Mines (8-6, 5-4 RMAC) at South Dakota Mines (5-8, 3-6 RMAC) – Friday, 5:30 p.m. – Rapid City, S.D. [Live Stats] [Live Video]
Mines (8-6, 5-4 RMAC) at Black Hills State (9-5, 6-3 RMAC) – Saturday, 4 p.m. – Spearfish, S.D. [Live Stats] [Live Video]
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".
COMING RIGHT UP
The Colorado School of Mines Women's Basketball team heads to South Dakota this weekend to renew a set of RMAC rivalries. The Orediggers face their engineering counterparts at South Dakota Mines on Friday in Rapid City. On Saturday, Mines makes the jaunt to Spearfish for a showdown at Black Hills State. It marks the first of two meetings between the programs this season. All three teams sit within three games of each other in the RMAC standings. Two wins for any part involved puts that squad in the running for a conference tournament berth or even hosting rights as a top four seed. Thirteen games remain in the league's regular-season slate, and only three wins separate the teams that will host and those in line to miss the conference tournament.
LAST WEEKEND
Mines posted a record of 1-1 last Friday and Saturday as it dominated Adams State before falling to Fort Lewis, both inside Lockridge Arena. The Orediggers rolled to a 79-36 win over the Grizzlies as
Denali Pinto scored 19 points while
Sammy Van Sickle notched a 12-point, 15-rebound double-double. Mines shot over 42 percent from the field and held ASU under 25 percent.
Courtney Stanton,
Heidi Hammond and
Liz Holter also scored double digits in the win. On Saturday, the Orediggers' shooting went ice cold in a 64-55 loss to Fort Lewis. Pinto's 18 points provided a bright spot for the home team. Van Sickle also pulled down 10 rebounds. However, FLC hit nearly 40 percent of its shots from the field and held Mines under 30 percent.
SCOUTING SOUTH DAKOTA MINES
The women's basketball team at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology is 5-8 overall and 3-6 in conference play this season. It provides a remarkable resemblance to last season's record of 12-14 (9-13 RMAC). That being said, SDSMT boasts wins over Dixie State and Colorado Christian who sit ahead of the Hardrockers in the RMAC standings. South Dakota Mines' other conference win was a 75-46 decision at home against Adams State. Ryan Weiss leads SDSMT in scoring thanks to 15.3 points per game and ranks #9 in NCAA Division II in three-point field goals per game. However, Anna Haugen is the player to watch. She's averaging a 11.0-point, 10.2-rebound double-double per game. Haugen also ranks in the nation's top-30 in defensive rebounds per game and rebounds per game. To top it off, she leads the team with 32 assists, 14 steals and five blocks over 13 games. As a team, the Hardrockers are #9 in the nation in fewest total fouls and #24 in fewest fouls per game. An intriguing statistic considering the Orediggers' success at the free-throw line this season.
LONGHAIRS TO HARDROCKERS
South Dakota School of Mines and Technology boasts Hardrockers as its nickname which refers to a miner who specializes in the extraction of harder minerals as opposed to coal or softer sediment. Grubby the Miner is their mascot. However, the athletic teams were originally named the Longhairs when the first football team formed in 1895. Despite a variety of connotations and denotations, "longhair" is defined by Dictionary.com as "an intellectual" or, "a person, often gifted, who is very interested in or devoted to the arts". The school eventually switched to the Hardrockers and also transitioned to NCAA Division II in 2013 and accepted an invitation to the RMAC in 2014.
THE KING CENTER
Home court for Hardrocker basketball is Goodell Gymnasium at the King Center. With bleacher seating for up to 3,000, Goodell Gymnasium provides a relatively average small-college setting for sporting events. Described on SDSMT's website as, "the athletic hub of campus with facilities for athletic teams," the King Center also houses the campus wellness center for all students and the Hardrock Club which provides student-athlete scholarships.
SCOUTING BLACK HILLS STATE
Black Hills State hosts UCCS on Friday evening before welcoming Colorado School of Mines to scenic Spearfish, S.D., on Saturday. The Yellow Jackets start the weekend with a two-game win streak and sit #5 in the RMAC thanks to an overall mark of 9-5 and a 6-3 record in conference play. Black Hills State's back-to-back wins came at the expense of Colorado Christian and Regis. The Yellow Jackets also boast victories over Western Colorado and Fort Lewis. Two thirds of BHSU's wins have come by double digits. Individually, Racaquel Wientjes and Morgan Ham provide a one-two punch behind 31.2 combined points per game. Wientjes also leads the team in steals with 22. Katie Messler is tops in rebounding and blocks thanks to 5.4 boards per game and seven blocks on the year. The trio Abby Switzer, Ashley Davis and Ashlee Beacom own a total of 71 assists between the three.
