PUBELO, Colo. – The Colorado State University Pueblo women's basketball team will hit the road for the first time in the New Year this coming weekend as the ThunderWolves play Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference games at 10th-ranked Colorado School of Mines and Metropolitan State University Denver.

The Pack will open the road trip with a 5 p.m. game on Friday, Jan. 6 in Golden, Colo., against Colorado School of Mines, before concluding the trip with a 4 p.m. game on Saturday, Jan. 7 in Denver, Colo., against Metropolitan State Denver.

CSU Pueblo comes into this weekend's action sporting an 8-5 overall record and are sitting in a three-way tie for second place in the RMAC standings with a 5-2 record after splitting home games last weekend to close the 2022 calendar year against Colorado Mesa, a 67-66 win and a 64-56 loss to Westminster (Utah) College. The loss to Westminster snapped a season high four-game win streak for the Pack.

Following this weekend's two games, the Pack will remain on the road as they travel to Las Vegas, N.M., for a 5 p.m. game on Tuesday, Jan. 10 against New Mexico Highlands.

This weekend's two road games will mark the sixth and seventh road games this season for the Pack as the ThunderWolves are 2-3 away from home, including being 2-1 on the road in RMAC play. It will also be the first road game for the Pack since earning a double-overtime 77-75 win at South Dakota School of Mines on Dec. 16.

ABOUT CSU PUEBLO
The ThunderWolves have two players averaging in double figures on the season as graduate student forward Charisse Fairley (Colorado Springs, Colo./Fresno State) leads the way as she is averaging 14.3 points and 7.2 rebounds per game and is shooting 42 percent from the field, 38 percent from the 3-point line and 77 percent from the free throw line. Fairley, who has posted back-to-back doubles as she had 11 points and 10 rebounds against Colorado Mesa and 13 points and 11 rebounds against Westminster, has scored in double figures in 11 games, including eight consecutive games of reaching double figures.

In addition to Fairley, sophomore guard Landri Hudson (Aurora, Colo./Wyoming) is second in scoring at 10.1 points and 2.8 rebounds per game and is shooting 44 percent from the field, 39 percent from the 3-point line and 81 percent at the free throw line. Hudson has tallied double figures in five games and is coming off a nine-point, three rebound effort last time out against Westminster.

While the Thunderwolves have two players averaging in double figures, a third player, graduate student guard JaNaiya Davis (Hewitt, Texas/Midway) is nearing double-digits as she is averaging 8.2 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 2.3 steals per game. Davis, who is tied for fourth in the RMAC in steals as she is averaging 2.3 per game, became the school's all-time leader in steals with 271 as she passed Suzanne Gonzales, who recorded 270 steals from 1985-89. Davis set the new school record with three steals against Westminster. Davis comes into this weekend's action second among active Division II players with 271 career steals and is third among active Division II players in career assists with 474.

As a team, CSU Pueblo leads the RMAC in three-pointers made per game (10.5), three-point field goal attempts per game (29.9 per game) and three-point field goal percentage defense (27.6 percent). In addition, the Pack are second in the league in three-point field goal percentage (35.0 percent) and free throw percentage (71.3 percent), while being third in the league in turnover margin (+2.1), assist/turnover ratio (1.0) and fifth in the RMAC in scoring margin as they are outscoring their opponents by +1.4 points per game.

On offense, the Pack are averaging 66.2 points per game and are allowing 64.8 points per game and is shooting 39 percent from the field and are allowing their foes to shoot 40 percent from the field and are getting outrebounded by nearly eight boards per game.

CSU Pueblo is coached by Tommie Johnson, who is in his fourth season as the Pack's women's basketball coach. In his four-plus seasons leading the Pack, Johnson, who spent 10 seasons as a men's assistant basketball coach from 2018-2016, has compiled a 42-46 overall record and is 32-35 in RMAC games.

