Mines (8-14, 7-9) at Chadron State (7-16, 5-11) – Sunday, 12 p.m.  – Golden, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]
Mines (8-14, 7-9) at Chadron State (7-16, 5-11)  – Monday, 11 a.m. (DH) – Golden, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]
Mines (8-14, 7-9 RMAC) at Fort Hays (16-10, 2-2 MIAA)  – Tuesday, 2 P.M. CT (DH) – Hays, Kan. [Live Stats] [MIAA Network]
Mines (8-14, 7-9 RMAC) at Fort Hays (16-10, 2-2 MIAA)  – Wednesday, 12 P.M. CT (DH) – Hays, Kan. [Live Stats] [MIAA Network]

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SPRING BREAK ROAD TRIP
After playing their last eight games over the course of the previous two weeks within the friendly confines of Joe Coors, Jr. Softball Field, the Colorado School of Mines softball team will play their next eight games over a span of four days beginning Sunday as they continue RMAC play against Chadron State in a series moved back a day due to weather conditions before wrapping up their non-conference slate with a four-game set with Fort Hays State beginning Tuesday.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
This weekend's games at Chadron State will be streamed free of charge on the RMAC Network. Tuesday and Wednesday's games at Fort Hays will be available via pay per view on the MIAA Network. Live stats for all games will be available on minesathletics.com.
 
AT THE HELM
Mike Coutts begins his second season at the helm of the Orediggers softball program and looks to improve off a 16-30 mark from 2022. Before arriving at Mines, Coutts was the head coach of the softball program at Maine for six seasons, where he posted a 94-129 record with two 20-win seasons in 2016 and 2018.
 
IN THE POLLS
The Orediggers were picked to finish in the exact middle of the RMAC this year in the preseason poll, checking in at #7. Defending tournament champions Colorado Christian were tabbed to win the league followed by the reigning regular season champs Colorado Mesa. On the national stage, Colorado Christian moved up three spots to #14 this week while week one opponent Nova Southeastern continues to receive votes.
 
WEEK 5 RECAP
Mines gave defending RMAC tournament champs CCU everything they could handle for three games over the weekend, playing them close despite losing by scores of 4-1, 5-2 and 3-0 before the Cougars' offense finally got going in the finale, winning 8-0 in six innings to complete the sweep. Sadriena Rodriguez worked a pair of complete games in the circle with nine strikeouts against one of the top offensive units in the RMAC, while at the plate, five different players recorded multi-hit games highlighted by Sidney Wilson and Aubree Karraker.
 
TRACK MEET
Through 22 games so far this season, Mines is currently tied for the RMAC lead with 46 stolen bases and is now just seven away from last season's total of 53. That breaks down to an average of 2.09 swipes per game and at the current rate, the Orediggers are on pace for more than 112 swipes this season. Already nine different players have at least one steal to their ledger this season, as Lauren Decker leads the team with 14 while Renata Boyd has 10 and Sara Larson has eight.
 
SPEED QUEENS
Speaking of Renata Boyd, last weekend, she became the program's all-time leader in stolen bases, passing Brielle Asato (2015-18) for most all-time with the 51st of her career on Saturday. Now the race is on to see how many Boyd will accumulate over the final 32 games of the season. Also working her way up the all-time rankings for steals is Lauren Decker, who entered the season with 25 in her first three seasons but with 14 already this year, has rocketed up the top 10 list and is now seventh with 39 in her career, passing Stefanie Brunello (2017-21) and is now one shy of Molly Thiebaut for sixth all-time. She's also two shy of her previous single-season career high of 16 which she set last season, which is tied for fifth all-time.
 
MAKING STRIDES
Year two of the Orediggers under Mike Coutts has already seen some improvements across the stat sheet from 2022 to this point in 2023. As a team, Mines has an earned run average nearly a full run lower than last season, entering the weekend with a mark of 4.43 compared to a 5.41 last season. Already Mines pitchers have recorded four saves this season, surpassing last year's mark of three and currently leading the RMAC. Expanding on pitching, the Orediggers have help opponents to a .268 batting average, the third-lowest mark in the conference to date and 57 points lower than the .325 opponents hit last season. On defense, Mines is second in the conference in fielding at .965, trailing only Colorado Christian following a 2022 that saw them field .954, and has committed the fewest errors in the league this season with 23.
 
