GOLDEN, Colo. – The Colorado School of Mines Volleyball team celebrated Senior Night on Saturday evening with a five-set win over MSU Denver inside Lockridge Arena.
 
Appropriately, it was Abby Tiesman leading the charge with 20 kills while leading all hitters with a .381 attacking percentage. Additionally, the senior middle blocker tossed up three service aces and six total blocks in the five-set victory. Amanda Donais finished right behind her elder with 15 kills while Lindsey Jin and Rose Stuewe chipped in 12 and 10 kills, respectively. Drew Stokes was stellar as floor captain thanks to a 53-assist, 14-dig double-double with five total blocks. Elle Duis stole the show in the back row behind 23 digs.
 
In what proved to be a defensive battle, Mines (17-6, 10-5 RMAC) hit just .194 as a team, but limited MSU Denver (17-5, 12-2 RMAC) to .181 on the attack thanks to 10 total blocks. Additionally, the Orediggers had more points, kills and aces while the Roadrunners won the battle in assists and digs. It marks MSU Denver's second loss in RMAC play and snaps the Roadrunners' five-match winning streak. Furthermore, it's Mines' first 2-0 weekend since sweeping CSU-Pueblo and New Mexico Highlands over homecoming. The Orediggers remain alone in fifth place in the conference standings, but increase their resume for seeding in the NCAA Tournament.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
In summary, Saturday night's five-set thriller came down to Mines' victories in the first and fifth sets. After falling behind 4-0 in the first game, the Orediggers put together a 5-0 run to put itself in the lead thanks to two blocks and a kill by Tiesman. Once back in the match, Mines pushed MSU Denver to the brink and found victory in extra points by a score of 28-26. The first-set win was fueled by seven kills and three blocks off the hand of Tiesman. The home team finished the first round with four blocks, 14 digs and a .229 hitting percentage compared to three blocks, 22 digs and a .130 hitting percentage by the Roadrunners.
 
The next three frames featured a 25-22 win for the visitors in set two and a 25-20 win for Mines in set three. MSU Denver forced a decisive fifth set thanks to a 25-22 victory in game four. It should be noted that Amanda Donais pumped out seven kills in the second frame while Elle Duis came up with nine digs in the third set. All the action in sets two, three and four resulted in a total of 20 ties and seven lead changes. Half of those tied scores came in the fourth set with 10 draws and four lead changes in that frame alone.
 
While Tiesman was the star of the night, it was Donais and Julia Eiken who stole the show in the fifth, and final, set of the night. MSU Denver took the first point which resulted in a trading of blows through the next 12 rallies. Then, Mines ripped off a 6-0 run that put the Orediggers at a 12-6 advantage. The surge was fueled by a block and a kill by Donais. It would be too much for the Roadrunners to handle in a game that featured five ties and just one lead change. Eiken knocked down the final kill to clinch the five-set victory thanks to a pass from April Jurgensen and the set by Stokes. Donais led all players with four kills in the last frame.
 
NOTABLES
- Mines is now 13-14 against MSU Denver with Jamie Magalei as head coach.
- The Orediggers have won three of their last four matches against the Roadrunners.
- Saturday marked Tiesman's fourth 20-kill match of the year.
- Prior to Magalei's arrival, Mines had won only four matches over MSU Denver in 52 tries.
- Stokes' double-double extends her team lead with double-digit double-doubles in her career as a true sophomore.
- Prior to Friday's match, Colorado School of Mines President Dr. Paul Johnson presented Tiesman with a ball commemorating the 1,000th kill of her career.
- The Orediggers are now 108-16 in RMAC play dating back to 2012.
- Mines' senior class was honored following Saturday's victory for claiming 91 wins overall and over 50 wins in conference play.
- Head coach Jamie Magalei is 272-93 in 12 seasons at the helm.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
The Orediggers return to action next Friday and Saturday for matches at Colorado Mesa and Western Colorado. First serve is slated for 7 p.m. Friday and 6 p.m. Saturday with live stats at www.minesathletics.com.
 
Keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all season long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics. Fans can also follow Mines Volleyball on Twitter using the handle @MinesVolleyball.