#10 Mines (11-1-3, 8-0-2) vs. CSU Pueblo (4-9-2, 3-4-2) – Sunday, 2 p.m. – Pueblo, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]

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TWO TO GO
Only two matches are left in the regular season for the #10 Colorado School of Mines women's soccer team as the Orediggers have just one match on the books this weekend as they will head south to matchup against CSU Pueblo Sunday afternoon.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
The match this weekend will be streamed free of charge on the RMAC Network and will have live stats through StatBroadcast.
 
AT THE HELM
Head Coach Kevin Fickes is in his 13th season leading the Mines women's soccer program, already the program's all-time leader in wins at 202-36-35. His .804 career win percentage is currently among the top-10 active NCAA Division II coaches, and Friday at CCU he became just the second RMAC coach to reach 200 career victories, joining current UCCS boss J.B. Belzer. Through 2021, Fickes has overseen 24 All-American selections, 12 Academic All-Americans, 63 all-conference honorees, and 19 RMAC major award winners while guiding Mines to five RMAC regular-season titles and eight RMAC Tournament trophies, with 12 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances.
 
WELCOME TO THE 200 CLUB
As previously mentioned, head coach Kevin Fickes collected his 200th career win on October 6 when Mines defeated Colorado Christian in Lakewood 3-0 behind goals from Colleen Tyrrell and Reese McDermott. Fickes, who took over as head coach ahead of the 2010 season, has won no fewer than 11 games in a season during his tenure at Mines, notwithstanding the 2020-21 season played in the spring on account of CoVID-19. The Orediggers are poised for another double-digit win season again in 2022, currently having won nine times this season and sit just two points back of Regis for the top spot in the league as they pursue a sixth RMAC regular season crown.

WEARING THE ARMBAND
The Orediggers have selected Jordan Barnhart and Meg Zimmerman as their captains for the 2022 season. Barnhart is entering her third season as a starter at centerback and played more minutes than any other Oredigger last season in guiding a defense that had a 0.73 GAA. Zimmerman, a forward, is a fifth-year senior returning from an injury-shortened 2021 season that saw her score a goal in the season opener; she has five career goals and three assists.
 
WEEK EIGHT REVIEW
Mines remained hot on the heels of league-leading Regis with 3-1 and 1-0 wins over Fort Lewis and Western Colorado over the weekend. Amena Nelson, Afton Rasco and Ava Harman each scored in the Friday night win over the Skyhawks, which set a new record for most consecutive home matches without a loss at 26. On Sunday, Rasco again scored the game-winner in a 1-0 win over the Mountaineers as Ellise Putnam and Harman each earned an assist on the play while Sadie Wolf and the defense recorded the 10th shutout of the season.
 
IN THE POLLS
The Orediggers were chosen atop the RMAC preseason coaches' poll announced earlier this season and maintained their standing at #10 in the United Soccer Coaches Division II Top-25 poll this week. It was a close race in the RMAC poll with Mines, UCCS, and Colorado Mesa all splitting the bulk of the first-place votes and just three points overall separating the three teams. One of Mines' previous opponents, Dallas Baptist, continues to remain in sole possession of first place in the poll, while early season foe Seattle Pacific is continues to recieve votes in this week's rankings. In the first set of regional rankings released Wednesday by the NCAA, Mines was one of four RMAC teams listed in the South Central Region. Joining the Orediggers are MSU Denver, UCCS and Westminster, while Angelo State, Dallas Baptist, UT Tyler and West Texs A&M were also among those included.
 
ON TRACK
This year's roster boasts not one, but two dual-sport athletes as both senior Amena Nelson and freshman Callie Fuhr will spend their winters and springs competing for the Mines track & field program. Nelson can rightly claim to be the RMAC's fastest woman on the track or the pitch, coming off a superb outdoor season that saw her win the RMAC 400m dash title and claim RMAC 4x400 gold both indoors and out. Fuhr is also a 400m runner as a four-time Colorado 5A state qualifier and two-time top-10 placer in the event.  

THEM'S THE RULES
NCAA soccer has implemented a major rule change this season with the elimination of overtime in the regular season, bringing college soccer more in line with the FIFA Laws of the Game. Any match that is tied at the 90-minute mark will now end that way. In the postseason, there will be overtime but no more golden goal; teams will play two full 10-minute extra periods regardless of any goals and if it is still tied, the advancing team will be decided on penalty kicks.
 
SCOUTING CSU PUEBLO
The ThunderWolves got back in the win column last time out on Sunday at New Mexico Highlands with a 2-1 win for their first victory since September 30. This season has been a challenging one for CSUP, as they dropped five of their first six matches to open the season and at one point dropped three straight in RMAC play. For the year, Faith Meredith is the team's leading scorer and only player on the roster with more than one goal to their ledger this season with four, as seven other ThunderWolves have one goal each. One of those seven, Katie Bean, has a team-best two assists while six others have also assisted on goals this season. In goal, Nicole Genis has started in 12 of 13 appearances and has 53 saves to rank among to top 10 in the league to go with three clean sheets and a 1.48 GAA in 1,036 minutes. Breanna Encinas has started three times in five matches and has 11 saves along with a shutout of her own and a GAA of 2.18 in 248 minutes, while Cortney Cowles has played the remaining 66 minutes this season and has six saves in her lone appearance of the year.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Sunday will be the 29th meeting of the ThunderWolves and Orediggers, with Mines leading the series 16-8-4. Last season's meeting in Golden resulted in a 3-0 Mines win and was the fifth win in the last seven matchups. In the spring 2021 season, CSUP ended Mines' season in the RMAC tournament semifinals by advancing 4-2 on penalties in a 0-0 draw. The last regular-season loss for the Orediggers came all the way back in 2016 in a 2-0 loss in Pueblo.
 
LOOKING AT THE STAT SHEET
15 matches are in the books in 2022 for Mines and Reese McDermott continues to lead the way in scoring with nine goals, the second-most in the RMAC this season. Laura Butler has five goals and added to her team-leading assist total of five with one on Friday night against Fort Lewis. Afton Rasco scored in each match last weekend and is now tied with Butler for second on the team with five goals, making it back-to-back seasons a Mines freshman has scored five or more times in their debut season; McDermott did so last year and finished with eight. Jordan Barnhart has four goals and is up to three assists following one Friday night, while Amena Nelson, Paola Rubi and Katie Koehler each have three goals. In goal, Sadie Wolf has continued her strong play, as she recorded her third shutout in her first five collegiate appearances Sunday against Western Colorado and has now recorded 11 saves in 450 minutes, posting a GAA of 0.60 and a save percentage of .786. Emma Carstens started the first nine matches of the season and posted five shutouts and 20 saves in 791 minutes with a GAA of 0.91, while Allie Lundgren recorded a shutout in her first start and has played 109 minutes in two matches with making four saves and not allowing a goal.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Just one match remains on the docket in the regular season for the Orediggers, as they continue to battle for the RMAC Regular Season Championship and will take on current league leader Regis Wednesday night October 26 at Stermole Stadium beginning at 6 p.m. Prior to the start of the match, Mines will recognize the six seniors on this year's squad whose careers will be ending at the conclusion of the season.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines women's soccer on Twitter at @mineswsoc. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.