-Team All-RMAC honors by leading all players with 17 points. She also grabbed six rebounds and handed out a game-high four assists. Raven Herrera was a force in all areas, scoring 14 points with 14 rebounds, four steals and two blocks. Anna Kollmorgen added 13 points of her with five rebounds and two assists.
 
With the victory, Mines (18-10) completes the full season sweep of CSU-Pueblo (16-13), going 3-0 on the year against the ThunderWolves. The Orediggers benefited greatly from 26 points in the paint and 13 points off of turnovers. The ThunderWolves were more impressive in the paint with 30 points, but shot just 30 percent from three-point range. With the loss, CSU-Pueblo's bid to defend its RMAC Tournament title comes to close as does its season.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
In the early going, it appeared to be another dominant victory for Mines as the Orediggers surged to a 20-8 lead by the end of the first quarter. That lead grew all the way to 24-10 in the second period thanks to free throws from Denali Pinto and a fastbreak layup off a turnover from Herrera. Mines carried its double-digit cushion into halftime with a 36-24 advantage.
 
Coming out of the break, the ThunderWolves showed they weren't done yet. CSU-Pueblo exploded for 22 points in the third quarter and held the Orediggers to just 11 of their own. With just 10 minutes remaining, Mines found itself clinging to a one-point lead.
 
Archambeau stepped in and took over the fourth quarter with 11 points in the final period. The senior from Canon City, Colo., did not miss a shot, going 5-for-5 from the floor and 1-for-1 at the free-throw line. Despite neither team scoring for almost three minutes, Archambeau remained unfazed. With 2:23 remaining in the game, she hit back-to-back layups to keep Mines ahead by six points. Fellow senior Cassidy Budge stepped in with seven seconds remaining and drained the game-clinching free throw.
 
NOTABLES
- Mines is 21-36 in the all-time series against CSU-Pueblo.
- Tuesday marks the first RMAC Tournament win of Brittany Simpson's head coaching career.
- Mines' last RMAC Tournament victory came in 2009 when it advanced to the championship game.
- The Orediggers are now 5-17 all-time in the conference postseason.
- Kollmorgen surpassed 900 points for her career in Tuesday's victory.
- Archambeau has racked up 24 assists over her last six games.
- Archambeau also surpassed 600 points for her career in just two seasons at Mines.
- Head coach Brittany Simpson is 113-87 in seven years at the helm.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Mines travels to Grand Junction, Colo., where it will face top-seeded Colorado Mesa at 5:30 p.m. on Friday evening. Live video and stats of the game 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.