GUNNISON, Colo. --- The Western Colorado women's basketball team gets the 2020 part of its slate going with a pair of key RMAC road games as the Mountaineers head to South Dakota to take on Black Hills State on Friday and South Dakota Mines on Saturday.

The Mountaineers sit in a tie for third place in the RMAC at 4-1, a game back of Westminster and Colorado Mesa while they are a game ahead of five teams tied for fifth (including BHSU).

MOUNTAINEERS HEADING INTO THE WEEK | SEASON STATS
WCU is coming off its first loss in RMAC play as the Mountaineers fell at Colorado Mesa 44-36 on Dec. 20 in Grand Junction - snapping their six-game win streak (the longest for the program since 2007-08). WCU led 27026 in the third quarter before an 11-0 run by CMU gave control of the game to the Mavericks - which they didn't give up. Gabie Doud led the team with nine points while Katie Dalton had eight and Jadyn Kanzler added seven.

Samantha Cooper continues to lead the team in scoring at 10.4 points per game while adding 4.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists per contest. Hannah Cooper is averaging 8.1 points, 3.2 assists (first on the team), 2.9 rebounds and 1.2 steals (second on the team), Dalton is averaging 8.0 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.0 steals and a team-high 0.7 blocks and Doud is averaging 7.6 points, a team-high 5.6 rebounds.

The Mountaineers continue to be led by their defense as they are second in the RMAC and 13th in Division II in points allowed per game (52.4) - and first in the conference in RMAC-only contests at 44.2 points per game (WCU hasn't allowed an RMAC opponent to score more than 48 points). This is thanks to holding opponents to 32.8 percent shooting from the field - third in the RMAC and eighth in the nation.

BLACK HILLS STATE HEADING INTO THIS WEEK | SEASON STATS
The Yellow Jackets entered the winter break with a pair of wins - beating Adams State 85-51 on Dec. 13 and Fort Lewis 74-66 on Dec. 14. Morgan Ham paced BHSU in the win over the Grizzlies with 24 points and seven rebounds (in 24 minutes of action) while in handing the Skyhawks their first RMAC loss, Ham had 18 points, Abby Switzer had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds and Danica Kocer came off the bench to score 16 points - including going 4-for-8 from 3-point range.

BHSU features two of the top seven scorers in the conference in Racquel Wientjes (15.8) and Ham (14.9). No other player on the team is averaging 5.7 points per game - though that's mainly due to a balanced playing time scheme as 12 players are averaging 7.4 minutes or more per game - including nine averaging 12.8 or more minutes per game.

The Yellow Jackets lead the RMAC in turnover margin at plus 5.2 - forcing 19.4 per game while committing just 14.2. They are fourth in the RMAC in points scored at 66.4 per game while allowing 58.7 - also fourth in the conference.

SOUTH DAKOTA MINES HEADING INTO THIS WEEK | SEASON STATS
The Hardrockers entered the break winning two in a row after splitting its RMAC games on Dec. 13 (61-54 loss to Fort Lewis) and Dec. 14 (75-46 win to Adams State) and winning a non-conference contest at home against Presentation College, 90-41, on Dec. 19.

Ryan Weiss leads the Hardrockers in scoring and is sixth in the RMAC in scoring at 15.6 points per game thanks to leading the conference and being third in Division II in 3-point shooting at 50 percent (25-for-30). Anna Haugen is averaging a double-double for Mines at 10.6 points and an RMAC-best 10.9 rebounds - including having a big stat line against Adams state where she had 21 points ,10 rebounds, four assists and three steals.

Mines is fifth in the RMAC in scoring at 66.1 points per game and are also sixth in points allowed at 58.8 points per contest.
  MOUNTAINEERS ENTER D2SIDA WBB REGIONAL RANKINGS AT NO. 9 (DEC. 16)
The Western Colorado women's basketball team entered the D2SIDA regional rankings for the first time in some time as the Mountaineers are at No. 9 in this week's South Central Region poll released Monday. WCU is tied with Fort Lewis at No. 9 in this week's regional poll - the South Central Region is made up of the RMAC and the Lone Star Conference - with fellow RMAC teams Colorado Mesa (No. 5) and Westminster (No. 3) also making the rankings. Defending NCAA Division II national champion and undefeated Lubbock Christian tops the regional rankings.

WCU'S COLEMAN NAMED RMAC OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK (DEC. 2)
Western Colorado's Samantha Coleman's record-tying 3-point performance Saturday and strong overall weekend was rewarded Monday as the junior was named the RMAC Women's Basketball Offensive Player of the Week.

Coleman tied a Mountaineer women's record with seven 3-pointers and had a career-high 25 points in a 78-53 victory over University of the Southwest on Saturday at the CMU Holiday Inn - Airport Thanksgiving Classic in Grand Junction. She's the fourth Mountaineer to hit seven 3-pointers in a game with it most recently done last season by Chandler Willis against Fort Lewis.

MOUNTAINEERS UPEND D-I WEBER STATE IN EXHIBITION
The Western Colorado women's basketball team got key performances from veteran Samantha Coleman and newcomer Hannah Cooper and combined it with a strong defensive showing as the Mountaineers defeated Division-I Weber State 58-49 on Wednesday night at Dee Events Center.

Coleman, an All-RMAC performer last season for WCU, scored a game-high 22 points, went 5-for-12 from 3-point range, and added six rebounds while Cooper, a freshman from El Paso, Texas, displayed her all-around game with 12 points, seven rebounds, seven steals and six assists to lead the Mountaineers. Combine that with a defensive effort that saw WCU force Weber State into 20 turnovers while holding them to 39.1 percent shooting.

MOUNTAINEERS PICKED TO FINISH SIXTH IN THE RMAC
Coming off its postseason appearance in seven years, the Western Colorado women's basketball team was picked to finish sixth in the RMAC Preseason Coaches Poll released Tuesday.

The Mountaineers are coming off a 16-11 season (12-10 in the RMAC) that saw them reach the RMAC Tournament for the first time since 2012. WCU has nine players returning from that roster. In the poll, Western Colorado finished behind Colorado Mesa (215 points - nine first-place votes), Westminster (209 - five first-place votes), Colorad School of Mines (192 - one first-place vote), MSU Denver (180) and a single point behind Black Hills State (151) while finishing nine points ahead of seventh-place Regis.