The No. 9 Colorado Mesa women's basketball team continues their five-game home stand this week with a matchup against Black Hills State and Chadron State in Brownson Arena. Thursday's matchup will feature two of the top three teams in the RMAC while Saturday will feature Chadron State who is hungry for their second win of the season.
LAST TIME OUT
The Mavericks completed the four games in eight days unscathed as they swept the split week at Western Colorado and at home against Westminster. The Mavericks outlasted the Mountaineers on Tuesday 70-59 before a 74-43 victory over Westminster on Thursday in Brownson Arena.
Olivia Reed Thyne and
Mason Rowland had matching 23-point efforts in the win over Western Colorado. Reed Thyne was 10-for-19 shooting from the floor while Rowland added an 8-for-11 night from the free-throw line.
Reed Thyne was nearly a one-woman wrecking crew against Westminster as she had 24 points, 19 rebounds in the win. Rowland had a stat stuffing effort with 18 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
RANKING HISTORY
Colorado Mesa checked in at No. 9 in this week's Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) poll. The Mavericks have been in the poll for 15 straight weeks dating back to the February 11 poll of last season.
This is the first time the Mavericks have been inside the top-10 since April 1 of the 2013-14 season when they were ranked No. 4. That season they reached the Sweet Sixteen before a narrow loss to West Texas A&M, who later went on to play for the National Championship that season.
The highest the Mavericks have ever been ranked is No. 2 during the same 2013-14 season. They were ranked No. 2 for five consecutive weeks before falling for the first time that season in the regular season finale.
HOME STRETCH WITH MAJOR MILESTONES IN REACH
Senior
Olivia Reed Thyne broke one of the longest standing women's basketball program records in Saturday's win over Adams State. With 9:27 to play in the third quarter, Reed Thyne made a layup which gave her 1,921 points in her career breaking the program's all-time scoring record. The record was previously held by Tonya Stites who starred for the Mavericks in the early 1990s.
COLORADO MESA CAREER SCORING
- Olivia Reed Thyne, 1,972 (2022-present)
- Tonya Stites, 1,920 (1990-94)
- Brittany Fowler 1,594 (2004-08)
- Sharaya Selsor 1,494 (2009-11,12-14)
- Jaime White 1,491 (1995-99)
The 2,000 point and RMAC scoring record could fall this weekend in Brownson Arena. If she reaches that mark, she will become just the second player in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference history to reach that milestone. The all-time record for scoring in the RMAC is 2,002 set by Becky Gonzalez from 1998-02.
RMAC CAREER SCORING
- Becky Gonzalez (New Mexico Highlands, 1998-02), 2,002
- Olivia Reed Thyne (Colorado Mesa, 2022-present), 1,972
SCOUTING BLACK HILLS STATE
The Yellowjackets are winners of nine straight dating back to December 4 when they defeated Chadron State in the second conference game of the season. Black Hills State has vaulted into a tie for second place in the standings after losing four straight during the non-conference portion of the schedule.
The Yellowjackets are headed by longtime coach Kelly Kruger. Not a stranger to the RMAC, Kruger spent seven seasons at Adams State from 2006-13 after spending 14 seasons at Northern Sun foe Southwest Minnesota State.
Bradie Schlabs is the floor general for Black Hills State as she averages 9.5 points and 4.9 assists per game. She had a season-high 23 points against St. Edwards while also having a season-high nine assists against Catholic (Puerto Rico).
SCOUTING CHADRON STATE
Chadron State has had a tough year under first-year head coach Jalen Little as the Eagles are off to a 1-12 start and 1-7 in the conference. Chadron State's lone win of the season came against Regis just two weeks ago in Denver as they came away with a 68-53 win over the Rangers.
Little was hired over the summer after previously working under Athletic Director Mannie Reinsch at CSU Pueblo. He served as the lead assistant for the ThunderWolves for five seasons and helped orchestrate a 20-win turnaround during the 2021-22 season.
McKenzi Petersen leads the Eagles in both scoring and rebounds at 10.8 points per game and 5.1 rebounds per game. She had a season-high 20 points against Adams State while securing a season-high nine rebounds against South Dakota Mines.
