#14/15 Mines (18-3, 13-2 RMAC) vs. Black Hills State (12-6, 9-5 RMAC) – Friday, 5:30 p.m. – Lockridge Arena [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]
#14/15 Mines (18-3, 13-2 RMAC) vs. South Dakota Mines (5-15, 5-9 RMAC) – Saturday, 4:30 p.m. – Alamosa, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]

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ROCK THE LOCK WEEKEND
Mines' annual fan frenzy for men's and women's basketball has arrived with "Rock the Lock" scheduled for Friday night at Lockridge Arena. The #14/15-ranked Colorado School of Mines Women's Basketball team will host Black Hills State for the festive affair with tipoff scheduled for 5:30 p.m. South Dakota Mines comes to Golden, Colo., on Saturday for an unconventional 4:30 p.m. start. Not only is "Rock the Lock" the biggest event of the regular season, but only seven games remain and the Orediggers are in a tight race to win the RMAC title.
 
NOTE THE START TIME
Fans should be aware that Saturday's game against South Dakota Mines has been moved to a 4:30 p.m. start. Doors will still open an hour before the game. The Oredigger men are still slated to start at 7 p.m.
 
GET YOUR TICKETS
Fans are encouraged to purchase digital tickets or print tickets at home ahead of this weekend's games by going to www.minesathletics.com/tickets. This will expedite the entry process to Lockridge Arena. Ticket prices are $10 for adults and $5 for children, seniors, and military members. Mines faculty, staff, and students get in free with their Blaster Card.
 
PRIZES, FOOD, & FREEBIES
As stated above, Friday night promises to be a frenzied affair as Oredigger nation looks to "Rock the Lock." In addition to the two basketball games on tap, fans in attendance will have the opportunity to enjoy many other things. There are 500 free t-shirts available which will be thrown out with each Mines three-pointer. For Mines students, Woody's Pizza will have a food truck on the west side of the Student Recreation Center with free pizza for the first 300 students in attendance. On the main concourse, there will be a photo booth, cupcakes, and face painters. A poster contest is set for both the women's and men's games. Games and prizes will take place throughout the evening including giveaways featuring a TV, a Nintendo Switch, Mines gear, Nuggets tickets, and numerous gift cards. Students will also have a chance to win a Bamboo Lab 3D Printer. There's much, much more in store, so just plan on coming out.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
Fans who can't make it to Lockridge Arena can still catch all the action. Live streaming of each contest will be offered free of charge on the RMAC Network. The RMAC Network can be loaded on your phone or downloaded on any smart TV/live streaming device by searching RMAC. There will also be free live stats linked above and at www.minesathletics.com.
 
ROAD TRIP RECAP
Mines headed south by southwest last weekend for games at Fort Lewis and Adams State. The Orediggers left Durango, Colo., with an 81-62 win over FLC thanks to Ashley Steffeck's 23 points, eight assists, four rebounds, and one steal. On Saturday, Adams State dealt Mines a heartbreaking, 69-68 loss. Steffeck scored 26 more points and pulled down nine rebounds. Shelby Nichols had 11 rebounds and seven points. Josephine Howery handed out five assists. However, 20 turnovers by the Orediggers were too much for the visitors to overcome.
 
CHASING HISTORY
Ashley Steffeck continues to rewrite Mines' program record book in her final collegiate season. Her current list of historic pursuits include career points, career rebounds, career three-pointers, career assists, career free throws, career field goals, single-season free-throws, single-season three-pointers, single-season assists, single-season steals, and single-season points. Most notable on that list are career points, career assists, career three-pointers, and career free throws. She's currently #2 in all-time scoring and needs 145 to break the record. The Fort Collins, Colo., native is also #2 in all-time assists and needs 17 to break that record. She's also #3 in both career three-pointers and all-time free-throws made. Those will require a bit more time and work to get to the record. We could write pages and pages regarding Steffeck's pursuits, but we'll leave it here with the note that she owns nearly every program record for steals.
 
