#21 Mines (17-5, 12-2 RMAC) at Westminster (5-17, 3-11 RMAC) – Salt Lake City, Utah – Friday, 6 p.m. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]
#21 Mines (17-5, 12-2 RMAC) at #19 Colorado Mesa (17-4, 12-2 RMAC) – Grand Junction, Colo. – Saturday, 4 p.m. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]

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ROAD TRIP ROLLS ON
The #21 Colorado School of Mines Volleyball team finishes its four-match road trip this weekend with a trip to Salt Lake City, Utah, and back through Grand Junction, Colo. Mines' matches at Westminster and #19 Colorado Mesa also mark the final road trip of the regular season. Both showdowns will be key for postseason seeding as the Orediggers run up against a slumping Griffins squad and a red-hot Mavericks team.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
Both matches this weeked and all remaining matches for Oredigger volleyball in 2022 will stream live and for free on the RMAC Network which can be accessed at minesathletics.com/tv as well as with apps on all major smart TV platforms by searching RMAC. Live statistics are also available at www.minesathletics.com.
 
LOOKING BACK
Mines started its four-match road trip last week with a trip to CSU Pueblo on Friday and another quick jaunt to UCCS on Saturday. The Orediggers took down a ThunderWolves team that was, and still is, receiving votes in the national poll. Mines earned the 3-1 win against the #2 blocking team in the conference thanks to Rose Stuewe's 20 kills on .350 hitting. Also helpful was Megan Neil's 12-kill, 12-dig double-double. Drew Stokes tossed in a 47-assist, 10-dig double-double and Elle Duis racked up 26 digs as well. Saturday's sweep of UCCS was aided by eight total blocks for the Orediggers. Emily Knight had four blocks of her own while Shannon Perna and Morgan McChesney added three apiece. Neil led the attack with nine kills on a .444 attack percentage. The victories over the weekend extended Mines' win streak to four.
 
SCOUTING WESTMINSTER
Another RMAC program in its first season under new leadership, Westminster enters the weekend 5-17 overall and 3-11 in conference play with Sue Dulaney at the helm. The Griffins won back-to-back matches on the road at New Mexico Highlands and Adams State early in conference play. They also won at home against Western Colorado, since that time, WC has dropped seven straight matches including two sweeps and five 3-1 decisions. Lydia Parkinson (Miller) leads her team with 200 kills and 59 blocks. Mailei Myers touts the top attack percentage among hitters at .285. Setter Leila Cornejo owns 580 assists and 29 service aces. Alanna Lee anchors the back row with 280 digs. As a team, the Griffins hit .165 while the opposition has combined to attack at a .244 clip through 22 matches.
 
OREDIGGERS AGAINST THE GRIFFINS
Mines has never lost to Westminster in program history. The Orediggers tout nine straight wins against the Griffins dating back to 2015 when the rivalry began. Five of the victories have been sweeps, three lasted four sets, and there was one five-set thriller in the spring of 2021 in Salt Lake City. Mines and Westminster played earlier this season, on Sept. 10 in Golden, Colo. Rose Stuewe torched the visitors with 17 kills on .667 hitting. Shannon Perna and Emily Knight had 12 kills each. Drew Stokes guided the effort with 47 assists, seven digs, four kills on .800 hitting, and three blocks. Elle Duis provided 17 digs. Mines hasn't lost a set to Westminster since Sept. 18, 2021, in Salt Lake City.
 
SCOUTING COLORADO MESA
Colorado Mesa will start the penultimate weekend of the regular season with an overall record of 17-4 and a conference record of 12-2. The #19-ranked Mavericks put their nine-match win streak on the line Friday against Chadron State in Grand Junction, Colo. Mesa hasn't lost since being swept by then-#2 MSU Denver on Sept. 23, in Grand Junction. Now-#1 MSU Denver also accounted for CMU's other conference loss, sweeping the Mavericks in Denver to start RMAC play. As a team, Colorado Mesa is #5 in NCAA Division II in kills per set and #6 in DII in assists per set. Individually, Sabrina VanDeList ranks #6 in the nation in assists per set (11.29) and #1 in the RMAC with 40 service aces. Savannah Spitzer owns the #12 hitting percentage (.397) in all of DII. Other team leaders include Sierra Hunt and her 231 kills, followed closely by Sydney Leffler with 226 kills. Tye Wedhorn touts 68 blocks in 72 sets. Kerstin Layman is one of the best liberos in the conference thanks to 369 digs at 5.13 digs per set.
 
OREDIGGERS AGAINST THE MAVERICKS
Mines trails the all-time series with Colorado Mesa, 22-44-1. However, recent history has gone the Orediggers way. They have won three straight against the Mavericks and seven of the last 10 matchups. The last time Mines and CMU faced off was the semifinals of the 2021 RMAC Tournament on Nov. 19 at MSU Denver. The Orediggers earned a five-set win after Rose Stuewe powered out 20 kills on .350 hitting with two blocks. Drew Stokes was 5-of-9 on the attack (.556) and handed out 55 assists. Elle Duis walked away with 21 digs and two service aces. Also notable was Amanda Donais and her six blocks, nine digs, five kills and one ace. Prior to the postseason meeting, Mines touted back-to-back sweeps with one at home and one on the road. The last time the Orediggers lost to CMU was a sweep in Golden on March 29, 2021. Mines hasn't lost to Mesa in Grand Junction since Oct. 15, 2016 in a four-set decision.
 
