Mines (4-3) at MSU Denver (3-3) – Saturday, 12 p.m. (DH) – Denver, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network PPV]
Mines (4-3) vs. Regis (0-5) – Sunday, 12 p.m. – Golden, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network PPV]

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KEEPING IT LOCAL
A couple of familiar foes are in store for the Colorado School of Mines softball team this weekend as they close out non-conference action against two metro-area foes. Saturday the Orediggers head downtown for a doubleheader at MSU Denver before returning home Sunday for a single game with Regis.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
This week's games will be available for purchase on the RMAC Network with Kienan Dixon on the call for Sunday's home game. Free live stats will be available as well. Links for video and stats can be found on minesathletics.com.
 
FREE ADMISSION SUNDAY
With action at Joe Coors, Jr. Softball Field Sunday comprised of just one game against Regis, fans will be admitted free of charge to watch action between the Orediggers and Rangers.
 
RMAC NETWORK CHANGES
As was announced on June 30, this year the RMAC Network is moving to a pay-per-view model for all events beginning with the 2025-26 season.
 
RMAC fans can purchase monthly and annual subscriptions that will provide them access to all regular-season, championship, and archived broadcasts on the RMAC Network. A monthly subscription costs $25, and an annual subscription costs $130. Single-game passes are available for $10, which grants access to a single game for 24 hours. For technical support questions, fans may submit a support ticket with Hudl Support or email the RMAC directly (rmac@rmacsports.org). For further support, fans can visit the RMAC Network Help page.
 
WEEKEND WEATHER REPORT
Saturday's forecast calls for mostly sunny with a high of 57 and light winds for the doubleheader with the Roadrunners. Sunday is shaping up to be even better with a high of 65 and mostly sunny once more for the single game with Regis.
 
AT THE HELM
2026 will be the second season of the Tobin Echo-Hawk era in Golden as the Orediggers look to return to the postseason after missing out in 2025. In Echo-Hawk's first season, Mines went 22-32 overall and 21-22 in the RMAC. The 2026 season will be Echo-Hawk's 13th as a head coach at the NCAA level which has included stops at Portland State and UTEP as she sports a career record of 278-369 (.429). Eight times her teams have won 20 or more games in a season and twice recorded 30-win seasons as she looks to elevate the Orediggers in 2026 and beyond.
 
JOINING THE STAFF
Some new faces will be in the dugout this spring for Mines as Zoe Bacon joined the program as the top assistant in the summer of 2025. Most recently the assistant coach at St. Edward's University in Texas, Bacon will work primarily with the pitching staff this season. Get to know Coach Bacon more ahead of the 2026 season here. Also joining the program in a more prominent role this season is Jordan Ruiz, who was a part-time assistant last fall.
 
WEEK 2 RECAP
Mines handled business in their lone action of the week as they swept MSU Billings in their home debut Sunday by scores of 3-2 and 11-3 in six innings. Taylor Wayne made a trio of first inning runs hold up in the opener as she went the distance for her second win of the season. Kendall Aragon led at the plate with a 3-3 game with a double, RBI and run while Emily Rogers tripled in a run and Katie Bauer added an RBI groundout. Game two saw MSUB score two in the second, but Mines quickly answered with three in the bottom of the inning and two more in the third before blowing things open and scoring six in the sixth to bring the eight-run rule into effect. Ellen Shull pitched four strong innings of relief to earn her first win of the season while Emiaj Self and Lauren Romero went a combined 4-6 with five RBI between them with Self adding a double and a three-run triple.
 
MEET THE CAPTAINS
A new year means a new group of captains as in 2026 Kendall Aragon, Taylor Wayne, Lauren Romero, Emiaj Self, Lindy French and Kylie Bickford will be leading the way on the field this spring.
 
Aragon has been an undisputed leader for the Orediggers since her arrival in 2023 and has been of the best defensive outfielders and hitters in the RMAC during her time at Mines. Last season she led the team ranked near the top of the conference with a .409 average while slugging .454 with 16 doubles, four triples and two home runs while scoring 43, driving in 38 and stealing 12 bases as she posted career numbers across the season on her way to Second Team All-RMAC honors. Go ahead and pencil Aragon's name into the lineup in center field and somewhere in the top half of the batting order this weekend.
 