CHECKING THE STATS
Four regulars are hitting over the .300 mark as we approach the halfway point of the season as Sidney Wilson's .390 average also ranks among the top 20 in the RMAC this season. The Oredigger shortstop has doubled eight times and driven in 13 while scoring 16 times, tied for the team lead, and going 4-4 on stolen bases. Lauren Decker has been a consistent bat as well, checking in with a .350 average and eight runs scored with a team-best 14 stolen bases. Freshman outfielder Kendall Aragon has continued to shine in her first season at the collegiate level, batting .338 with four RBI and 13 runs scored while catcher Aubree Karraker is batting .323 with six extra base hits, including four doubles and has driven in eight while scoring 16 times as well. Kayleigh Krueger's 16 RBI lead the team and her seven doubles trail only Wilson, while Sara Larson has driven in nine, stolen eight bases and scored seven times.
 
Trystin Oshiro-Sano has also been a hot bat as well, platooning at second base and coming off the bench to bat .357 with two doubles and five RBI, while freshman Sophie Furniss has been effective in the pinch hit role as well, batting .385 with three doubles and two RBI. Renata Boyd has been overcoming a slow start to the season and has been swinging it better in recent weeks, batting .333 over her last six games and has 10 stolen bases on the season.
 
With 56 innings set to be played over the coming days, all six Mines pitchers figure to see time over the next eight games. Sadriena Rodriguez ranks seventh in the RMAC with her 3.30 ERA and despite taking two losses against CCU, still owns a 3-2 record on the season with 58 strikeouts, fourth-most in the conference, over 53 innings of work with four complete games while holding opponents to a .222 average, also the fourth-best mark in the league. Cassidy Chvatal has been a hard-luck loser at times this season despite several strong outings. The 1-6 record can be a bit deceiving, but she does lead the league with three saves and is one of just seven players league-wide to record a save and is the only player with more than one. She has struck out 23 in 36.2 innings of work across 13 appearances, including five starts, and has held opponents to a .268 average.
 
Taylor Wayne turned in one of her best outings of the season Saturday against CCU, working into the seventh inning and allowing only two earned runs and striking out four despite taking the loss. Like Chvatal, the sophomore's 1-5 record isn't necessarily reflective of performance in the circle which has been stellar at times while striking out 19 over 33.2 innings of work. Decker has also made five appearances in the circle this season and is 1-2 with a save on the season and sports a 3.57 ERA over 17.2 innings of work with five strikeouts and an opponent batting average of .269.
 
Transfer Allison Westbrook gave up a run for the first time in her last four outings Sunday and enters the weekend 1-0 with a 3.65 ERA with four strikeouts over five appearances for 7.2 innings and has only allowed opponents to bat .148 against her. Freshman Kat Miller has a nearly identical stat line, also posting a 3.65 ERA and working 7.2 innings over five games with six strikeouts, picking up her win back on February 26 against Fort Lewis.
 
SCOUTING CHADRON STATE
After taking three of four from Fort Lewis at home two weeks ago, the Eagles managed to avoid a sweep at the hands of MSU Denver last weekend, winning 9-6 in game four after losing the first three games of the weekend by a combined score of 12-1 and are currently tied for eighth in the league after four weeks of play.
 
Chadron is led at the plate by Bailey Steinke's .351 average with six doubles, a triple, a home run, five stolen bases and 11 RBI to go with a team-leading 27 hits and 17 runs scored. Aliyah Rothstein follows at .296 with a double, three RBI and a team-leading 10 stolen bases while Lauren Zimmerman checks in at .294 with three extra base hits and eight RBI.
 