THE STAFF
Taylor Wagner enters his 14th season at Colorado Mesa in 2024-25, the second-longest tenure in program history. Coach Wagner reached his 300
th win at Colorado Mesa on Saturday November 22 with a 102-53 win over Alaska Fairbanks in Salt Lake City. The 300
th win also made him the all-time winningest coach in Colorado Mesa women's basketball history eclipsing the 299 wins Steve Kirkham collected from 1988-to-2004.
Wagner made the NCAA Tournament in each of his first three years as coach, including runs to the Elite Eight in 2013 and the Sweet Sixteen in 2014. He has led his team to eight total NCAA Tournament appearances ('13, '14, '15, '19, '20, '22, '24, '25).
During his first season, Wagner took a team that finished the previous season 13-14 and turned it into a 31-2 team that reached the NCAA Elite Eight, defeating Midwestern State 69-65 in front of 1,975 fans in Brownson Arena to secure the South Central Region title.
That Mavericks team set an RMAC record for the most consecutive regular-season victories at 25, spanning from Nov. 8, 2013 to Feb. 28, 2014. Wagner won his 100th game at the helm of the Mavericks on Feb. 19, 2016 against Chadron State. It took him just 118 games to reach the mark.
Wagner is on the precipice of becoming the Mavericks all-time wins leader this season as he needs five wins to tie Steve Kirkham and six wins would give him 300 in his time at Colorado Mesa along with the top spot on the coaching table.
COLORADO MESA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ALL-TIME COACHING WINS
Taylor Wagner, 312-91
Steve Kirkham, 299-157
Timi Brown, 58-79
Jack Scott, 49-59
Roger Walters, 38-42
Assistant coach
Hannah Pollart is starting her 10th season as the Mavs' top assistant coach, working primarily with the post players. Pollart played one season for the Mavericks, helping CMU reach the South Central Regional championship game in 2013-14. She averaged 7.2 points and 6.1 rebounds.
Before transferring to CMU, Pollart played two seasons at Northeastern Junior College, where she was an All-Region IX player and an NJCAA Academic All-American. She played her junior season at Cameron University.
Jaylyn Duran is entering her second season on the coaching staff. Duran played at CMU from 2015-2019, averaging 12.6 points for her career, including 18.6 points as a senior, when she was the RMAC Player of the Year and a WBCA honorable mention All-America selection.
A CMU graduate with a degree in Kinesiology/ Fitness & Health Promotion, Duran scored 1,352 points, eighth in program history, and is first all-time in 3-point field goals made (265).
COLORADO MESA TURNS 100
The CMU Century Celebration stands as the cornerstone of Colorado Mesa University's year-long centennial celebration. This ambitious initiative unites our community in honoring a rich heritage while boldly envisioning the next hundred years of academic excellence.
Led by the Steering Committee and six specialized sub-committees, we're orchestrating a transformative experience that will resonate through generations. Each committee brings unique expertise to create an unforgettable commemoration of our past, present and future.
To learn more about Colorado Mesa's 100-year celebration, visit cmucentury.com
MAVS ON THE RMAC NETWORK
The RMAC Network has moved to a pay-pre-view model for the upcoming 2025-26 season. This season, all RMAC athletic events broadcast by its 15 full-member institutions and associate members will only be available for purchase via a single-game pass or a monthly or annual subscription. Revenue generated by the network will be redistributed to the league's membership to enhance their programs.
RMAC fans can purchase monthly and annual subscriptions that will provide them with access to all regular-season, championship, and archived broadcasts on the RMAC Network. A monthly subscription costs $25, and an annual subscription costs $130. Single-game passes are available for $10, which grants access to a single game for 24 hours.
Additionally, a discounted annual subscription price will be available to students, faculty, and staff of each member institution throughout the year. Purchasing options and pricing for individual RMAC Championships will be announced closer to each event.
UP NEXT
The Mavericks will conclude their five-game home stand next weekend with a pair of promotional games. Thursday will be the annual Blizzard in Brownson with giveaways that include Nuggets tickets, ski passes to Telluride Ski Resort and more before a Saturday's Jersey Day where we will have a drawing for a Nikola Jokic autographed jersey.
