RAPID CITY, S.D. --- The South Dakota Mines volleyball team goes to Utah to face off with Westminster College on Friday night, followed by a match against Colorado Mesa on Saturday.

Series History
vs. Westminster College

• The Griffins and Hardrockers have met 7 times previously.
• The first match between these two programs in volleyball was in 2004 on September 11^th.
• The most recent match between teams was on 3/6/2021.
• The Griffen's have an edge in the series, 4-3.

vs. Colorado Mesa

• Colorado Mesa and South Dakota Mines have met 8 times previously.
• The Mavericks have emerged victorious in each of the previous matchups.

Gold Nuggets

• The Hardrocker Volleyball team has started the season 8-8 but has struggled to a 2-6 start after a 6-2 start to the season.
• South Dakota Mines' strength thus far this season has been its' play on the defensive side of the net. The Hardrockers allow the opposition to hit .175% against them. That is the sixth-best opponent hitting percentage in the RMAC.
• In addition to forcing errors, the Hardrocker defense keeps balls off of the floor, with 1059 digs in 61 sets, to place 2^nd in the conference with 17.36 digs per set.
• Addie Stanley and Emma Grimm are the main reason South Dakota Mines keeps balls from hitting the floor, as they are 9^th and 13^th in the RMAC averaging 3.98, and 3.69 digs per set.
• The Hardrockers continue to be very balanced offensively with 4 women having over 110 kills. Dejah Behrend leads the team with 122 kills, Emma Grimm is on her tails with 121, meanwhile, Sydney Crites and Jacey Koethe have 118 and 112.
• Stanley and Grimm are each over the 200-dig mark on the season at 243, and 225.
• Kiley Metzger and Shyann Bastian lead the team in assists. Kiley Metzger has 312, while Bastian is sitting with 226 for the season.
• Koethe, Behrend and Lily Bartling lead the team with 45, and 38 blocks for the latter two.

Scouting Report
Westminster College

• It has been a tough season for Westminster, as they are currently sitting with a 3-13 overall record, and a 1-7 RMAC record.
• The Griffins are at or near the bottom in just about every statistical category.
• Avery Alger and Bri Mortenson have been a good 1-2 punch, sitting in 8^th in kills and 9^th in assists.
• Alanna Lee leads the Griffins defensively, averaging 3.78 digs per set.

Colorado Mesa

• Colorado Mesa has won 6 of their past 7 matches, giving them an 11-4 record on the season, in addition to a 6-2 mark in conference play, and received votes in the most recent top 25 poll.
• The Mavericks are great on both sides of the net, sitting in 3^rd and 2^nd in hitting percentage and opponent hitting percentage in the RMAC.
• Tye Wedhorn and Savanna Spitzer are in the top 10 among the RMAC in kills.
• Wedhorn is 3^rd in the conference in blocks.
• Kerstin Layman is 2^nd in the RMAC In digs.

About South Dakota Mines
The South Dakota School of Mines & Technology is a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) and NCAA Division II offering 11 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletic programs. The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference is a premier NCAA Division II conference with 15 members, as well as four associate members, located in the states of California, Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Utah.