REGIONAL RANKINGS
The first edition of the NCAA's regional rankings came out on Wednesday afternoon. The initial list of the season was in alphabetical order. Mines was one of the 10 teams on the list. The top eight in the final set of regional rankings advance to the NCAA South Central Region Tournament. So for now, on that level, the Orediggers are in the mix. The other nine teams on the list were Colorado Mesa, CSU Pueblo, Dallas Baptist, MSU Denver, Regis, Texas A&M-International, Texas A&M-Kingsville, UT Tyler and West Texas A&M.
 
RMAC OUTLOOK
At the RMAC level, 13 of the 15 teams (including Mines), have four matches remaining in the regular season. MSU Denver, Colorado Mesa, Mines, and Regis have all secured a berth in the conference tournament, ranking #1 and all tied for #2, respectively. If the RMAC postseason started today, CSU Pueblo, Colorado Christian, South Dakota Mines and Fort Lewis would all make the field as well. Technically, no team has been mathematically eliminated. However, one more loss for Western Colorado and New Mexico Highlands, two more for Westminster, Black Hills State and New Mexico Highlands will dash their hopes. Most notable is MSU Denver touting a two-match lead on CMU, Mines and RU. Barring a full collapse, the RMAC Tournament will run through the Auraria Campus in downtown Denver.
 
NATIONAL RANKINGS
While the national rankings released by the American Volleyball Coaches' Association technically have no bearing on the national postseason (that's the NCAA regional rankings), Mines did improve in the ninth edition of the national list. Another 2-0 week pushed the Orediggers to #21 in the nation. They were one of four RMAC teams represented in the top-25. MSU Denver took over the top spot at #1, Regis rose to #17, and Colorado Mesa improved to #19. CSU Pueblo continued receiving votes. Another 2022 foe for the Orediggers was Southwest Minnesota State which held strong at #5 in the nation. The only other South Central Region team in the top-25 was West Texas A&M at #11.
 
IT'S NOT HOW YOU START
Mines opened the 2022 season with an overall record of 5-4 while sitting 0-1 in the RMAC. Since that time, the Orediggers have gone 12-1 including seven sweeps. Their only loss was a five-set thriller against then-#2 MSU Denver at Volk Gym. It has been Mines' only five-set match of the season to date. During the 12-1 surge, the Orediggers are hitting .297 as a team and averaging 1.54 aces per set while holding their opponents to .184 on the attack. Pin-hitters Rose Stuewe and Megan Neil are hitting .307 and .316, respectively. Stuewe has averaged 3.73 kills per set. Drew Stokes touts 11.89 assists per set during the run. Furthermore, Jada Price and Shannon Perna own 14 service aces each, Emily Knight touts 34 total blocks in the middle, and Elle Duis has put up exactly 200 digs.
 
NOTING THE NUMBERS
Through 22 matches in 2022, Colorado School of Mines ranks #1 in NCAA Division II in kills per set (15.12), and #2 in the nation in assists per set (14.05). The Orediggers are also #10 nationally in hitting percentage. Drew Stokes' 12.07 assists per set this season currently ranks #2 in DII, and her 11.88 career assists per set rank #2 among all active NCAA volleyball players. Additionally, her 857 assists in 2022 rank #18 in DII and her 5,560 career assists rank #3 among all active NCAA volleyball players and #1 in NCAA Division II. Also notable is Elle Duis who ranks #3 among active career leaders in NCAA Division II with 2,143 career digs. Within the RMAC this season, Stokes ranks #1 in setting, Rose Stuewe is #4 in total kills and kills per set, and Duis is #4 in digs. As a team, Mines leads the RMAC in assists per set, digs per set, kills per set, total assists, and total kills.
 
OFFICIALLY A HALL OF FAMER
On Saturday, Oct. 8, Oredigger volleyball all-American Jackie Stabell was officially inducted into the Mines Athletics Hall of Fame as part of the 2022 class. The ceremony took place on as part of the Mines Athletics Hall of Fame Banquet and Auction inside Lockridge Arena. Stabell played for the Orediggers from 2009-12 as became the first all-American in Mines Volleyball's decorated history. A two-time all-American, Stabell was a member of four NCAA Tournament-qualifying teams and paced the Orediggers to the first of what would become four consecutive RMAC regular-season championships in 2012. The 2012 RMAC Player of the Year set records along the way from her outside hitter position, establishing herself as the program's all-time kills leader over her four-year career. Her full bio can be found HERE.
 
AT THE HELM
Head Coach Jamie Magalei is in her 15th season leading the Mines volleyball program in 2022. She is easily the program's all-time leader in total wins and win percentage at 335-107 (.757). Her winning percentage going into the season ranked #15 among active NCAA Division II head coaches with a minimum of five years at a DII program. Her 318 wins at the start of 2022 put her #47 in terms of total wins among active DII coaches. Magalei's win total also ranks second among active RMAC coaches. Last season, Magalei became only the sixth head volleyball coach to earn 300 wins while coaching in the RMAC. Through 2021, Magalei has guided Mines to six RMAC regular-season titles and five RMAC Tournament trophies with 12 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. Magalei has led the Orediggers to either a RMAC regular-season or tournament title every season since 2012 including a sweep of both in 2015.
 
UP NEXT
Mines closes the 2022 regular season at home next Friday and Saturday with Black Hills State and South Dakota Mines coming to Golden, Colo. Live coverage of both matches will be offered at www.minesathletics.com. Tickets can be purchased online or at the door.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines volleyball on Twitter at @MinesVolleyball and on Instagram at @mines.volleyball. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.