GOLDEN, Colo. – The Colorado School of Mines Volleyball team opened Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play on Friday night against Chadron State at Lockridge Arena. The result was a five-set loss to the Eagles.
 
In the defeat, Rose Stuewe led the Orediggers with 15 kills on .250 hitting. Madison Glassco had a 13-kill, 12-dig double-double. Morgan McChesney also touted double-digit kills, knocking down 11 on .318 hitting with five total blocks as well. Shannon Perna rounded out a quartet of Mines players with double-digit kills, boasting 10 on .304 hitting as well as seven digs, four blocks and one service ace. Also notable on offense was Emily Knight who had nine kills with a .412 attack percentage. Jada Price put up 16 digs from the back row. Presley Powell dished out 58 assists and added nine digs, three kills on .500 hitting, and two service aces.
 
As a team, Mines (5-4, 0-1 RMAC) hit .262 and had more kills, assists, and digs than Chadron State (5-3, 1-0 RMAC). However, the Eagles made up the difference by hitting .313 overall with nine service aces and 11 total blocks. Notable for CSC Lexi Hurtado with 20 kills (.386), Bella Adams with 17 kills (.593), Alondra Hernandez with 21 digs, and Maddi Wright touting seven total blocks.  
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
All systems were go for Mines' offense in the first two sets of the night. The Orediggers hit .364 in game one as Glassco hammered out five kills while hitting .625. McChesney also had three kills on four attempts with zero errors. Powell's 13 assists and Price's six digs added the cherry on top of a 25-18 win. It was more of the same in game two with a closer final score. Despite Chadron State pushing the frame to extra points, the Orediggers still hit .525 as a team and only committed one attack error. Knights' seven kills in the set stole the show as Mines won 27-25 and put itself in position for a sweep.
 
Unfortunately for the home team, the Eagles' offense became more efficient and their defense more stout. The visitors' five blocks in game three held Mines to .171 on the attack and allowed CSC to take a 25-19 win. Chadron State carried that momentum into the fourth frame and stacked up three more blocks along with four service aces. The result was a 25-18 win for the Eagles to force a decisive fifth set. Mines' offense recovered slightly as it hit .250, but CSC was too hot to handle. The visitors converted at a .588 clip and cruised to a 15-9 win to clinch the match.
 
NOTABLES
- Mines is now 44-25 in the all-time series against Chadron State.
- The Orediggers have won 24 of the last 25 meetings with the Eagles.
- Friday marked Mines' second straight five-set match. The Orediggers won its previous five-setter at Cal State San Marcos last Saturday.
- The last time Mines and Chadron State played five sets was during the 2007 season.
- Glassco surpassed 100 kills for her career thanks to her 13 kills on Friday night. She also had a single-match, career best with two service aces.
­- McChesney moved over 200 career kills.
- Perna's four total blocks against Chadron State were a single-match best in her career.
- Head Coach Jamie Magalei now boasts a career record of 345-114 in her 16th season at the helm.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Mines hosts Colorado Christian on Saturday night at 5 p.m. inside Lockridge Arena. Free live video will be offered on the RMAC Network at www.minesathletics.com/tv. There will also be free live stats linked at www.minesathletics.com.
 
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.