GOLDEN, Colo. – It only took 60 minutes on Saturday for the #25-ranked Oredigger volleyball team to sweep Westminster in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Power Pod finale at Lockridge Arena.
All systems were go, but the home service game truly stole the show.
Francesca Nuzzo tallied four service aces,
Avery Perreira had three aces, and
Sophia Davila added two aces as well.
Naomi Romslo and
Jenna McLaughlin's single aces rounded out the total. McLaughlin was also "aces" on the attack, knocking down nine kills with zero errors for a .643 attack percentage. She had five total blocks too. Romslo tied for the match high with nine kills on .438 hitting.
Abbie O'Shay converted her eight kills at a .538 clip. Setter
Kaiya Gilbert posted a 28-assist, 10-dig double-double while producing four total blocks and one kill. Rounding out the highlights were two blocks by
Caroline Walden and seven digs from Nuzzo.
The victory extended Mines' (19-3, 8-2 RMAC) program-record run of straight-set wins to 12. Westminster (3-19, 2-8 RMAC) dropped its sixth straight match. Neither Saturday's contest, nor those played on Thursday and Friday counted toward the conference standings. The Orediggers, in addition to their 11 service aces, hit .423 and recorded 7.0 total blocks. The Griffins had 6.0 total blocks but only managed a .122 attack percentage and two service aces. As referenced above, the length of the contest was 60 minutes, and there were only five ties and two lead changes across three sets of action. Mines' 36 consecutive set victories mark the longest active streak in NCAA Division II.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Mines started the night by going error-free on offense until Westminster recorded a block to make the score 16-8 in favor of the Orediggers. Even so, the home team was unfazed and rolled to a 25-12 win behind McLaughlin's five kills on eight attempts with zero errors and three blocks. Those blocks helped limit WU to a .080 attack percentage. Mines had zero blocks in the second set but still posted a 25-13 victory after committing just two attack errors and hitting .526 as a team. O'Shay and Romslo knocked down four kills each in that frame. Three ties and one lead change made the third set the most competitive of the night. In the end, the Orediggers clinched another sweep with a 25-16 margin. Romslo's three error-free kills led the charge. Perreira also had two aces in the final set alone.
NOTABLES
- The Orediggers improved to 15-1 in the all-time series against Westminster.
- Mines has never lost to the Griffins in Golden.
- The Orediggers have posted 14 straight-set victories in 2026.
- Mines hasn't lost a set since Sept. 18.
- The last time the Orediggers had at least 11 aces in a match was Oct. 30, 2021, against UCCS.
- Mines' .423 attack percentage on Saturday marked its most efficient match of the season so far. It's also the Orediggers' highest attack percentage in a match since hitting .506 against New Mexico Highlands on Oct. 7, 2023.
- Gilbert's double-double was her ninth of the season.
- Nuzzo has now produced four service aces in a match in six different occasions dating back to her time at Northeastern Junior College.
- Mines Head Coach
Jamie Magalei is now 403-150 in her 19th season at the helm.
WHAT'S NEXT
Mines travels to South Dakota next weekend to face South Dakota Mines and Black Hills State.
Fans can keep up with Mines volleyball on "X" (formerly Twitter) at @minesvolleyball and on Instagram at @mines.volleyball. They can also follow all of Mines Athletics year around on Facebook, "X", and Instagram at @MinesAthletics.
