PUEBLO, Colo. – Josephine Howery and Jessica Rios combined to score 30 points on Friday night as the #5/8-ranked Colorado School of Mines Women's Basketball team earned a 61-45 win against CSU Pueblo inside Massari Arena.
 
Rios was tops on the team with 16 points and was perfect from the floor, going 2-for-2 from long range and 6-for-6 from the floor along with a 2-of-2 mark at the free-throw line. Howery finished right behind Rios, tallying 14 points, four rebounds and two steals. Ashley Steffeck notched her first double-double of the season thanks to 13 points and 10 rebounds. Steffeck also had five steals and four assists. Shelby Nichols had an all-around night as she turned in six rebounds, four assists, four points, one block, and one steal a the post position. Emma Sixta was notable as well with eight points on 2-for-3 production from behind the three-point line.
 
Mines (13-1, 8-0 RMAC) earned its 11th straight win behind a 42-32 rebound margin. The Orediggers also went to the free-throw line 23 times while CSU Pueblo (8-8, 3-5 RMAC) only had eight chances at the charity stripe. The ThunderWolves also had more blocks and committed fewer turnovers. However, Mines shot 44 percent from three-point range and 38 percent from the floor. On the other side, The Pack converted 40 percent of its long-range shots and 31-percent of its attempts from the floor. Also notable was the Orediggers' 24-16 advantage on points in the paint.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Massari Arena in Pueblo, Colo., proved tough as always for the visiting team. After more than three minutes of action, the score was 2-1 in favor of CSU Pueblo. Rios accounted for the Orediggers' next six points and provided the visitors a 7-5 lead. A late three-pointer from Howery gave Mines a 13-11 lead at the end of the first quarter. Howery started the second period with back-to-back makes from behind the arc, pushing the Orediggers' lead to 19-11. That was part of eight second-quarter points for Howery which were matched by Rios. Mines never looked back.
 
Steffeck scored nine points in the third quarter as the Orediggers pushed their lead all the way to 17. The ThunderWolves and Mines combined to score just 17 points in the final period. Steffeck accounted for four of those along with two rebounds and one steal. At the final buzzer, the box score showed that Mines' defense had limited CSU Pueblo to 20 points in the second half while the Orediggers' tallied 26. There were five combined field goals in the final frame.
 
NOTABLES
- Mines improved to 28-38 in the all-time series against CSU Pueblo.
- The Orediggers have won two straight and eight of their last 10 meetings with the ThunderWolves.
- Steffeck's double-double was her first of the season and 10th of her career.
- Steffeck also took sole possession of #5 on Mines' all-time scoring list. She moved past Kelly Hadley who tallied 1,349 from 1983-87.
- On Friday night, Regis defeated Adams State in Denver, giving the Orediggers a two-game lead in the conference standings.
- Mines is now halfway through the 2023-24 season.
- The Orediggers have played five of their last five games on the road.
- Head Coach Brittany Simpson is 211-115 in her 12th season leading Mines.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Mines closes its road trip on Saturday with a 5 p.m. tipoff at New Mexico Highlands.. Live stats and video of the game will be offered at www.minesathletics.com.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines women's basketball on "X" (formerly Twitter) and Instagram at @MinesWBB. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, "X" and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.­­­