ABOUT COLORADO MINES
Mines, who is ranked 10th in this week's latest WBCA Division II Coaches' Poll, comes into this week's action currently riding a nine-game winning streak as the Orediggers are sporting an 11-1 record and are the lone remaining undefeated team in the RMAC with a 7-0 league mark. Mines is one of 15 teams this season that have lost just one game. The Orediggers haven't played since earning a 75-62 win on New Year's Day at Colorado Christian. Mines only loss this season was a 59-47 setback at Nebraska-Kearney in the third game of the 2022-23 season.

The Orediggers are one of the top teams in the RMAC in both offense and defense as they are second in the league in scoring offense as they are averaging 72.2 points and lead the league in scoring defense as they are allowing 55.8 points per game and have held eight of their 12 foes to 60 or fewer points. In addition, the Orediggers are second in the league in turnovers forced per game (22.4), second in fewest turnovers committed (12.0), are third in the league in rebounds per game (40.5) and blocks per game (3.1) and are second in the league in field goal percentage defense (36.0 percent).

Leading the way offensively for Mines is senior guard Ashley Steffeck, who is averaging 12.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.8 steals per game and is shooting 36 percent from the field, 31 percent from the 3-point line and leads the league in free throw shooting at 88 percent. She has scored in double figures in 10 games and recorded a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds at Colorado Mesa.

The other two double-digit scorers for Mines are junior guard Josephine Howery and redshirt senior forward Megan Van de Graaf. Howery is averaging 11.8 points per game and is shooting 38 percent from the field and 74 percent from the free throw line, while Van de Graaf is averaging 11.2 points and 5.9 rebounds per game and is shooting 48 percent from the field.

Mines is coached by Brittany Simpson, who is in her 11th season with the Orediggers. Simpson has led the program three RMAC titles, three NCAA Tournament appearances and has been a three-time RMAC Coach of the Year. She has compiled a 185-108 record at Mines and has an active streak of leading the Orediggers to seven consecutive seasons with at least 17 wins.

Friday's game will mark the 25th all-time meeting between the two schools with CSU Pueblo holding a slight 13-11 edge all-time in the series, including winning the most recent meeting, 61-54 at Golden, Colo., on March 4, 2022.

ABOUT METROPOLITAN STATE DENVER
The Roadrunners, who hosts New Mexico Highlands on Friday before facing the Pack on Saturday, come into action this weekend sporting a 4-8 overall record and a 2-4 mark in the RMAC. MSU Denver has dropped two straight games and three of its last four overall with the lone win being a 60-59 home win on Dec. 10 against South Dakota School of Mines. The latest loss by the Roadrunners came on New Year's Eve with a 77-70 setback at Chadron State.

MSU Denver is averaging 65.2 points per game and are allowing 70.5 points per game and are shooting 38 percent from the field and 28 percent from the 3-point line and is one of the top free throw shooting teams in the league as they are third in free throw percentage at 71.3 percent and lead the RMAC in both free throw attempts per game (22.1) and free throws made per game (15.6).

Leading the way offensively for MSU Denver is sophomore guard Kenda Parra, who is averaging an RMAC-leading 18.0 points per game and is also averaging 5.4 rebounds per game and is shooting 40 percent from the field, 32 percent from the 3-point line and is second in the RMAC in free throw percentage at 86.2 percent. Parra has scored in double figures in five straight games and 11 times overall on the year and has scored 20 or more points in five of those 11 games.

The second Roadrunner averaging in double figures on the season is senior forward Leilah Vigil, who is averaging 15.0 points and 8.0 rebounds per game and is shooting 46 percent from the field and 71 percent from the free throw line.

Tanya Haave is in her 13th season as MSU Denver's head coach and has compiled a 229-138 overall record and is 179-88 in the RMAC. She has led MSU Denver to five NCAA Tournament appearances, including an NCAA Elite Eight appearance in her first season in 2010-11. Haave has also earned three RMAC Coach of the Year accolades with the Roadrunners.

Saturday's game will mark the 55th all-time meeting between the two schools as MSU Denver holds a 36-18 all-time lead in the series, including winning three straight games in the series. Last season, Metro State defeated CSU Pueblo, 76-68 in the championship game of the RMAC Tournament.