After missing all of 2024 with injury, Wayne returned to action in 2025 and made 16 starts in 27 appearances on her way to a 7-9 season with a 5.43 ERA and 57 strikeouts over 120 innings of work. She led the team in strikeouts and innings pitched and spun 10 complete game efforts while recording statistical bests across the board. She also hit .200 at the plate while seeing some late-season action in right field. The fifth-year senior will bring valuable experience to a deep pitching staff this spring as she looks to lead the Orediggers back to the postseason.
 
Romero quietly had herself a stellar sophomore season as she took over duties at third base full-time as the season went on. She started 37 times in 41 games and posted a strong second half to close the year fourth on the team with a .337 average, four doubles, a triple, 19 runs and nine RBI. Entering her junior season, Romero will remain a fixture on the Mines infield and may slide over to second base in 2026.
 
In her debut season in 2025, Self emerged as the everyday starter at shortstop for the Orediggers and finished third on the team with a .349 batting average and posted 10 doubles, five triples, 24 RBI and 31 runs scored. Her five triples were tied for the sixth-most in a single season, three of which came on the final day of the season against New Mexico Highlands.
 
French started 31 of 33 games in her debut season before having things cut short with an injury at the end of March. Despite missing the final 21 games of the year, French batted .341/.363/.364 with two double, 10 runs and eight RBI while platooning between second and third base. She led the team in batting average for the first month of the season and went 7-11 in her first weekend of action in 2025. The Festus, Missouri native returns to action this weekend and figures to see time around the infield in 2026, particularly at first base.
 
Following a strong fall, Bickford will factor into the Orediggers' plans this spring right away as a true freshman at the hot corner. A second-generation Mines student with family ties to the softball program, the Littleton native was a three-time All-Conference selection at the prep level and batted .393 with a .466 OBP while also fielding .960 defensively.
 
HELLO, MY NAME IS…
A total of nine newcomers have joined the Orediggers for the 2026 season. Kylie Bickford, Rylee Church, Ariana Hughes, Madyson Ortiz, Sydney Pendowski, Morgan Stewart and Miquela Tammaro comprised the first signing class under Tobin Echo-Hawk. Those seven are joined by Nina Sammoury and junior college transfer Lucy Herston. This talented group of newcomers adds depth at several positions around the diamond and each expect to compete for time this spring.
 
IN THE POLLS
Mines was voted to finish sixth in the RMAC in January's Preseason Coaches' Poll. Defending champions Colorado Christian was picked to repeat as champions ahead of Colorado Mesa. MSU Denver was voted third followed by UCCS and CSU Pueblo to round out the top five.
 
Nationally, defending champions UT Tyler were a unanimous #1 selection in the NFCA Preseason Top 25 followed by Tampa, Western Washington, Pace and Central Oklahoma. Opening weekend opponent Missouri Southern checked in at #24.
 
PRESEASON ALL-RMAC
Senior centerfielder Kendall Aragon was named Preseason All-RMAC two weeks back when the league released its preseason poll. A three-time All-RMAC selection in her career and a Second Team honoree each of the previous two seasons, Aragon has long since established herself as one of the premier players in the RMAC. Last season she had a career year across the board, batting .409 and starting all 54 games as she racked up 72 hits, 43 runs scored, 38 RBI, 16 doubles, four triples and a pair of homers while swiping 12 bases. She ranked fourth in the RMAC in batting average, hits and tied for sixth in doubles while on the defensive side fielded .961 with four outfield assists.
 
EARNING THAT SILVER
A pair of Orediggers have already earned one silver-plated diploma and are working on their second as they wrap up their careers in 2026. Fifth-year pitcher Taylor Wayne wrapped up her undergraduate work in Mechanical Engineering last May and is now working toward a graduate degree in the same field. Senior outfielder Kendall Aragon meanwhile picked up her undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering in just three years and is now working on a Master's in STEM Education.
 
ONE OF THE BEST
One of the most prolific hitters in program history, Kendall Aragon enters 2026 with her name on several lists in the program record book. Presently, the Legacy High School alum ranks third all-time in career batting average at .396 (203-512) and is eighth on the all-time hits list. Her 16 doubles from last season are tied for the eighth-most in a single season while she owns three career hitting streaks of 10 games or more including a 15-game streak that's the seventh-longest all-time, and is the only player in program history to have three such hitting streaks.
 
