Mines (23-23, 19-17) vs. CSU Pueblo (33-13, 29-7) – Friday, 12 p.m. – Golden, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network PPV] [Tickets]
Mines (23-23, 19-17) vs. CSU Pueblo (33-13, 29-7) – Saturday, 11 a.m. – Golden, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network PPV] [Tickets]

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HOME FINALE
For the final time in 2026, the Colorado School of Mines softball team will take the field at Joe Coors, Jr. Softball Field Friday and Saturday as they look to continue their push for the postseason against CSU Pueblo.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
This weekend's games will be available for purchase on the RMAC Network. Alex Becker will have the call Friday while Kienan Dixon will be on the mic for Saturday. Free live stats will be available as well. Links for video and stats can be found on minesathletics.com.
 
FAN ADVISORY
A reminder to fans planning to attend this weekend's games that due to inclement weather in the forecast, action has been moved up a day. The series will now start Friday at 12 p.m. and wrap up Saturday starting at 11 a.m. A reminder to fans planning to attend Friday's action that they will need to pay for parking on campus since the games will be played during enforcement hours.
 
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.
 
SENIOR WEEKEND
With this weekend being the final home series of the season, the Orediggers will hold Senior Day festivities following the conclusion of Saturday's doubleheader to celebrate the four members of this year's class. Taylor Wayne, Kendall Aragon, Kenzie Sale, Katie Bauer and Kat Miller will be honored for their careers in a postgame ceremony Saturday.
 
WEEKEND WEATHER REPORT
Friday will be a picturesque day for softball in Colorado with a high around 70, scattered clouds and west winds at 10-15 miles per hour. Saturday will see the leading edge a cold front roll through as the high won't quite get to 60 with overcast skies all day and east winds at 5-10 miles per hour.
 
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 297-389 (.433). 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 12 RECAP
Mines went on the road last weekend and claimed a 3-1 series win over Adams State. The Orediggers swept Saturday 6-0 and 20-2 before splitting Sunday with a 10-9 loss in extra innings before romping to a 14-0 win in the finale. Madyson Ortiz batted .714 on the weekend in her first series as a fixture in the lineup as she reached base a total of eight times, drove in two runs and scored two. Kendall Aragon batted .556 with six triples, a double, nine RBI and seven runs scored while Kellan Ton hit .500 with a triple, four runs scored and three stolen bases. Grace Weiler hit .462 with four RBI and five runs scored while Sam Whisenand batted .429. Emiaj Self had a strong weekend batting .364 with three RBI and four runs scored while Lauren Romero hit .357 with three RBI and five runs scored. In the circle, Rylee Church spun her first career shutout in the series opener before being the hard-luck loser in the extra-innings loss as she finished with weekend with a 1.27 ERA and 10 strikeouts in 11 innings while also hitting her first career home run as part of a 3-4 weekend at the plate. Ellen Shull spun a five-hit shutout in the finale while Kat Miller picked up the win in relief in game two Saturday. Taylor Wayne struck out six in four innings of work while Ortiz took a no-decision in her lone start of the weekend as she struck out three in four innings.
 
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.
 
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.
 
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 entered 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 .404 (264-654) and if the season ended today, would be the third .400 hitter in Mines history. She's also now in sole possession of third all-time on the hits list, having passed Melissa Stratton (254, 2005-08) and Kaleigh Starr (259, 2007-10) and is one back of Clara Larson (2017-21) for second. To have a shot at the all-time record held by Sarah Van Lingen (2008-11), Aragon would need 13 hits to tie all-time mark of 277 and 14 to break it over the final eight games of the regular season.
 
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. As the season wraps up over the next two weeks, is knocking on the door of a top 10 spot on the all-time doubles list with 35, while thanks to her six-triple weekend at Adams State she surged from fifth to first on the career triples list, passing Macy Jones (2010-13) and Heidi Bauer (2002-04) who were previously tied for first with 15 apiece. She's also broken into the top 10 on the career RBI list as her 126 move her into seventh all-time and place her one back of Molly Thiebaut (2010-13) in sixth. She's also now fifth on the all-time runs scored list with 139 will certainly become the fifth player to score 140 or more times in a career. In addition, Aragon also finds herself eighth on the career walks list with 63 and needs four more to enter into a four-way tie for fifth. And to wrap it up, with 37 stolen bases she would stand eighth on that list in her career and needs just three to become the eighth player with 40 or more steals during their time in a Mines uniform.
 
RMAC RESET
Colorado Christian remains unbeaten in RMAC play at 36-0 as part of a 42-game winning streak as they hold a seven-game lead with eight games to go and are sure to clinch the regular season title against Adams State this weekend. CSU Pueblo is comfortably in second at 29-7 six games ahead of MSU Denver in third at 23-13. So far, CCU and CSUP are the only two teams locked into the 2026 RMAC Softball Championship. UCCS and Colorado Mesa are tied for fourth at 20-16 while Mines and Black Hills State are tied for sixth at 19-17. New Mexico Highlands is 14-22 followed by Regis at 12-24. Fort Lewis is 10-26 while 9-27 Adams State and 5-31 Chadron State bring up the rear.
 