Jessie Hencheski is hitting .258 but five of her eight hits have gone for extra bases, including four home runs to lead the team, as she has driven in 11, while likewise Mackenzi Kroll enters the weekend batting .217, but has seen eight of her 12 hits go for extra bases with three home runs to her credit and a team-high 13 RBI as well. Others to keep an eye on include J'Lyssa Martinez (.303 AVG, 3 2B, HR, 3 RBI) Jaelyn Martinez-Lewis who has four stolen bases.
 
In the circle, freshman Delaney Farnsworth has been the number one this season, sporting a 5-7 record and a 4.40 ERA over 71.2 innings with 67 strikeouts against 30 walks with 11 complete games in 12 starts while fellow freshman Tori Haug is 2-9 in 11 starts with a 4.56 ERA over 66 innings with 57 strikeouts and 34 walks. Kenzi Garner has also appeared in the circle, albeit only for a total of two innings over three games but has yet to allow an earned run this season.
 
 
SCOUTING FORT HAYS STATE
The Orediggers will be the third consecutive RMAC opponent for the Tigers who are taking advantage of a bye week in MIAA conference play to play in-region opponents. FHSU made the trip to Colorado this week, splitting a Tuesday doubleheader with MSU Denver winning 3-1 in game two after dropping a 13-11 decision on a walk-off home run in game one. Wednesday they played a pair against CSU Pueblo and won twice by scores of 6-3 and 5-2.
Four regulars are batting better than .315 for FHSU, led by Peyton Shepard who is batting .417 and leads the team in hits (35), runs (21) and stolen bases (14). Sarah Tiffany is second on the club with a .329 average and is tied atop the leaderboard with 19 RBI and has six extra base hits, including four doubles in addition to being 8-8 on stolen bases. Lilliania Ramirez-Johnson is right behind batting .328 with 11 RBI, while Carly Stuke is the final member of that group batting .319 with 12 RBI, 15 runs scored, four doubles and two home runs which is tied for the team lead.
 
The numbers for the Tigers drop off a bit after those four, but there are still several players to keep an eye on, like Loren Beggs who despite a .238 average also has two home runs to tie for the team lead as well as 19 RBI, also tied for the high water mark this season. Madison Pierce (.210 AVG) has nine doubles and has driven in 12, while Reese Curry is batting .400 with six RBI and 12 runs scored in a role as a pinch hitter and pinch runner.
 
In the circle, Mines will have to deal with a top five pitching staff in the MIAA, as FHSU has combined to post a 2.87 ERA and hold opponents to a .251 average and do a good job limiting free bases, issuing only 60 free passes on the year. Savanah Egger, along with her 2.05 ERA, has been at the head of that effort with a 7-4 record along with a save in 14 games with 13 starts and is striking out nearly a batter per inning, fanning 77 in 78.2 innings of work against only 18 walks. Bailey Carson has been a solid second starter, going 5-3 over seven starts in 10 appearances and posting a 2.70 ERA with 25 strikeouts in 44 innings against only 12 walks.
 
Morgan Schmidt has made three starts in six games and is 2-1 with a 3.08 ERA in 25 innings with 44 strikeouts against a mere seven walks and has held opponents to a .224 average, while Emma Montoya is 2-2 with a save and a 5.70 ERA in seven games, including three starts, and has 27 punchouts in 23.1 innings of work.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Mines has had a great deal of success against the Eagles historically, leading the series 31-7 all-time. The teams only played twice last season as they first two games of the series were canceled before playing to a split on a Monday, with CSC winning 6-1 before the Orediggers won 8-0 in five innings. Mines has won nine of the last 12 meetings and four of the previous six in Chadron, where they are 17-4 all-time. Tuesday will be the first meeting between Mines and Fort Hays since 2016 when Mines swept the Tigers in a midweek doubleheader in Golden 5-4 and 1-0. All-time, FHSU leads the series 21-14 and it 8-3 when playing at home, but the last time the two teams met in Hays was all the way back in 2005.
 
ON DECK
Following the upcoming road trip to Nebraska and Kansas, Mines will be back at Joe Coors, Jr. Softball Field March 25-26 as they resume RMAC play against CSU Pueblo.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines softball on Twitter at @MinesSoftball and Instagram at @mines_sb. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.