#17 Mines (13-2, 12-2 RMAC) vs. Westminster (9-3, 9-3 RMAC) – Friday, 5:30 p.m. – Lockridge Arena [Live Stats] [Live Video]
#17 Mines (11-2, 10-2 RMAC) vs. Colorado Mesa (12-5, 12-5 RMAC) – Saturday, 5 p.m. – Lockridge Arena [Live Stats] [Live Video]
 

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WEEKEND RUNDOWN
The #17-ranked Colorado School of Mines Women's Basketball team returns to Lockridge Arena this weekend for games against Westminster and Colorado Mesa. The Orediggers tout an eight-game win streak and sit atop the conference standings. However, the Griffins and Mavericks are right on Mines' heals sitting third and tied for fourth in the RMAC. Both opponents will be looking for payback after falling to the Orediggers earlier this season. All of that sets the stage for a pair of exciting showdowns in Golden.
 
STILL NO SPECTATORS
The Orediggers announced this week that the policy of spectators not being allowed at home games will continue both for winter's indoor sports and for outdoor sports to start the spring. Mines Athletics will continue to re-evaluate this policy for home games in the future as conditions allow. In the meantime, all games home and away are streamed live and for free on the RMAC Network, which is also available on the AppleTV, Roku, and AmazonFire app stores.
 
ALWAYS CHANGING
While the last few weeks have seen a drop in schedule changes for the women's basketball team, the mantra, "Be prepared for anything," still stands. As of the writing of this preview, the Oredigger women still have outstanding contests against Regis, Adams State and MSU Denver. However, time is running out to find makeup dates for those three games. The men's side features a slew of their own changes. Both the men and women are officially eligible for the RMAC and NCAA postseasons. The potential for change is still high. All adjustments will be announced at www.minesathletics.com and on Twitter at @MinesWBB and @MinesAthletics.
 
LOOKING BACK
Mines hit the road last weekend for a pair of contests at Fort Lewis and nationally-ranked Western Colorado. The Orediggers came away with two big wins after an 81-64 victory at FLC and a 63-59 upset of then #7 WCU. Denali Pinto led the team in scoring in both games, dropping 18 on the Skyhawks followed by 23 against the Mountaineers. Megan Van de Graaf, Sammy Van Sickle and Ashley Steffeck also scored in double digits in Durango. On Saturday in Gunnison, Raven Herrera pumped out 15 points as well while Van Sickle grabbed 10 rebounds, blocked five shots and scored seven points.
 
SCOUTING WESTMINSTER
Earlier this season, Westminster hosted Mines as the #1-ranked field-goal shooting team in the country. The Griffins are still #1 in the same category as they arrive in Golden, Colo., boasting back-to-back wins and four victories in their last five games. Westminster's only losses this season have come against Colorado School of Mines, South Dakota Mines and Black Hills State. Four different Griffins average double-digit points per game. Hunter Krebs leads that quartet with 15.4 points per game while shooting over 60 percent from the floor. Sarah McGinley is tops on the glass with 5.8 rebounds per game, but Krebs is right behind with 5.7 per game. As a team, WC also ranks #6 in the nation in fewest fouls per game and #15 in three-point field-goal percentage. The Griffins literally make half the shots they attempt and the result is over 70 points per game. Mines will have its hands full as the Orediggers look for the regular-season sweep of Westminster.
 
WHY WESTMINSTER?
In previous meetings between Mines and WC, fans learned that Westminster College used to be the Parsons, touts roots in the Presbyterian Church and also did not have an athletics program for a while. But why is a school in Salt Lake City, Utah called Westminster anyway? The name Westminster itself is most associated with the district in central London, England, that is part of the wider city of Westminster. The name also refers to the Parliament of the United Kingdom located in the UNESCO World Heritage Palace of Westminster. Also important is that the school was founded on Presbyterian principals. The Presbyterian Church traces its roots back to Great Britain, which is where…. Westminster is located. Interestingly, the Presbyterian Wikipedia page states Scotland as the specific part of Great Britain in which the church was founded, but its close enough and gives an idea why a school in the mountains of Utah is named after a London neighborhood.
 
SCOUTING COLORADO MESA
While it's not the year Colorado Mesa Women's Basketball has grown accustomed to, the Mavericks are still in the running for a conference title at 12-5 overall and in RMAC play. That being said, CMU is 2-2 over its last four games including losses to Westminster and Western Colorado. Earlier this season, Colorado Mesa did put together five straight wins against the likes of Chadron State, Adams State, UCCS and CSU Pueblo. As a team, the Mavericks hold a slight edge as the #1 defense in the RMAC while sitting #12 in the nation. Individually, Daniella Turner is CMU's leading scorer with 15.0 points per game, but she hasn't played since Jan. 9 against Black Hills State. Picking up the slack are Natalie Bartle and Kylyn Rigsby with 14.9 and 13.8 points per game, respectively. Furthermore, Kelsey Siemons boasts 28 blocks on the season. Additionally Siemons and Sophie Anderson each average 6.1 rebounds per game. Overall, Colorado Mesa limits opponents to 53.5 points per game while scoring 67.5 per contest on their own behalf.
 