TRACK MEET
It wasn't too long ago that the Orediggers broke the single-season record for stolen bases, as they pilfered 86 bags in 2023. Following their series win over Adams State, the Orediggers have now posted the first 100-steal season in program history as they enter this weekend at home 101-114 on the bases. 15 players have at least one steal this season while four have 12 or more. Kellan Ton leads the way at 32-26 followed by Lauren Romero at 15-16. Sam Whisenand is 13-13 while Emily Rogers is 12-14. Kendall Aragon is close to making it five with double figure steals as she's 8-10 on the year.
 
FOR THREE
On April 3 against Black Hills State, Mines broke the program's single-season team record for triples as Lauren Romero's RBI three-bagger to left center was the 25th such base hit by the Orediggers this season. In fact, Mines had one of their best weekends ever when it came to triples at Adams State, recording 10 on the weekend and breaking the program's single-game record with five in the 20-2 rout in game two Saturday. Now with 37 triples on the season, Mines is solely back atop the national rankings as one of just two teams in the whole NCAA with more than 30 triples. Division II Claflin has 33 while the best teams in Division I and Division III, Louisville along with Messiah and Rhode Island College, have 25 and 21 apiece respectively. Additionally, following her SIX (yes, six) triples against the Grizzlies, Kendall Aragon now leads Division II and is tied for the national lead across all levels of the NCAA with RIC's Noelle Simmons with 10 triples.
 
Looking back at the program record, the previous mark of 24 came in the 2013 season. Seven different players recorded a triple that season led by Molly Thibault's six. Macy Jones and Kamee Vessey each had five, Melissa Marshall had three, Courtney Derus and Sami Springer each had two while Cassie Ford had one. This season, a whopping 10 different Orediggers have recorded a three-bagger. Kellan Ton's six leads the team and the RMAC and is tied with Thiebaut and Chrissy Ryan (1996) for fourth on the single-season list and is two back of joining Jones' 2011 season and Heidi Bauer (2002) for the top spot. Emiaj Self is second with five, Kendall Aragon and Emily Rogers have four each, Katie Bauer and Sydney Pendowski each have two while Lauren Romero, Kylie Bickford, Miquela Tammaro and Mia Lopez all have one apiece.
 
NEAR THE TOP
Mines ranks first in the conference with 37 triples heading into week 10 of action with 16 more than second place UCCS and remain third with 101 stolen bases as one of three teams over the century mark on the bases. Their .965 fielding percentage is tied for third in the RMAC, while their 4.24 ERA is also third in the conference.
 
Individually, Kendall Aragon is tied for fifth in the conference in batting with a mark of .430 and leads the RMAC with 10 triples. Kellan Ton is seventh in average with a mark of .428 while her 68 hits are tied for third and her 32 steals are good for second. Emiaj Self, Emily Rogers and Katie Bauer all rank in the top 20 alongside Aragon in triples. Mines also boasts three pitchers in the top 15 in ERA as Rylee Church is fifth at 2.96 followed by Taylor Wayne in 11th with a mark of 3.93 while Madyson Ortiz is 13th at 4.05. Ortiz is also tied for fourth in fewest walks allowed this season with 17.
 
BREAKING HER OWN RECORD, AGAIN
After claiming the Mines career stolen bases record in February, Kellan Ton continues to stake her claim as the fastest woman in program history. Against Chadron State, the junior broke the single-season stolen base record for the third time in her career and now has 32 stolen bases entering this weekend. As a freshman in 2024, Ton swiped 25 bases to break the previous record of 24 before taking 27 bags in 2025 as a sophomore. Now with eight games left in the regular season and the first 30-steal season in program in the bag, Ton sets her sights on 40 for the season as she continues to inch toward 100 in her career
 
CHECKING THE STAT SHEET
Kendall Aragon tops the charts this week as she's batting .430 with 12 doubles, 10 triples, two home runs 42 RBI and 37 runs scored. Kellan Ton is batting .428 entering the week with three doubles, seven triples, two homers and 18 RBI while going 32-26 on stolen bases and scoring 45 times. Katie Bauer is batting .354 with 10 doubles, three triples and three homers with 31 RBI while Lauren Romero is batting .328 with eight doubles, a home run, a triple and 21 RBI while going 15-16 on the bases. Emily Rogers is batting .299 with five doubles, four triples, two homers and 17 with 12 stolen bases while Emiaj Self is up to .242 with nine doubles, six triples, a home run and 26 RBI. Sam Whisenand remains hot since switching to the left side as she's batting .429 and is 13-13 on stolen bases. Miquela Tammaro is batting .302 with four extra-base hits and 10 RBI while Grace Weiler is batting .380 with five doubles and 13 RBI. Kylie Bickford sports a .298 average with three doubles, a triple, a home run and six RBI while Lindy French is batting .250 with three doubles and 13 RBI.
 