KNOW YOUR VESPULA
Black Hills State University claims the Yellow Jacket as the nickname for its athletics teams. Sometimes mistakenly called bees, yellow jackets are actually wasps of the genera (genus plural) Vespula and Dolichovespula. Specifically, yellow jackets are referred to as social wasps meaning they form colonies, but nest above ground. While bees are only capable of stinging once, wasps can sting repeatedly and painfully. Yellow Jacket colonies/nests can reach sizes up to 4,000-5,000 workers. Their diet consists of fruits, nectar and tree sap. While the two-word spelling has become popular over time, the proper entomological spelling is as a single word, yellowjacket.
THE DONALD E. YOUNG CENTER
Black Hills State touts the Donald E. Young Center as the hub of the BHSU campus and the home court for the basketball and volleyball programs. The Yellow Jackets' arena was built in 1900 and serves multiple rolls. The building features fitness facilities, an aquatics center and a field house with a walking track. No capacity is listed for the competition gym, but it exclusively features bleacher style seating for fans.
SERIES HISTORY
Colorado School of Mines is 4-5 in the all-time series against South Dakota Mines. The Orediggers last beat SDSMT on Jan. 18, 2019 in a 78-56 win inside Lockridge Arena. However, the Hardrockers responded with a 56-54 win of their own in Rapid City on Feb. 23, 2019. Over those two meetings,
Denali Pinto has torched South Dakota Mines with 31 total points, 12 rebounds, three assists, two steals and one block. Fans can do the math on per-game averages. Black Hills State represents another tumultuous all-time series. Mines trails 5-6 after splitting with BHSU last season. On Jan. 19, 2019, the Orediggers rolled to a 67-55 victory over the Yellow Jackets inside Lockridge Arena. Black Hills State returned the favor in South Dakota with a 64-51 win of its own. Once again, Pinto highlighted the home win by notching a 22-point, 10-rebound double-double.
STEFFECK SIBLING RIVALRY
Friday isn't just the renewal of a rivalry between two engineering schools. That's right, the ties on Friday evening will run deeper than education and athletics. It's a clash based in blood as family faces off against family. For the first time at the collegiate level, and possibly the first time ever in sanctioned competition,
Ashley Steffeck and Sami Steffeck will meet on the hardwood. Ashley is a true freshman for Colorado School of Mines boasting 10 starts with 49 points, 37 rebounds, 14 assists, 12 steals and eight blocks. Sami is a senior for South Dakota Mines who has started every game in 2019-20 with 108 points, 30 rebounds, 15 assists nine steals and one block. Despite starting all 13 games, Sami Steffeck has yet to attempt a free throw in her senior season. Both sisters attended and graduated from Fossil Ridge High School in Fort Collins, Colo. The duo also played club basketball for BC Denver. That means the sisters have played for the same team and never against each other for nearly a decade. Of course, driveway contests and pick-up showdowns are not accounted for. Either way, the collegiate rivalry will last just one season, so be sure to check it out while you still can.
BALL SECURITY
A term often associated with football, Mines' ball security has slowly, but surely, moved closer to elite. The Orediggers started the season with a shocking 22 turnovers against UAFS in Austin, Texas. However, over the last three games, Mines has committed just 26 total turnovers. That includes only nine at Dixie State and nine against Adams State with eight versus Fort Lewis. The Orediggers' three-game run has them ranked #16 in the nation in fewest total turnovers and #22 in fewest turnovers per game. Those numbers rank #2 and #3, respectively, in the RMAC. Fort Lewis leads the league in both categories.
FREEBIES
As the season rolls on, the Orediggers continue their tenacious run at the free-throw line. Over halfway through the campaign, Mines ranks #11 in the nation in free-throw percentage and #32 in free-throws made. The Orediggers are currently shooting over 79 percent at the charity stripe and the program's single-season record is 73.0 percent as a team. The standing record was set in the 2008-09 season.
Denali Pinto has fueled Mines' run at the free-throw line by sinking 97 free throws at a clip of 91.5 percent. She ranks #6 in the nation in free throws made, #8 in free-throw percentage and #11 in free-throw attempts. Mines' single-season records for an individual are 156 free throws made and 86.9 percent.
LOOKING AHEAD
Mines returns to Lockridge Arena Jan. 24-25 to host MSU Denver and Chadron State. Live stats and video of the 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.