LADY LARCENY
Already known as one of the fastest women in Golden, Kellan Ton has been prolific on the basepaths in the first two seasons of her career. In both 2024 and 2025, the speedster from Sugar Land, Texas broke the Mines single-season steals record first with 25 stolen bases in her debut campaign before committing 27 acts of larceny for an encore as a sophomore. Now two weeks into the sseason, Ton is up to 55 stolen bases and needs just four swipes to break Renata Boyd (2020-23)'s all-time record of 58.
 
BEHIND THE DISH
Following the departure of Lexie Semeyn and Kailey Morales last season, there will be some new faces behind the plate for the Orediggers this season with nary an inning of work wearing the tools of ignorance at the collegiate level between them. The veteran amongst the six backstops this season is redshirt junior Katie Bauer, who hit .667 with a walk in four pinch hit appearances last season in her first career action. Redshirt sophomore Ryen Herman heads into her third season with the program this spring after making a pair of pinch hit appearances in 2025. Of the group with experience at the collegiate level to their name, Grace Weiler heads the bunch having appeared in 12 games in a utility role last spring, seeing time in the outfield and at designated played and batting .200 with four RBI before having her season derailed by injury at Colorado Mesa in March. Morgan Stewart, Miquela Tammaro and Nina Sammoury make up the newcomers in the group as the trio all vie for playing time in their debut seasons. Stewart and Tammaro add some intrigue as left-handed hitting options for the Orediggers, while Sammoury brings some juice to the plate after belting 54 home runs at the prep level.
 
CHECKING THE STAT SHEET
Kendall Aragon tops the stat sheet through two weeks of action with a .500/.542/.611 line with two doubles, four RBI and six runs scored. Lauren Romero raised her average to .438 over the weekend and has two doubles, two RBI, four runs scored and two stolen bases. Kellan Ton checks in with a .375 average and two doubles with three stolen bases ahead of Emily rogers with a .357 average, a home run, a triple, three RBI, six runs scored and two swipes of second base. Emiaj Self rounds out five regulars batting north of .300 at .316 with two triples and leads the team now with six RBI. Katie Bauer is batting .250 with three of her four hits going for extra bases while driving in five, while Grace Weiler (.500) and Lindy French (.333) each have a double and two RBI.
 
In the circle, Taylor Wayne anchors the pitching staff with a 2-1 record in three starts for 19.1 innings with a 3.62 ERA, nine strikeouts and a .260 BAA. Kat Miller is 1-1 in four appearances with two starts for 12 innings and has an ERA of 7.00 with six strikeouts, while Ellen Shull is 1-0 in nine of work with two starts in four appearances and has a BAA of .297. Rylee Church and Madyson Ortiz round things out with 1.2 and 1.0 innings of work respectively as they didn't see action Sunday.
 
On the season, Mines is batting .339 with a .413 on-base percentage and is slugging .494. they are just -1 in run differential at 39-38 and are 12-14 on stolen bases. The pitching staff has a 5.86 ERA in 43 innings pitched with 20 strikeouts against 35 free passes and a .299 BAA. Mines had a solid weekend defensively in their home debut as they raised their fielding percentage to .957 and on the year have committed nine errors in 209 chances.
 
SCOUTING MSU DENVER
Much like the Orediggers, MSU Denver started their season at the DII Lone Star College Classic in Mansfield, Texas where they went 1-3 and picked up a win over Southern Nazarene 4-2 before sweeping MSU Billings at home 7-6 and 12-1 on Saturday. This week's doubleheader with Mines is the final non-conference action for the Roadrunners before they open RMAC play at home against Fort Lewis.
 
Cheyenne Prieto has been red-hot the first two weeks of the season, posting a .667/.684/1.167 line with 12 hits, two doubles, a triple, two home runs, seven RBI and five runs scored. JUCO transfer Shay Cwelich is batting .429 with a double and three RBI in her first two weeks of action, while freshman Neila Lucero sports a .417 average with three RBI and a double as well. Victoria Pearson and Zoe Stanzyk each have two extra-base hits and five RBI while batting .400 and .357 respectively with the latter also going 3-4 on the base paths. Brooklyn Enny leads with three doubles early to go with a .333 average while Janessa Esquibel has five RBI of her own, two doubles and a .313 average.
 
