GOLDEN, Colo. – Back under the lights at Stermole Stadium for their penultimate home match of the 2023 season, the #16 Colorado School of Mines women's soccer team looked to secure their fourth win in a row and sixth in their last seven matches on Friday as they welcomed New Mexico Highlands to town. The Orediggers (10-2-3, 6-1-2) scored early and often in the first half, racing out to a 3-0 lead before scoring twice more in the second half to cruise past the Cowgirls (0-10-2, 0-7-1) by a final score of 5-0.
 
It took a mere 51 seconds for the Orediggers to grab the lead and never look back. After a wayward goal kick by NMHU was corralled by Mines, Laura Butler played it ahead to Reese McDermott who raced down the far side of the field before running out of room and positioning, dishing the ball back to Butler who looked to try and play it across the face of goal from just outside the penalty area by the end line to Cloey Seltzer on the near side, but instead ended up tucking it just underneath the cross bar in the upper left corner of goal over a leaping Peyton Greener to make it 1-0.
 
Mines kept up the offensive pressure, putting up three more shots on goal against Greener who was able to make saves on all three while have having several potential goals whistled off by the linesman's flag and a series of offsides calls. In the 31st minute, there was no offsides flag and the only whistle was for a ball in the back of the net, as Bella Campos was on the receiving end of a corner kick from Landry Corbett. The initial kick was punched up into the air by Greener, but settled at the feet of Campos who finished with a quick tap off her right foot to make it 2-0.
 
The night's third goal followed in short order on a rather odd sequence in front of the goal. Campos played a quick heel touch behind her back to Ellise Putnam who was racing through the top of the 18-yard box with a defender on her hip. Putnam took the pass and managed to beat her defender and also slip the ball past a sliding breakup attempt by Greener to then escort the ball into the net just inside the far post with another Cowgirl defender bearing down to make it 3-0 in the 36th minute as that would be the score heading to halftime.
 
It didn't take long for the scoring to resume in the second half, as the score moved to 4-0 in just the 48th minute. A free kick from about seven yards outside the penalty area on the near side of the field from Seltzer carried into the box and into a wave of traffic that would make I-25 at rush hour seem tame as Katie Koehler was the one who managed to somehow get a foot on the ball amidst three defenders to tap it past the keeper and in for the goal.
 
Following three more saves and pair of near-misses off the woodwork of goal, Mines put their fifth goal of the night on the board as McDermott was finally rewarded for her efforts as she was in the right place at the right time to score a second chance goal off a laser into the box by Seltzer that was saved but came back into play at the feet of one of the RMAC's most dangerous scorers who didn't miss this time to extend the lead to 5-0 in 59th minute.
 
With both sides emptying their benches down the stretch over the final minutes of the night, New Mexico Highlands did manage a pair of shots on goal over the final seven minutes, but Allie Lundgren who subbed on in goal at halftime was there to make her first two saves of the season as the Orediggers won their fourth in a row by a score of 5-0.
 
NOTABLES
-Butler's goal was her third of the season and first in a match not played on a Sunday as she has now scored 11 times in a Mines uniform
-Campos scored for the second match in a row and remained the team leader with her ninth goal of the season
-Putnam found the back of the cage for the second time of the season right before the half
-Koehler scored her fourth goal of the season, tying her previous career-high mark which came last season and now has nine career goals from her center back spot
-McDermott capped a three-point night with her eighth goal of the season after assisting on the Butler score, as she could have had several more scores if not for several near-misses and saves on her 10 total shots on the night; The junior from Houston now has 31 career goals, 11 career assists and 73 career points
-Seltzer posted a pair of assists in the match as she continues to add to her season-high total with four
-Corbett recorded an assist as well and now also has four on the season and brings her career total to 16, just two shy of fifth all-time behind Kayle Mitchell (2006-09)
-Lundgren made her season debut in the match, playing the whole second half and logged a pair of saves as she combined with Sadie Wolf to record the shutout
-The 41 shots in the match for Mines are now the fourth-most in program history and now the sixth time that they have logged 40 or more shots in a match; the last time it took place was on October 19, 2018 against Black Hills State
-Mines also put up 21 shots on goal in the match, their most in a match so far this season and just one shy of turning in the fifth match all-time with 22 shots on target
 
UP NEXT
Mines wraps up the regular season at home Sunday at 1 p.m. when they take on Adams State.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines women's soccer on Twitter and Instagram 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.