FUN COW FACTS
For those who may have forgotten, a quick review reminds us that a maverick – Colorado Mesa's athletics nickname and mascot – is an unbranded calf or yearling – a cow. We'll ignore the gross inaccuracies between the Mavericks' logo and actual definition of their name and move right into fun cow facts. While America is (somewhat) historically known for its red-meat eating, carnivorous ways, the U.S.A. does not actually have the most cows. As of 2016, India had the largest cattle inventory on the planet followed by Brazil and then China. There are over 800 different cattle breeds and none of them eat meat – ever. Possibly the most interesting fact about cows is they can see almost 360 degrees – allowing them to watch for predators from all angles. Ironically, they don't see so well straight in front of them. Cows can detect odors of to six miles away and don't like to be alone. Bovine have 32 teeth but no upper front teeth. All that being said, the author never imagined writing nearly 200 words about cows, but here we are.

SERIES HISTORY – WESTMINSTER
Colorado School of Mines and Westminster College meet for the 10th time in women's basketball on Friday evening. It marks the second meeting this season between the two teams. On Jan. 23, the Orediggers came from behind in Salt Lake City and earned a 56-51 victory. Sammy Van Sickle and Ashley Steffeck led the way in that game. Steffeck led all players with 16 points while grabbing six rebounds, snagging three steals, blocking two shots and dishing out one assist. Van Sickle had nine points, four steals, two rebounds and two blocks. The victory gave Mines a 5-4 advantage in the all-time series, and marked the first back-to-back wins for either team in the rivalry since it began in 1979.
 
SERIES HISTORY – COLORADO MESA
Saturday marks the 75th showdown between the Colorado School of Mines Women's Basketball team and Colorado Mesa. The Orediggers snapped a seven-game losing streak to the Mavericks earlier this season as they escaped Grand Junction with a 58-50 win. It was Mines' first win in Grand Junction since Dec. 12, 2008. Sammy Van Sickle and Raven Herrera both scored 13 points in the victory. Van Sickle also grabbed eight rebounds while Liz Holter added 10 points of her own along with nine rebounds. While the win was monumental for Mines, the Orediggers haven't won back-to-back games against CMU since Dec. 5, 2009. Additionally Mines hasn't swept a season series versus the Mavericks since 1981. The Orediggers look to break both those slumps on Saturday night inside Lockridge Arena.
 
NATIONALLY RANKED
The Colorado School of Mines Women's Basketball team entered the national rankings on Tuesday morning in historic fashion, sitting #17 in the media poll and #25 on the coaches' list. Mines' spot at #17 in the Women's Basketball Division II Media Poll sponsored by D2SIDA marks the program's highest ranking ever. Additionally, the Orediggers' #25 ranking is their first-ever appearance in the NCAA Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll from the Women's Basketball Coaches' Association (WBCA). The last time Mines appeared in the national rankings was the 2015-16 season when they climbed as high as #21 in week nine of the D2SIDA rankings.
 
RMAC OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Less than one week after earning Colorado Sportswoman of the Year for college basketball, Denali Pinto earned RMAC Offensive Player of the Week honors for the first time this season. Pinto guided Mines to first place in the RMAC standings with 20.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.0 assists per game as the Orediggers went 2-0 last weekend. The junior started with 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting in Mines' 81-64 win at Fort Lewis. She closed the weekend in a big way by scoring 23 points at #7-ranked Western Colorado including the game-winning three-pointer with 44 seconds to play. The Boulder, Colo., native's production pushed Mines to a 63-59 win over WCU and allowed the Orediggers to take over first place in the conference standings. It marks Pinto's first RMAC Offensive Player of the Week award this season and fourth weekly award of her career.
 
OREDIGGER GEMS
On Jan. 3, 2020, Denali Pinto exploded for 30 points against Westminster in an 80-70 Oredigger win at Behnken Field House in Salt Lake City. Then a sophomore, Pinto shot 10-of-13 from the floor including 3-of-4 from three-point range. She also converted seven out of nine free-throw attempts. The eventual RMAC Player of the Year added two rebounds, one steal and one assist as well. It marked the second 30-point game of Pinto's career and her first of the three in the 2019-20 season. In the history of Mines women's basketball, no other Oredigger has more than two games in which they scored at least 30 points. Here's to hoping Pinto drops another 30 spot on Friday night.
 
GROUND RULES
In late November, the RMAC released information about the season structure and return-to-play guidelines for basketball. All teams will have a 22-game conference schedule (non-conference play being optional), and any game that is not played due to COVID-19 issues will be declared a "no contest." All student-athletes and team support staff must test negative within 72 hours of the game, and in the state of Colorado, in everyone the arena will wear a mask except for the 10 active players on the court. An RMAC champion will be declared if at least five teams complete 50 percent of their originally approved schedule (11 games). The champion and RMAC Tournament qualifiers will be determined by use of the NCAA Division II RPI system.
 
UP NEXT
Mines closes out the regular season Feb. 26-27 with games at Adams State and CSU Pueblo. No spectators will be allowed. However, live stats and video will be available for free at www.minesathletics.com.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines women's basketball on Twitter and Instagram at @MinesWBB. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.