#15 Mines (4-1-1, 0-0-0 RMAC) at UCCS (2-2-2, 0-0-0 RMAC) – Thursday, 7 p.m. – Colorado Springs, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]
#15 Mines (4-1-1, 0-0-0 RMAC) at CSU Pueblo (2-1-2, 0-0-0) – Sunday, 1 p.m. – Golden, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]

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CONFERENCE PLAY BEGINS
After spending the first six matches of 2023 at home, the #15 Colorado School of Mines women's soccer team will take to the road for the first time this season as they begin their Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference title defense against UCCS Thursday night and CSU Pueblo Sunday afternoon.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
Both matches this weekend will be streamed free of charge on the RMAC Network and will have live stats through SIDEARM at UCCS and StatBroadcast at CSU Pueblo.
 
AT THE HELM
Head Coach Kevin Fickes is in his 14th season leading the Mines women's soccer program, already the program's all-time leader in wins at 213-38-36. His .807 career win percentage is currently among the top-10 active NCAA Division II coaches, and on October 6 of last season against Colorado Christian, he became just the second RMAC coach to reach 200 career victories, joining current UCCS boss J.B. Belzer. Entering the 2023 season, Fickes has overseen 27 All-American selections, 13 Academic All-Americans, 69 all-conference honorees, and 21 RMAC major award winners while guiding Mines to six RMAC regular-season titles and nine RMAC Tournament trophies, with 13 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances.

WEARING THE ARMBAND
The Orediggers have selected a new group of captains for the 2023 season, as Ava Harman, Katie Koehler and Reese McDermott will be wearing the armband this fall. Harman is entering her third season as a starter and scored the first goal of her career in 2022. McDermott was named Third Team All-American to cap off a decorated breakout season in which she was one of the most prolific goal scorers in in the conference, finding the net 15 times as only one of two players with double-digit goals. Koehler, also entering her third season as a starter, was a key piece of a defensive backline last fall that allowed just 0.74 goals and 9.7 shots per match while also scoring four times herself.
 
WEEK 3 REVIEW
It was a mixed bag to close out a six match homestand to begin the 2023 season for Mines when they hosted Western Washington and Seattle Pacific last weekend. Thursday night in some of the rainiest conditions in recent memory, the Orediggers got a pair of goals from Reese McDermott in the first 15 minutes as the defense and freshman keeper Keira Garcia posted a shutout and led Mines to a 2-0 win over the defending Division II national champions, avenging an exit from last year's postseason at the hands of the Vikings. Saturday evening, the weather was about as nice as one could ask for and so was the start of the match, as Bella Campos scored her team-leading fourth goal of the season, but a stubborn SPU squad managed to scratch up a pair of goals late in the first half and midway through the second to send Mines to their first loss of the season by a final score of 2-1.
 
IN THE POLLS
The latest United Soccer Coaches Poll was released Tuesday and after checking in at #2 in the country last week, a 1-1 weekend resulted in the Orediggers remaining ranked but backsliding all the way down to #15. RMAC rival Colorado Mesa vaulted into the top five at #5 after being ranked 17th in last week's edition. Week two opponent Dallas Baptist remained inside the top 10, dropping one spot from eighth to ninth. The RMAC Preseason Poll, announced August 16 also had the Orediggers leading the way, as the RMAC coaches picked Mines to repeat as champions with nine first place votes, followed by UCCS, Regis, Westminster and MSU Denver in the top five.

CLIMBING THE RANKS
Entering her third season as an Oredigger, Reese McDermott has already penned her name into the record books when it comes to career marks in several places; her 26 career goals are now good for sole possession of fifth all-time and trails Nicole LaTourette (2016-19) by just one. In addition, her 59 points are now fifth-most all-time, also behind LaTourette. Her eight game-winning goals now stand alone in sixth all-time, while she is now fourth all-time in single-season goals with 15, two behind Anna Evans' 17 in 2012. When it comes to shutouts, Sadie Wolf now has 10 in her young career and has now passed Penny Rogers (2008-11) for sixth all-time and now trails Sierra Roth (2018-21) by two.
 
LEAGUE LEADERS
With conference play starting this week, it's worth noting that several Orediggers rank among the league leaders three weeks into the season. Bella Campos is second in the RMAC in scoring with four goals and third in points with nine, while Reese McDermott and Natalie Rouse are right behind as both are tied for third with four other players with three goals to their credit. McDermott also ranks tied for third with three others in the conference when it comes to assists this season, which marks a new career high for the junior, and is also tied with Campos with nine points.
 
As a team, Mines leads the RMAC with 17 goals and 17 assists, while Regis and Colorado Mesa are close behind with 16 goals apiece and 11 and eight assists respectively. The Orediggers also top the league with 132 shots on the season, the only team in triple digits heading into the weekend, while also leading with 59 shots on goal. Mines has also given up the fourth fewest goals in the league so far with four, trailing CMU, Colorado Christian and Fort Lewis
 
LOOKING AT THE STATS
Freshman Bella Campos has burst onto the scene this fall and currently leads mines with four goals and is tied for the team lead with nine points. Reese McDermott and Natalie Rouse follow with three goals apiece, with the former also adding three assists to tie with Campos for the team lead with nine points. Cloey Seltzer is the fourth Orediggers with multiple goals this season as she has two along with an assist, while five others including Ava Harman, Landry Corbett, Ellise Putnam, Katie Koehler and Afton Rasco each have one goal to their credit heading into conference play. Harman is tied along with McDermott for the team lead with three assists, while Corbett and Putnam each have a pair. An additional five players each have one assist so far on the year, including goalie Sadie Wolf.
 