RUNNING THE RMAC
Speaking of Ashley Steffeck, the Mines graduate student has established herself as one of the best players in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. With seven games remaining in the regular season, Steffeck leads the RMAC in three-point percentage, free-throw percentage and total steals. She ranks #3 in the league in scoring, #11 in rebounding, #5 in assists, #3 in assist-to-turnover ratio, #2 in steals per game, #2 in total minutes and #3 in minutes per game. Nationally, the Fossil Ridge High School graduate is #3 in NCAA Division II in total free throws made, #6 in free-throw percentage, #7 in total steals, #10 in steals per game, and #14 in three-point percentage. Her 19.0 points per game also rank #19 in the nation.
 
BREAKING OUT
Mines has benefited from contributions up and down the roster during the 2023-24 season, but three Orediggers especially are putting together breakout seasons. Fifth-year player Loralee Stock has put up career numbers in almost every category. She touts 159 points at 7.6 points per game which ranks third on the team while upping her free-throw percentage by more than 10 percent. She's also 7-of-12 from three-point range after scoring five triples total across the previous four seasons. With seven games to play, Stock has already set single-season highs in scoring and assists. Steals and rebounds are up next. Redshirt sophomore Jenna Siebert is second on the team in scoring thanks to 208 points and 11.6 points per game. That also ranks #20 in the RMAC. She's done it behind 32 three-points which has her climbing the all-time, single-season list in the program record book. Also notable for Siebert are 73 rebounds, 28 assists, and 11 steals. Jessica Rios rounds out the breakout trio with a stunning 3.11 assist-to-turnover ratio which is #5 in the nation. Additionally, over the last nine games, Rios has averaged 10.7 points per game thanks to a total of 18 three-pointers. She also happens to be shooting over 53 percent from the floor.
 
ACTIVE CAREER LEADER
Ashley Steffeck's 393 career steals remain most of any active player in NCAA basketball. That includes men and women across all three divisions. She leads the top active men's player, Jalen House out of New Mexico, by more than 100. The next closest women's player, Haley Meinel of Jefferson, trails Steffeck by 23 steals. The Fort Collins native is also #3 among all active NCAA Division II women's players in steals per game at 3.05. She needs six more swipes to move into NCAA Division II's top-25, all-time steals leaders. It should be noted that steals were not considered an official NCAA Division II category until the 1992-93 season.
 
RMAC RACE
The Orediggers' 2023-24 regular season is down to seven games, all against RMAC foes. While Mines remains #1 in the conference standings, only two games separate the top four teams. Regis is #2 at 12-3. Colorado Mesa and UCCS are neck-and-neck at 11-3 and 11-4, respectively. Adams State is nipping at everyone's heals at #5 with a 10-4 mark. That being said, Mines could clinch a berth in the RMAC Tournament as early as Saturday. The bottom half of the eight-team bracket is equally condensed. Black Hills State, Colorado Christian, Fort Lewis, and CSU Pueblo are all within two games of each other, and South Dakota Mines is just three games back of a potential postseason bid. MSU Denver and Chadron State are on the fringes of elimination, but could rally. Western Colorado, New Mexico Highlands, and Westminster are likely banking on a miracle to make the postseason.
 
NATIONAL RANKINGS
Despite last weekend's loss at Adams State, Mines remained nationally ranked in both major polls released on Tuesday. The Orediggers took over #15 in the WBCA NCAA Division II Top 25 Coaches' Poll. They also slid in at #14 in the D2CSC Women's Basketball Division II Media Poll. No other RMAC team is ranked or receiving votes. Southern Nazarene is #1 in the media poll and Ashland is #1 on the coaches' list. Texas Woman's and MSU Billings, a pair of Mines' non-conference foes, also remain nationally ranked.
 
SCOUTING BLACK HILLS STATE
Black Hills State will arrive in Golden, Colo., less than one week off a 75-62 road loss at Colorado Christian. Prior to the setback, BHSU had won four straight. The Yellow Jackets are now 12-6 (9-5 RMAC) and sit #6 in the conference standings. One key win for Black Hills State came on Dec. 1 at Regis where BHSU downed the Rangers, 64-54. However, the Yellow Jackets also lost games to Adams State and Colorado Mesa. As a team, Black Hills State averages 63.4 points per game and holds its opponents to 58. Individually, Morgan Hammerbeck is BHSU's leading scorer thanks to 8.6 points per game. She also leads the team with 5.3 rebounds per game. Kalla Bertram is also notable with 7.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.3 steals, and 1.8 assists each night.
 
