GOLDEN, Colo. – The Colorado School of Mines Women's Basketball team racked up 15 steals and forced 27 Chadron State turnovers Friday night as the Orediggers cruised to an 81-52 victory over the Eagles inside Lockridge Arena.
 
True freshman Denali Pinto flexed her defensive prowess with four steals in the game. Pinto also scored 16 points with three assists and two rebounds. Nicole Archambeau matched her teammate in steals and grabbed six rebounds with three assists. Megan Van de Graaf furthered Mines' defensive dominance as she led all players on the glass with 12 rebounds off the bench. Eight of Van de Graaf's boards were on the defensive end. Cassidy Budge (13), Raven Herrera (11) and Anna Kollmorgen (10) joined Pinto in the double-digit scoring club as well.
 
Mines' 15 steals matched its season high on the defensive side of the ball. The Orediggers (13-8, 10-6 RMAC) also combined to dish out 19 assists. Chadron State (4-18, 3-13 RMAC) matched Mines on the glass – a feat few teams have accomplished. Both teams finished with 36 rebounds each. The victory moves the Orediggers into a five-way tie for third place in the RMAC standings and provides redemption after a 73-76 heartbreaker at Chadron State earlier this season.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Orediggers never trailed in the game as Archambeau took all of 12 seconds to give Mines a 2-0 advantage. Chadron State battled back with the confidence of its win earlier in the year, tying the game 8-8 with 5:57 remaining in the opening period. However, Archambeau sparked a 10-2 run that started with a pair of free throws and ended with a Heidi Hammond jumper to give the home team an 18-10 advantage.
 
Chadron State's 8-8 tie in the first quarter lasted 45 seconds and would be the closest the Eagles would get to Mines. The Orediggers outscored CSC 19-11 in the second quarter behind eight points from Budge and three steals from Pinto. Mines carried that momentum through halftime and into the third period as it put up 26 points with 10 from Pinto. Defensively, the Orediggers limited the Eagles to just 35-percent shooting from the field in the third frame and would not let up in the final period.
 
In the last 10 minutes of play, Mines allowed just three field goals from Chadron State including only one basket from long range. On the other end of the floor, the Orediggers extended their lead all the way to 32 points with 3:35 left to play. Mines cleared the bench and played all of its reserves, maintaining nearly a 30-point advantage to clinch the win.
 
NOTABLES
- Mines is 28-34 in the all-time series against Chadron State.
- The Orediggers now have double-digit RMAC wins in four straight seasons.
- Friday marked Mines' 11th double-digit win of the year.
- All 14 of the active Orediggers on Mines' roster saw action against Chadron State.
- Heidi Hammond maintained her perfect career mark from the free-throw line, going 2-for-2 against the Eagles. She's now 17-of-17 from the charity stripe in her career.
- Mines also recorded 15 steals against Texas A&M-International on Nov. 23 and Dixie State on Jan. 5.
- Van de Graaf's 12 rebounds against Chadron State are a career high for the true freshman.
- Pinto and Archambeau both matched their career high in steals Friday night.
- Raven Herrera surpassed 200 rebounds for her career with five against the Eagles.
- Head coach Brittany Simpson is 108-85 in seven years at the helm.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Mines hosts MSU Denver Saturday night at 5 p.m. inside Lockridge Arena with "Rock the Lock" festivities kicking off at 4:30 p.m. 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.