Hounds beat Regis; handed first loss by Mines

GOLDEN, Colo. — The Eastern New Mexico University women’s basketball team went down for the first time this season on Thursday night, and the Greyhounds went down hard.

Colorado School of Mines took control early with a 16-3 run and the Orediggers cruised to an 84-50 victory.

Sophomore guard Natalie Stice hit a 3-pointer to open the scoring, but it was all Orediggers after that. Mines (3-0), tied for 23rd in NCAA Division II in one poll and ranked eighth in another, held the Hounds to 30 percent shooting (17-of-57) and outrebounded ENMU for the game 48-34.

It was the fourth game in a row against Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference competition for the Hounds, who won twice in the LSC/RMAC Conference Challenge the previous weekend in Silver City before beating Regis on Wednesday night in the first game of this quick two-game trip

The Orediggers collected 37 points off their bench, including a game-high 17 points from senior forward/center Megan Van de Graff and 10 from sophomore guard Josephine Howery.

Also in double figures for Mines were senior center Courtney Stanton with 13 points and senior guard/forward Sammy Van Sickle.

Stice topped ENMU with 14 points, including the team’s only two 3-pointers of the night, while senior guard Iyanna McCurdy added 10.

The Hounds are now idle until Dec. 2 when they play their home opener against Lone Star Conference rival West Texas A&M at Greyhound Arena. It will be a non-conference clash, with the LSC tilt in the league’s single-round-robin format scheduled for Canyon on Feb. 12.

ENMU 71, Regis 59 (Wednesday) — At Denver, Stice tied her season best with 18 points and ENMU outscored the Rangers 20-10 in both the second and third quarters to break the game open.

The Hounds went on a 13-5 run early in the second stanza to take a 29-19 lead, and carried a 36-24 advantage into intermission.

After the Rangers scored the first six points out of halftime, the Hounds dominated the rest of the period to the tune of 20-4, riding seven points from Stice and six from senior post Meme Amand, for a 22-point cushion.

Amand’s layup to start the final frame made it 58-34. Regis rallied to make the score more respectable, but could never get close.

ENMU shot season bests of 47 percent from the field, 46 percent from 3-point range and 82 percent from the free throw line. Amand and McCurdy also reached double digits with 12 and 10 points, respectively, both matching season bests, while Stice led the team with six rebounds and freshman guard Bella Stone notched a game-high five steals.

For the Rangers (2-1), freshman guard Althena Saragosa scored 18 points off the bench, while junior guard Josey Ryan chipped in 13.