Speaking of Wolf, the sophomore has been the primary netminder for the Orediggers, starting four times in five matches and logging 315 minutes while posting a 0.86 GAA and a .571 save percentage, allowing three goals while making four saves against 26 shots faced and is 3-1-0 with two solo shutouts. Her tag team partner this season has been freshman Keira Garcia, who has started twice in four appearances for 225 minute and has a 0.40 GAA and an .833 save percentage, allowing one goal against five saves while facing 19 shots and is 1-0-1 with a shutout. The duo also combined for a shutout against Chico State in the second match of the season.
 
As a team, Mines has been one of the more statistically dominant teams in the country in the early going, outscoring opponents 17-4 and averaging 22.0 shots per contest while allowing just 7.5 to opponents. 59 of 132 shots have been on goal compared to 13 of 45 going the other way, and they have 17 assists on 17 goals while making nine saves in goal and holding a 22-15 advantage when it comes to corner kicks.
 
SCOUTING UCCS
The Mountain Lions ended non-conference action with a 1-1 draw on the road at St. Mary's (TX) Sunday after picking up a big win over then ninth-ranked Point Loma 2-1 at home last Thursday. This week's match with Mines kicks off homecoming weekend down in Colorado Springs.
 
Eight players have a goal to their name for UCCS so far, with Makayla Merlo and Ciara Garcia leading the way with two apiece while Abby Barhydt, Emily Augilar, Jade Kinsey, Sydney Lasaster, Jadyn LeDoux and Taylynn Levi each have one. Fie Steenberg and Anna Vince have been a big part of the offensive success, as they each have three assists on the season while Merlo, Barhydt and Jessica Rockwell each have one.
 
Between the pipes, Isabella Whitmore has been the everyday starter, playing all but 13 minutes this season with a 2-2-2 record along with a shutout while posting a GAA of 1.20 and a .774 save percentage, allowing seven goals with 24 saves against 58 shots faced. Meg Covey has seen time in one match and has no recorded stats in her limited action.
 
Collectively, UCCS has outscored the opposition 10-7 on the season, with five of those goals coming in one match against Southwestern Oklahoma State two weeks ago. They are averaging 11.7 shots per match and allowing just shy of 10 per contest to opponents. They have tallied nine assists on their 10 goals, with goals making 24 saves while recording 28 corner kicks against 16 allowed.
 
SCOUTING CSU PUEBLO
The ThunderWolves went 2-1-2 in the non-conference part of their schedule, ending it with a 1-0 win in their lone match last weekend against Northwestern Oklahoma State at home. Sunday's match against Mines will be the final of seven-straight matches at home to begin the season for CSUP, as they will end the season with six of their final 10 contest on the road.
 
Four different players have scored for the ThunderWolves in 2023, led by Cortney Cowles with two while Ashley Bennett, Drew Morby and Jerzie Troost each have one. The players each have an assist on the season in the persons of Katie Bean, Cameron Farthing and Carlia Johnson.
 
In goal, Nicole Genis has gone 2-1-2 with a shutout and played every minute to date, posting a GAA of 0.80 and a .778 save percentage, making 14 stops while allowing four goals and making 14 saves against 29 shots faced.
 
As a team, CSUP has outscored opponents 5-4 and is averaging 11.6 shots per game while allowing just 5.8. They have three assists on their five goals and have made 14 saves in goal while holding an 18-12 advantage in corner kicks.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Mines owns a handy lead in the all-time series with both opponents this weekend. Against UCCS, the Orediggers are 17-7-2, going 1-0-1 last season as they rallied from behind to earn a 2-2 draw in Colorado Springs in the regular season before picking up a win the second round of the NCAA Tournament hosted in Golden by a score of 2-1. Despite losing twice on the road in 2021, Mines is still 8-2-1 against the Mountain Lions on the road. When it comes to CSU Pueblo, the Orediggers have a similar all-time ledger, going 18-8-4 and currently riding a three-match winning streak and having gone 7-0-2 over the last nine meetings. Last season, Mines picked up a 3-0 win in Pueblo late in the regular season before posting a 5-0 win in the opening round of the RMAC Tournament at home. The ThunderWolves have been held scoreless in the series since March 28, 2021, with the Orediggers outscoring CSUP 12-0 over the previous three meetings. Playing in Pueblo has been tricky historically for Mines, as they are just 7-5 when making the trip south down I-25.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
After playing their first road matches of 2023 this weekend, Mines returns to Stermole Stadium September 29 and October 1, as they'll play host to Black Hills State on the Friday of homecoming weekend before squaring off with Regis to begin the new month in a rematch of the 2022 RMAC Tournament title match.
 
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.