#16 Mines at CSU Pueblo - Friday, Jan. 24 - 6 p.m. [RMAC Network] [Live Results]
Massari Arena - Pueblo, Colo.

#16 Mines vs. #13 Western Colorado - Saturday, Jan. 25 - 6 p.m. [RMAC Network] [Live Results]
Volk Gym - Golden, Colo.

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MINES SET FOR ROAD/HOME RMAC DOUBLE DIP
The RMAC season is in full swing this weekend as #16 Colorado School of Mines travels to CSU Pueblo on Friday night before hosting #13 Western Colorado Saturday at Volk Gym. Both duals are set for 6 p.m. starts and will stream live on the RMAC Network. All three teams are unbeaten in the RMAC so far this season, with Mines 7-2 overall and 1-0 in the conference, Western Colorado 4-2 overall and 2-0 in the RMAC and CSU Pueblo 8-2 overall and 2-0 in-league.

MILITARY APPRECIATION NIGHT
Saturday night's dual will be Military Appreciation Night at Volk Gym, with the Mines ROTC presenting the colors before the dual and the Mines Band appearing as well. In addition, sponsor Chick-Fil-A will provide free sandwiches for the first 50 Mines students in attendance (with Blaster Card).

LAST TIME OUT
Mines fell 25-19 to Cal Poly Humboldt at home last Friday as the Oredigger backups got some work in the final non-conference dual of the season. Mines' starters haven't wrestled since Jan. 10 when Mines defeated Chadron State 21-13, led by a Grayston DiBlasi pin and Ryan Cody's overtime decision to seal the dual win. 

IN THE POLLS
Mines continues to be well-represented in the latest NWCA and OpenMat polls, with the Orediggers ranked #16 in the NWCA rankings and #24 in the OpenMat tournament polls. Among individuals, Mines has seven wrestlers earning at least one ranking: Christian Lopez (NWCA & OM #11), Grayston DiBlasi (NWCA & OM #4), Cody Thompson (NWCA #8), Marcus Caro (NWCA #11/OM #18), Wyatt Reisz (NWCA #14/OM #16), Ryan Cody (NWCA #12/OM #17), and Laith Ibrahim (OM #16). 

Among this weekend's opponents, CSU Pueblo is ranked #18 in the OpenMat dual poll with 125-pounder Rhys Sellers #18 and 141-pounder Hayden Tuma #20. Western Colorado is ranked #13 by the NWCA and #10 by OpenMat as a team, and they feature three ranked individuals: Dean Noble (NWCA #3/OM #1), Cole Hernandez (NWCA & OM #1), and Cole Gray (OM #14). 

THE SERIES
Mines and CSU Pueblo meet for the 26th time dating back to 1983, with CSUP leading the series 22-13. However, the Orediggers have won four straight, including a 24-17 victory in Golden last season. Mines and Western Colorado are old rivals dating back to 1950 as they square off for the 80th time, with the Mountaineers leading the series 51-28. WCU won 29-15 in Gunnison last year, but Mines has won four of their last five meetings.

LEADING THE WAY
True freshman Marcus Caro is making a strong case for RMAC Freshman of the Year honors, leading Mines in wins at 19-4 this season. The 157-pounder is 11-4 vs. D-II opponents as he has appeared in the last two NWCA rankings. Grayston DiBlasi is next in wins (16-3) with Wyatt Reisz (15-3) right behind him. Caro and Ryan Cody co-lead the team with five falls apiece, while DiBlasi and Christian Lopez have been the Orediggers' high dual scorers with 34 and 31 points apiece, respectively, as each are unbeaten in duals this season.

DIBLASI CLIMBS ALL-TIME WINS, FALLS LISTS
Grayston DiBlasi win by fall against Chadron State was the 89th victory of his career, which now has him tied for third all-time at Mines with Mike Osterfoss. Ahead of DiBlasi are the only two Orediggers to reach the century mark, Glen Frank (126) and Duane Maue (113), as DiBlasi is trying to be the first Oredigger to reach the century mark since Frank did it in 1993. DiBlasi also moved to fifth on the career falls list with 25.

PINNED DOWN
Garrett Bakarich earned the 24th fall of his career against Cal Poly Humboldt, which now ties him for sixth all-time at Mines, a spot behind DiBlasi. Bakarich owns - by far - the highest proportion of falls among his wins in program history, having pinned his opponent in 24 of his 28 career victories including four of five this season. 

BACK ON THE MAT
One of the highlights of the Rookie Open came when Yahir Chairez-Salazar made his return to the mat with a first-period win by fall at 149 pounds, marking another milestone in his incredible comeback story. A freshman who redshirted for both the wrestling and football teams in 2022-23, Chairez-Salazar was involved in a serious car accident in the summer of 2023 that caused an amputation of his left leg above the knee. Determined to keep wrestling, he got back on the mat earlier this year to train for his comeback - a journey that culminated barely 15 months after his accident with a return to the mat and a win. You can read more about Yahir's remarkable story here.  

AT THE HELM
Head Coach Austin DeVoe is in his 12th season in charge of the Mines Wrestling program, having rebuilt the Orediggers into a national contender with a pair of RMAC titles, eight all-Americans, and eight Academic All-Americans in his tenure. With 83 dual wins under his belt, Mines has had seven consecutive winning dual seasons including the only three double-digit win seasons in program history, including tying the program wins record in 2022-23 with an 11-2 record. On the national stage, Mines has had team success as well including an 11th-place finish in 2022 which was the program's best finish since the 1990s. 

LOOKING AHEAD
Mines will swing south again to visit Adams State on Feb. 1 and New Mexico Highlands on Feb. 2.
 

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PROJECTED BOUTS - #16 Colorado School of Mines at CSU Pueblo
125 - #9 Christian Lopez (12-5) or Xander Sweeney (11-5) vs. Rhys Sellers 
133 - Trebor Moreno (8-4) vs. Eddie Bowman 
141 - #4 Grayston DiBlasi (16-3) vs. Hayden Tuma
149 - Cole O'Brien (5-5) or Carson Dulitz (0-3) vs. Kevin Boston
157 - #11 Marcus Caro (19-4) vs. Cyruss Meeks 
165 - Jakob Smith (6-4) vs. Aaron Concepcion
174 - #14 Wyatt Reisz (15-3) vs. Solomon Arnds-Volcin 
184 - Mason Diel (5-6) vs. Donn Greer 
197 - #12 Ryan Cody (10-6) vs. Remington Winmill
285 - Cade Whish (7-6) or Deandre Rucker (2-4) vs. Henry Sturn 

PROJECTED BOUTS - #16 Colorado School of Mines vs. #13 Western Colorado
125 - #9 Christian Lopez (12-5) or Xander Sweeney (11-5) vs. Roberto Estrada
133 - Trebor Moreno (8-4) vs. Devin Gomez
141 - #4 Grayston DiBlasi (16-3) vs. Eyan Chavez
149 - Cole O'Brien (5-5) or Carson Dulitz (0-3) vs. #3 Dean Noble
157 - #11 Marcus Caro (19-4) vs. Vincent Cabral
165 - Jakob Smith (6-4) vs. Ryan Dirksen or Walker Heckendorf
174 - #14 Wyatt Reisz (15-3) vs. #1 Cole Hernandez
184 - Mason Diel (5-6) vs. Cole Gray
197 - #12 Ryan Cody (10-6) vs. Sage Harrison
285 - Cade Whish (7-6) or Deandre Rucker (2-4) vs. Riley Butt