In the circle, freshman Kianna Butler leads the way with a 2-0 record in four appearances with two starts for 12.1 innings and a 2.27 ERA with five strikeouts, five walks and a .260 BAA. Samantha Mader has made three appearances for 10.0 innings and leads the staff with six strikeouts while posting a 6.30 ERA and a .275 BAA. Natalie Romero has gotten off to a slow start with an 0-2 record in four appearances with two starts for 10.2 innings and has struck out five with nine walks while posting a 9.84 ERA and a .404 BAA. Prieto has also seen time in the circle, making one appearance for 1.2 innings opening weekend while Brooklyn Levin rounds out the group with a 1-0 record in three relief appearances for 5.1 innings with two strikeouts, four walks and a 6.56 ERA.
 
As a team, MSU Denver is batting .331 with a .411 on-base percentage and a .470 slugging percentage. They are -3 in run differential at 37-34 and are 6-7 on stolen bases. The pitching staff has a 5.95 ERA over 40 innings of work with 18 strikeouts to 24 free passes and a .314 BAA. Defensively, the Roadrunners are fielding .953 with eight errors in 170 chances.
 
SCOUTING REGIS
Regis got their season started last weekend at the D2 West Coast Challenge against a slew of challenging opponents, headlined by #14 Cal State San Marcos. Despite their 0-5 record, the Rangers held their own and just missed a win in a 5-4 loss to Cal State San Bernardino. Sunday's action with Mines is their only game of the weekend and final tuneup before RMAC play begins at home against Colorado Mesa.
 
Freshman Kiauna Smith leads the way at the plate for Regis in the early going with a .455 average and is 2-2 on stolen bases. Transfer Kristin Ingram is second on the team with a .400 average and has a pair of doubles to her name. Jessica Isbell leads the way with three RBI and is batting .294 with a double while Janelle Erickson has an RBI and a triple and is batting .250 with a stolen base. Eleanor Sikora is also one to watch, as she's batting .400 with a run scored in three games.
 
In the circle veteran Hallie Crappell leads the way with a 1.70 ERA in 12.1 innings pitched with one start in two appearances with six strikeouts and a .122 BAA. Eliza Legge started her only appearance and went five innings with five strikeouts and two walks and sports a 4.20 ERA. Five other players have made at least one appearance for RU so far this season. Caitlyn Potts and Carmen O'Connor have both worked 2.1 innings while Vanessa Candito has spun 2.2 innings in two appearances along with Ava Edwards who is tied with Crappell for the team lead with six strikeouts. Sophia Garcia meanwhile rounds out the group with two innings worked in a start for her only outing.
 
As a team, Regis is batting .235 with a .311 on-base percentage and a .319 slugging percentage. They have been outscored 44-11 over their first five games and are 5-6 on stolen bases. In the circle they have an 8.35 ERA over 29.1 innings of work and have struck out 21 while issuing 28 free passes and posting a .310 BAA. Defensively they are fielding .918 with 10 errors in 122 chances.
 
SERIES HISTORY
MSU Denver leads the all-time series with Mines 57-36 and is 30-17 when playing at home. Last season the Roadrunners took three out of four games in conference play in Denver as the Orediggers avoided being swept thanks to a 2-1 win the finale.
 
Regis also leads the all-time series against the Orediggers but by a margin of 114-42. Mines is just 17-49 at home against the Rangers as the teams will be meeting in Golden Sunday for the first time since the 2023 season. Last season, RU took three out of four games in the regular season series in Denver with Mines avoiding the sweep thanks to a 14-7 outburst in game three of the series. RU also won three of four the last time they came to Joe Coors, Jr. Softball Field in 2024, with the Orediggers avoiding the sweep with a walk-off 7-6 win in the finale in 11 innings.

ON DECK
RMAC play begins for the Orediggers next weekend as they'll welcome UCCS to Joe Coors, Jr. Softball field February 21-22.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines softball on X at @MinesSoftball and on Instagram at @mines_sb. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, X and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.