BLACK HILLS STATE at WESTERN COLORADO
RMAC Tournament Quarterfinal
6:30 p.m., Tue., March 3 | Paul Wright Gym | Gunnison, Colo.
Watch (PPV) | Live Stats | Digital Program | Tickets

GUNNISON, Colo.  The rematch is set, but this time one team advances to the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference semifinals of the 2026 women's basketball tournament, while the other can only watch as Western Colorado and visiting Black Hills State square off again in Paul Wright Gym.

The teams met on the same floor in late January, with the Mountaineers holding off a furious Yellow Jackets fourth-quarter rally to squeeze out a 75-74 victory that proved vital in the final RMAC regular season standings, as a flip the other way would have sent Western to Black Hills State for Tuesday's quarterfinal game.

THE HISTORY
The Yellow Jackets lead the overall series, 13-6, but Western has won the past two games.

WESTERN COLORADO HEADING INTO THE GAME | 2025-26 Stats

• At 16-10 overall and 14-6 in RMAC action, the Mountaineers have won seven of their last nine games game, sweeping their final two games – by an average of 39 points – with the most recent loss coming on the road to the No. 4 team in the country.
• Western leads the conference in 3-point field goal percentage at 36.3%, a figure elevated by Jayda Maves who leads the league from behind the arc at 42.8% and with 71 triples on the season.
• Maves is 14th in the RMAC in scoring at 13.1 PPG, but the Mountaineer leader is Ivey Schmidt, whose 19.3 PPG mark is fourth best in the RMAC rankings.
• Both teams are solid off the glass and amongst the RAMC's top rebounding teams. Western's rebounding margin of +7 is third in the league, but the Yellow Jackets lead the way at +14.
• Schmidt and Penelope Urquhart are the Mountaineers' top two rebounders, with Schmidt averaging 7.0 RPG and Urquhart averaging 5.8.
• Making it tough for opponents around Western's defensive rim is Chloe Daniels, who forces things back outside or makes opponents pay with a total of 30 blocks this season.
• In the last game against the Yellow Jackets it was Schmidt (18 points), Maves (14), Urquhart (11) and Daniels (10) who all reached double figures in scoring in the nail-baiting victory.

BLACK HILLS STATE COMING INTO THE GAME | 2025-26 Stats

• The Yellow Jacket slipped a bit toward the end of the season, posting a 4-3 record in their final seven games and finishing the regular season with a 17-10 overall record and an identical to Western RMAC record of 14-6.
• In the earlier game this season at Western, BHSU scored 33 fourth quarter points to battle back from a large double-digit deficit. Bradie Schlabs tied Schmidt for game-high honors with 18 points, while Brinlee McRae (16) and Audrey Norville (15) also reached double digits in the loss.
• Shooting from long range is not the primary choice of the Yellow Jacket offense, as it ranks third to last in the RMAC in 3-point field goal percentage (27.5%) and second to last in made 3-pointers (137).
• Where BHSU is dominant is off the glass, leading the RMAC with 44 RPG as well as with a conference best +14 rebounding margin.
• It's a crash the boards effort by the whole team, though, as rebounding leader Sawyer Stoebner's team high 6.7 RPG is only eighth in the RMAC. However, five teammates average at least 4.1 RPG.
• McRae is the team's leading scorer at 10.8 PPG but Schlabs is right there with her at 10.4 PPG.
• Schlabs also sets the table for the Yellow Jackets in the offensive end, dishing out 148 assists this season.

UP NEXT

• The winner of Tuesday's game advances to the semifinal round, scheduled to be played Friday, Mach 6 at the highest remaining seed, where also Saturday's championship game will be played.
• Fourth-ranked Colorado Mesa enters as the top seed and starts off in the quarterfinals with visiting and No. 8 seed Colorado School of Mines.
• Second seed UC Colorado Springs hosts seventh seed Fort Lewis, and No. 3 seed Adams State hosts sixth seed MSU Denver in Thursday's other quarterfinal games.