INDIANAPOLIS  – The #17-ranked Colorado School of Mines Volleyball team overcame a three-set, weekend-opening loss to Harding (4-1) to take down Winona State (2-4) in five sets as the Orediggers went 1-1 on opening day of the UIndy Invitational.
 
Offensively it was Abby Tiesman leading the way with 27 kills on a .333 hitting percentage. Megan Neil, Amanda Donais, Lindsey Jin and Taylor Hicken also finished the day with double-digit kills. At the setter position, Drew Stokes paced the Orediggers with 71 assists over eight sets.
 
Defensively, Elle Duis ground out 38 digs with Neil adding 20 to the total. Stokes and Tiesman had 12 digs apiece. At the net, Tiesman racked up five total blocks with four assists and one solo. Janice Jin, Hicken and Neil had multiple blocks as well.
 
As a team, Mines tallied a total of 100 kills with 115 digs and eight total blocks. The loss to Harding marked the Orediggers' first of the season after starting the year 4-0.
 
Match One – Harding 3, #17 Mines 0
The Orediggers fell behind early in the first set but rallied back to tie the game 4-4. A team effort sparked the run as Teisman, Richardson, Hicken and Lindsey Jin all recorded kills. Both teams exchanged three-point and four-point spurts all the way to 18-18. However, the Bisons (4-1) outscored Mines 7-2 down the home stretch to claim a 25-20 victory.
 
In the second set, Mines appeared prepared to even the match 1-1 as they led 20-15. Harding mounted a rally that featured six unanswered points and stunned the Orediggers as the Bisons won 25-23 and claimed a commanding 2-0 lead in the match. Another back-and-forth battle in the final set went to Harding as they claimed the sweep to improve to 4-1.
 
Match Two - #17 Mines 3, RV Winona State 2
Mines defied the odds in their second match of the day to come away victorious after five grueling sets. Winona State scored more points, service aces and blocks, but it would be the Orediggers coming out on top.
 
Defense reigned supreme in the first set as Mines hit just .156, but held the Warriors to .080 as the Orediggers took a 1-0 lead behind a 25-22 victory. However, the second and third sets would go to Winona State by a combined score of 50-33.
 
The last two games of the match were all Orediggers. Mines hit a match-best .483 in the fourth set to win 25-19 and took a lopsided, 15-5 victory in the decider to come away triumphant.
 
NOTABLES
- Mines has started its season 5-1 in four of the last five seasons.
- Tiesman has recorded double-digit kills in five of six matches this season with 45 combined kills in her last three appearances.
- Stokes continues to lead the Orediggers with 260 assists on the year.
- True freshman Julia Eiken made her Oredigger debut against Winona State.
- Head coach Jamie Magalei is 237-82 in 11 seasons at Mines.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Mines closes the UIndy Invitational Saturday with matches against Quincy (1 p.m. ET) and UIndy (7 p.m. ET). Live stats and video 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.