OREDIGGERS AGAINST THE YELLOW JACKETS
Mines and Black Hills State already played once in 2023-24. The Orediggers won the game in Spearfish, S.D., by a score of 87-71. That improved Mines to 11-8 in the all-time series against BHSU and marked the Orediggers' fourth consecutive win over the Yellow Jackets. In the latest meeting, Ashley Steffeck and Jenna Siebert combined for 44 points. Loralee Stock and Shelby Nichols added 15 points and 14 points, respectively. Steffeck also added seven rebounds, six steals, and three assists. Siebert had eight rebounds, three assists, and one block. Mines hasn't lost to Black Hills State since a 73-71, overtime setback in South Dakota on Jan. 4, 2021. The Orediggers last fell to the Yellow Jackets in Golden on Feb. 21, 2020. That score was 55-48.
 
SCOUTING SOUTH DAKOTA MINES
South Dakota Mines will play MSU Denver on Friday before coming to Golden, Colo., on Saturday. The Hardrockers have lost two straight and four of their last five to put them 5-15 (5-9 RMAC) on the season. South Dakota Mines' last win was a 71-44 home win against CSU Pueblo on Jan. 26. On Jan. 6 and Jan. 12, SDM also won back-to-back home games against Adams State and Western Colorado. South Dakota Mines started the season 0-8. The Hardrockers' scoring leader is Piper Bauer who ranks #3 in the nation in three-pointers. She averages 17.3 points per game thanks to 68 three-pointers. Savea Mansfield checks in at 10.2 points per game and Sydnee Durtsche adds 9.0 each night. Durtsche also pulls down 6.5 rebounds per game.
 
OREDIGGERS AGAINST THE HARDROCKERS
Colorado School of Mines went to South Dakota Mines in Rapid City on Dec. 8 of the current season. The Orediggers left Rapid City with an 81-67 win thanks to a balanced effort. Shelby Nichols scored 19 points, Ashley Steffeck had 15 points, Loralee Stock added 13 points, and Josephine Howery notched 10 points. That victory improved the Orediggers to 12-6 in the rivalry with the Hardrockers. Additionally, it extended Colorado School of Mines' win streak against SDM to seven games. The Orediggers haven't lost to the Hardrockers since Feb. 22, 2020. That game was Colorado School of Mines' senior night and Ashley Steffeck's sister Sami Steffeck exploded for 21 points on seven three-pointers in a 77-75, SDM win. It marked the last time Ashley and Sami ever played each other in a collegiate basketball game.
 
200 WINS
Mines' win against St. Edward's on opening weekend gave Mines Head Coach Brittany Simpson the 200th win of her career. It makes Simpson the only head coach in program history to reach the milestone. By default, it also makes her the fastest to 200 career wins in the history of Mines women's basketball. The milestone added to Simpson's impressive resume which saw her become the winningest coach in the history of Colorado School of Mines Women's Basketball on Dec. 4, 2020, in a 68-53 win over South Dakota Mines inside Lockridge Arena. Simpson is now in her 12th season as skipper of the Orediggers.
 
BOSS LADY
Head Coach Brittany Simpson is in her 12th season leading the Mines women's basketball program. During her decade tenure, she has become the winningest coach in program history both in terms of total wins and win percentage at 216-117 (64.8). Simpson is responsible for all three of the program's RMAC titles including regular-season championships in 2015-16, 2020-21, and 2021-22. She has also led the Orediggers in four of their five trips to the NCAA tournament. Simpson is a three-time RMAC Coach of the Year who has guided 34 All-RMAC selections including 14 first-teamers, 11 second-teamers, one third-team selection and eight honorable mention performers. She has also coached one RMAC Player of the Year, two RMAC Defensive Players of the Year, and two RMAC Freshman of the Year award winners. Eight of Mines' 13 1,000-point scorers have surpassed the milestone under Simpson's watch. Last season, Ashley Steffeck became the first all-American in program history after earning Honorable Mention All-America status from the Women's Basketball Coaches' Association (WBCA).
 
UP NEXT
Next week, Mines has a single game at Colorado Mesa on Friday, Feb. 16. Tipoff in Grand Junction is slated for 5:30 p.m. Free live video on the RMAC Network and live stats will 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.