2025 NCAA South Central Region Tournament (hosted by MSU Denver) [Live Stats] [Watch] [Tickets] [Bracket] [Tournament Central]
(7) Mines (20-7) vs. (2) UCCS (26-3) – Denver, Colo. – Thursday, 11 a.m.
(7) Mines (21-7) vs. (3) Angelo State (24-7) – Denver, Colo. – Friday, 4 p.m.
NCAA Regional Final – Denver, Colo. – Saturday, 5 p.m.

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NCAA POSTSEASON
A spot in the national tournament is all any college team can hope for in the pursuit of a national title. Mines volleyball earned its spot in the 2025 NCAA tournament, and the Orediggers' final postseason run starts Thursday morning at 11 a.m. at the Auraria Event Center on the campus of MSU Denver. As the seventh seed, Mines faces second-seeded UCCS. A victory sends the Orediggers to the regional semifinal. A loss brings the 2025 campaign to an end. After 18 days off from competition, Mines enters a new season and the name of the game is win or go home.
 
TICKETS
Fans are strongly encourage to pre-purchase their tickets online through Hudl. The prices for admission to the NCAA South Central Region Tournament at MSU Denver are as follows. Single game tickets are $12 for adults, $6 for seniors (65+), students, and youth ages 6-11. Children ages five and under get in free. An all-tournament pass, which covers all seven matches, runs $20 for adults, $10 for seniors (65+), students, and youth ages 6-11. Children ages five and under still get in free.
 
PARKING
Many fans who have attended matches at MSU Denver are likely used to parking in the Tivoli Garage. Due to ongoing holiday events and festivities, fans are asked to avoid the Tivoli Garage and instead use the Holly lot which is still near the venue. Parking for the Auraria Event Center requires a validation code to receive free parking. Those codes will go live on the tournament central page two hours before the first game of each day.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
All seven matches of the 2025 NCAA South Central Region Tournament will stream live and for free at www.ncaa.com/live. Free live stats will appear on the same webpage as the video stream. Furthermore, fans with Roku or Apple TV and other smart TVs can download the NCAA Championships Pass app to conveniently watch directly on their television.
 
THE BRACKET [INTERACTIVE]
For NCAA Division II volleyball, the tournament starts with eight different eight-team brackets – one for each of DII's regions. This setup covers the first three rounds, or seven matches, of the NCAA tournament with each region's top seed serving as host. In the South Central Region, MSU Denver earned the #1 seed and rights to host. The Roadrunners' first-round match is Thursday at 4:30 p.m. against eighth-seeded Colorado Mesa. Mines and UCCS account for the matchup between the #2 and #7 seeds at 11 a.m. on Thursday. Angelo State earned the #3 seed and faces sixth-seeded Lubbock Christian, also on Thursday, at 1:30 p.m. The last match features the #4 seed West Texas A&M and the #5 seed CSU Pueblo at 7 p.m. on – you guessed it – Thursday. Friday brings the two semifinal matches. Whoever comes out of the bottom half of the bracket between Mines, UCCS, Angelo State, and Lubbock Christian will play at 4 p.m. The winners from the top half featuring MSU Denver, Colorado Mesa, West Texas A&M, and CSU Pueblo will play at 7 p.m. The region final, also known as the Sweet 16, is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 6, at 5 p.m. Whoever wins the South Central Region will be reseeded for the national quarterfinals, or Elite Eight. That final round is slated for Dec. 11-13 at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. The entire tournament, from regional sites to the finals, is single elimination.
 
SCOUTING UCCS
The University of Colorado Colorado Springs finished the regular season with an overall record of 24-2 while going 13-1 in RMAC play. The Mountain Lions' conference record tied them for first in the league standings and afforded UCCS a RMAC title. As the #2 seed in the RMAC tournament, the Mountain Lions advanced to the final against top-seeded and #9-ranked MSU Denver where they fell in three sets, marking UCCS' second loss this season to the Roadrunners. Their only other loss was in five sets at CSU Pueblo on Sept. 30. The Mountain Lions' selection for the NCAA tournament is just the second in program history. They are receiving votes in the national poll but have not cracked the top-25 all season. Individually, UCCS is led by all-region players Payton Tompkins and Nicole Martin. Tompkins boasts 357 kills at 3.53 kills per set on .260 hitting. She also touts 26 aces, 241 digs, and 39 total blocks. Martin's line includes 224 kills on .288 hitting with 46 aces, 100 blocks and 57 digs. The Mountain Lions' roster also includes all-conference players in Sydney Hyde, Maylen Mitrovich, Kinley Gomez, Sydnee Walker, and Mackenzie Ransom. Head coach Tara Hittle was voted RMAC Coach of the Year.
 
