GOLDEN, Colo. – Western State Colorado University fell short in a three-set (25-19, 25-18, 25-19) loss to No.19-ranked Colorado School of Mines Saturday afternoon in Golden. With the loss the Mountaineers will remain in seventh place in the conference, but have the potential of sharing it with Adams State University, pending tonight's matchup with Black Hills State in Spearfish, S.D.
 
Unlike the previous matchup between these two teams, this battle was completely offensive. Both teams hit over .200 during the match, with Mines getting the better result with a .306 hitting percentage. Mines is the first conference team to hit greater than .250 against Western all season.
 
The offensive show was apparent, with both teams combining for just seven total blocks. Only a single player from each team had more than 10 digs, with none over 20.
 
Tori Gaherty led the Mountaineers in kills for the fifth straight match. She had a match-high 11 kills, while Jordan Eatwell had 10 and only a single error, giving her a .391 hitting percentage. Eatwell also had a pair of aces.
 
Also for the Mountaineers, Allison Walker had 29 assists and a pair of kills. She contributed on defense with a pair of blocks.
 
Amanda Maestas was the lone Mountaineer with double-digit digs with 12. Taylor Castillo and Avery Burkholder joined Walker with a pair of total blocks each. The team held Colorado Mines All-American Alanna Winfield to just 10 kills in the match.
 
The Mountaineers look to secure their spot in the RMAC Tournament with five games remaining. The next four of five games for the team are home, starting with Fort Lewis College Friday evening at 7 p.m. Western State goes up against Adams State Saturday evening, a game with large tournament implications.