In the circle, Rylee Church leads the way with a 5-5 record in 17 appearances with five starts and has a 2.96 ERA with a team-high 58 strikeouts in 71 innings and has held teams to .231 at the plate. She's also batting .500 in limited action at the plate and has a home run and four RBI. Taylor Wayne is 7-7 in 22 appearances with 18 starts for a team-high 94.1 innings of work and has struck out 33 while posting a 3.93 ERA and holding teams to a .292 BAA. Wayne is hitting .259 at the dish with a home run. Madyson Ortiz is 5-5 with a save in 16 appearances with eight starts to her name and has a 4.05 ERA in 64 innings with 33 strikeouts and a .291 BAA. At the plate she's batting .412 with a home run and five RBI and a .524 OBP. Ellen Shull is now 3-2 after her win Sunday and in 15 appearances with six starts, has a 5.15 ERA in 36.2 innings of work with eight strikeouts while Kat Miller is 3-3 in 15 appearances with nine starts for 37.2 innings with 18 strikeouts and a 5.95 ERA. Ariana Hughes rounds out the group with two appearances for two innings.
 
On the season, Mines is batting .330 with a .403 on-base percentage and a .478 slugging percentage and has outscored teams 262-230 this season. They have amassed 117 extra-base hits (65 2B, 37 3B, 15 HR) and are 101-114 on stolen bases. The pitching staff has a 4.24 ERA with 150 strikeouts against 222 free passes and has a .293 BAA over 305.2 innings of work. Defensively, Mines is fielding .965 with 48 errors in 1,388 chances.
 
SCOUTING CSU PUEBLO
The Pack saw their 19-game winning streak come to an end over the weekend as they played to draw at home against MSU Denver, taking games one and three of the series 4-3 and 4-0 while losing games two and four 3-1 in eight innings and 8-6. Following this weekend's series with Mines, CSUP will close the regular season against league-leading Colorado Christian.
 
One of the top teams on both sides of the ball this spring, CSU Pueblo has seven regulars batting better than .300, led by Caitlyn Cole and her .430/.483/.791 line with 16 doubles, four triples, 11 home runs, 33 RBI, 54 runs scored and 31 stolen bases. Madelyn Huerta is second with a .388 average with eight doubles, three triples, two home runs and 17 RBI. Reese Reimier is batting .376 with 12 doubles, five home runs and has driven in 31. Darleen Falcon enters the week batting .341 with 12 doubles as well in addition to a triple and two homers and 16 RBI while Emma Case likewise has 12 doubles a home run and a triple with 26 RBI and a .331 average. Two-way star McKenna James is batting .329 with 11 doubles, two triples and home runs and is second on the team with 39 RBI as Gissel Morales-Cermeno leads The Pack with 40 RBI thanks to 13 doubles, three triples and 10 homers while batting .315. Cali Cole, younger sister of Caitlyn, is batting .295 with 23 RBI and seven extra-base hits along with 18 stolen bases to round out the regulars.
 
James meanwhile leads the pitching staff in the circle with a record of 17-7 and a save in 28 appearances with 16 starts for 151.1 innings and has a 1.71 ERA with 107 strikeouts against 52 free passes with a .228 BAA. Kayli Cooper is 5-1 with two saves in 14 appearances with 11 starts for 47.1 innings and has 30 strikeouts against 27 free passes with a 2.96 ERA and a .206 BAA. Eva Miller-Sanchez is 7-4 on the season in 14 appearances including 12 starts and has a 3.52 ERA with 47 strikeouts against 37 free passes in 71.2 innings of work. Jaylah Rivera is 4-1 largely in relief as she's made 13 appearances with six starts for 40.2 innings with reverse splits of 25 free passes and 13 strikeouts. Marissa Reza rounds out the staff having made two appearances for 0.2 innings.
 
On the season, CSUP is batting .334 with a .409 on-base percentage and a .536 slugging percentage, and has outscored teams 279-152. They have 153 extra-base hits (99 2B, 14 3B, 40 HR) and are 85-107 on stolen bases as a team. Their pitching staff owns a collective 2.45 ERA with 197 strikeouts against 141 free passes with a .239 BAA in 311.2 innings of work. Defensively The Pack are fielding .956, having committed 58 errors in 1,332 chances.
 
SERIES HISTORY
CSU Pueblo leads the all-time series 73-46 and is 24-21 when playing in Golden. Last season, the teams split their four-game series in Pueblo with Mines taking games one and three 5-3 and 8-3 while the ThunderWolves took games two and four 9-5 and 9-2. The teams last matched up in Golden in the 2023 season, when Mines swept day one of the series 5-4 and 7-6 before the second day of action was canceled due to environmental conditions. Over the last 10 meetings, the Orediggers are 6-4 against CSUP.

ON DECK
Mines wraps up the 2026 regular season when they head to New Mexico Highlands May 1-2.
 
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.