OREDIGGERS AGAINST THE MOUNTAIN LIONS
Mines leads the all-time series with UCCS by a margin of 33-26. That lead is bolstered by a run of 18 wins from 2012-24. However, the Orediggers and Mountain Lions met twice this season and UCCS won both. The first meeting ended in straight sets in Colorado Springs. The second was part of the RMAC Power Pod and lasted four sets in Durango, Colo., at Fort Lewis. The last time Mines and UCCS played any sort of postseason match was Nov. 18, 2016, in the RMAC tournament semifinals. The Orediggers won that match in four sets. Mines and UCCS have never played in the NCAA tournament.
 
THE REST OF THE FIELD
Mines went 1-1 against MSU Denver this season, but the lone win was in pod play and the sweep of the Roadrunners at Volk Gym didn't count in the conference standings. As previously mentioned, the Orediggers were 0-2 against UCCS. Mines didn't play Angelo State in 2025. In fact, the Orediggers haven't played ASU since 2019 when they won in four sets to advance to the regional final. Mines is 6-3 all-time against Angelo State. West Texas A&M also wasn't on the Orediggers' 2025 schedule. Those two played in the NCAA tournament in 2021 and 2022. Both matches lasted five sets and went to the Lady Buffs. West Texas A&M is 5-0 when playing the Orediggers in volleyball. Mines and CSU Pueblo played once this season, and the ThunderWolves won at home, 3-0. The last time Mines played Lubbock Christian was 2021 in Colorado Springs. It was a 3-0 Oredigger victory, making the series 2-1 in favor of Mines. The Orediggers beat Colorado Mesa with a reverse sweep during the regular season, but lost to the Mavericks in the first round of the RMAC tournament – also in five sets.
 
MINES IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
Thursday marks Mines' 15th trip to the national postseason, and its first since 2022. Head Coach Jamie Magalei and her assistant Heather Dewhirst coached the Orediggers to 13 straight from 2009-22. Coach Magalei guided Mines to its first NCAA tournament win in 2011. It was a five-set victory over top-seeded Nebraska-Kearney. Overall, the Orediggers are 10-14 in 24 matches in the national postseason. Mines' NCAA tournament record by length of match is 4-3 in three-set contests, 4-5 in four-set matches, and 2-6 in five-set thrillers. From 2015-22, the Orediggers went 6-1 in the first round. Mines' first-round opponents during that stretch were Texas Woman's, Angelo State, MSU Denver, Tarleton State, West Texas A&M, and Regis. The Orediggers' last trip to the NCAA tournament in 2022 featured them as the #6 seed. They upset third-seeded and #14-ranked Regis in the first round in a five-set thriller before falling to WTAMU in five sets. Mines' deepest run in the NCAA tournament was 2019 when they advanced to the region final.
 
ALL-RMAC TEAMS
Six Orediggers appeared on the 2025 All-RMAC teams. Amanda Donais Dudley and Jenna McLaughlin were voted First-Team All-RMAC. Hailee Martinez was Second-Team All-RMAC. The trio of Jada Price, Abbie O'Shay and Francesca Nuzzo were Honorable Mention All-RMAC. The RMAC Player of the Year was Caelyn Gunn from CSU Pueblo. Fellow ThunderWolf Elena Stankovic claimed RMAC Setter of the Year. Alyssa Boyte from MSU Denver earned RMAC Defensive Player of the Year. The RMAC Freshman of the Year was the Roadrunners' Karyna Werley. Tara Hittle from UCCS won RMAC Coach of the Year. The all-conference teams and top awards were voted on by the RMAC's 15 head coaches. They could not vote for their own players.
 
ALL-REGION OREDIGGERS
On the eve of their NCAA tournament opener, two Orediggers were named all-region. Amanda Donais Dudley was voted First-Team All-Region by the American Volleyball Coaches' Association (AVCA). Jenna McLaughlin claimed Second-Team All-Region distinction courtesy of the Division 2 Conference Commissioners' Association (D2CCA). Donais Dudley's accolade was voted on by AVCA-member head volleyball coaches from across NCAA Division II's South Central Region which includes the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference and Lone Star Conference. McLaughlin's award was voted on by communications professionals from the South Central Region, and they could not vote for their own players. Madi Parrish from Angelo State was the consensus South Central Region Player of the Year. The AVCA gave MSU Denver's Jenny Glenn the nod as Region Coach of the Year and her student-athlete Karyna Werley Region Freshman of the Year.
 
