GOLDEN, Colo. – Ashley Steffeck's 30 points on Saturday fueled a 58-53 win for the #14/15-ranked Colorado School of Mines Women's Basketball team over South Dakota Mines inside Lockridge Arena.
Steffeck led all players in scoring. She also had six rebounds, five steals, two assists, and two blocks.
Jenna Siebert contributed eight points thanks to a 2-for-4 mark from behind the three-point line. She handed out four assists as well.
Josephine Howery came away touting four steals and three assists.
Jessica Rios matched Steffeck's six rebounds. Piper Bauer was the leading scorer for SDM with 17 points.
The Orediggers (19-4, 14-3 RMAC) defense stacked up 18 steals while forcing 23 turnovers by the Hardrockers (5-17, 5-11 RMAC). Those turnovers turned into 26 points for the home team. That offset South Dakota Mines' efficiency on offense, shooting over 40 percent compared to a 31-percent clip by Colorado School of Mines. Additionally, 14 offensive rebounds allowed the home team to score 12 second-chance points. Despite the final score and narrow second-half margins, there was only one tie and zero lead changes in the game.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Saturday saw a slow start to the game in terms of offense. After five minutes of action, the two times had combined for just eight points with the home team leading, 6-2. But the Orediggers said, "chip-chop," and opened their lead to 18-8 by the end of the first quarter. Steffeck accounted for 11 of the 18 points. Three more points from Steffeck and five off the hand of
Audrey Beaty pushed Colorado School of Mines' lead out to 21 during the second frame. That advantage dropped to 33-21 at the halftime buzzer after a 9-0 SDM run to close the period.
After the break, the Hardrockers took their 9-0 surge and made it 20-4, but still couldn't find the lead. Steffeck and
Loralee Stock combined for nine third-quarter points, and Steffeck added three steals in the third period to keep their guests at bay. South Dakota Mines kept its deficit in single digits over the last 10 minutes of game action, but Steffeck clinched the win with 11 more points.
NOTABLES
- The Orediggers improved to 13-6 in the rivalry with the Hardrockers.
- Saturday marked Colorado School of Mines' eighth straight win against SDM.
- The Orediggers haven't lost to the Hardrockers since Feb. 22, 2020.
- Steffeck now boasts four 30-point games in her career – the second-most of any Oredigger in program history. She's less than 100 points away from Mines' all-time scoring record.
- Steffeck also touts exactly 400 career steals which puts her inside the top-25 in NCAA Division II history.
- Additionally, Steffeck blocked multiple shots in a game for the 19th time in her career.
- Siebert's four assists on Saturday matched her career best.
- Colorado Mesa beat Regis on Friday, but lost to UCCS on Saturday. That narrowly keeps the Orediggers #1 in the RMAC standings with five games remaining in the regular season.
WHAT'S NEXT
The Orediggers hit the road next weekend for one game at Colorado Mesa on Friday with a 5:30 p.m. tipoff. Live video will be streamed for free on the RMAC Network. Free live stats will also be linked 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.