ACADEMIC ACCOLADES
Wednesday brought the unveiling of the 2025 RMAC All-Academic Volleyball teams. Jenna McLaughlin was voted RMAC First-Team All-Academic. Brinleigh Davis, Eryn Hiraki, Allison Jansen, Kate Kudlac, Olivia Murillo, and Naomi Romslo appeared on the RMAC Academic Honor Roll. Criteria for RMAC First-Team All-Academic nominations include Criteria for RMAC First-Team All-Academic nominations include a cumulative grade-point average (GPA) of 3.50 or better while also providing outstanding performance in competition. Requirements for the RMAC Academic Honor Roll include, but are not limited to a 3.30 cumulative GPA, using a year of eligibility and two consecutive semesters completed at the current institution. The first team was voted on by communications professionals around the league. Departments could not vote for their own players. Alyssa Boyte from MSU Denver was appointed RMAC Academic Player of the Year as the top vote getter.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Mines' last action was the first round of the RMAC tournament. The fourth-seeded Orediggers hosted the #5 seed Colorado Mesa. Mines eventually fell in five sets despite 14 kills from Cadence McDonald, 13 kills by Abbie O'Shay, 11 kills off the hand of Jenna McLaughlin, and 10 kills on .400 hitting courtesy of Morgan McChesney. Naomi Romslo added four service aces. Hailee Martinez had 41 assists. O'Shay, McLaughlin, and McDonald combined for 18 total blocks. Additionally, the trio of Francesca Nuzzo, Jada Price, and Olivia Murillo churned out 54 digs with 18 apiece. With that loss, the Orediggers will go 18 days without playing a match.
 
JADA JOINS THE CLUB
During Mines' RMAC match at Fort Lewis on Oct. 17, Jada Price surpassed 1,000 digs as an Oredigger. She hit the milestone on the nose thanks to 20 digs in the five-set thriller in Durango. Now, in just under four collegiate seasons, Price owns 1,182 digs, 185 assists, 77 service aces, and five kills from the back row. The last Oredigger to go over 1,000 career digs was Elle Duis who played from 2018-11 and is now an assistant coach for Mines. Duis also happens to be the program's all-time leader in digs with a total of 2,285 across five seasons.
 
1000 KILLS
Earlier this season, Amanda Donais Dudley surpassed 1,000 kills for her collegiate career. The crafty veteran now touts 1,132 kills along with 958 digs, 237 total blocks, 106 aces, and 104 assists. Those who are quick with the simple match know Donais Dudley sits just 42 digs from a second admittance into Club 1K. Donais Dudley originally played for Mines from 2018-21 and was an all-American as a senior. She finished her bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and graduated in the spring of 2022. However, Donais Dudley still had a year of college eligibility remaining due to the COVID-19 pandemic. So, when she decided to come back to Mines for a master's degree in mechanical engineering, she decided to play some more volleyball. The 2025 season will be Donais Dudley's final collegiate campaign.
 
STANDING IN THE HALL OF FAME
Five-time all-American Danielle Johnson-Hazlewood was announced as a member of the Mines Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2025 over the summer. She was officially enshrined on Oct. 4. One of the most decorated players in Mines volleyball history, Johnson-Hazlewood is one of an elite few Orediggers in any sport to have been a four-year RMAC champion. She led Mines to the conference regular-season titles in 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015. Johnson-Hazlewood also helped the Orediggers win the RMAC Tournament title as a senior in 2015. Fans can read her entire Mines Athletics Hall of Fame profile HERE.
 
AT THE HELM
Head Coach Jamie Magalei is in her 18th season leading the Mines volleyball program. She is easily the program's all-time leader in total wins and win percentage at 383-146 (.724). Magalei surpassed 300 career wins in 2021. She's one of six to reach the milestone while coaching in the RMAC. Through 2024, Magalei has coached 31 all-America selections, three Academic All-Americans, and 66 all-conference performers. Her resume also includes three Regional Players of the Year, two Regional Freshmen of the Year, and 16 RMAC major award winners. Magalei has guided Mines to six RMAC regular-season championships, and five RMAC Tournament titles with 13 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances from 2009-22 (no NCAA tournament in 2020). The North Dakota native also guided the Orediggers to either a conference regular-season or tournament title every season from 2012-21 including a sweep of both in 2015.
 
UP NEXT
If the Orediggers win on Thursday, they play on Friday. If they win on Friday, they play on Saturday. If they win on Saturday, they play on Thursday, Dec. 11, and so on. Any loss brings Mines' 2025 season to a close.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines volleyball on "X" (formerly Twitter) at @MinesVolleyball and on Instagram at @mines.volleyball. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, "X" and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.