DENVER – The Metropolitan State University of Denver women's basketball team capped Homecoming weekend with a well-rounded victory over South Dakota School of Mines & Technology on Saturday evening, defeating the Hardrockers 70-58 in front of a festive crowd.

MSU Denver's senior trio of Jaelynn Smith (Denver, Colo./East), Emily Hartegan (Wylie, Texas/Wylie East) and Jonalyn Wittwer (Fall Creek, Wis./Fall Creek) was nothing short of dominant, combining for 54 of the Roadrunners' 70 points, 17 of 26 rebounds, and 15 of 18 assists.

"I really think our seniors led us to victory," MSU Denver head coach Tanya Haave said following the game. "It's really nice to see your seniors leading like that."

Both teams shot well to start the game, making for a high-scoring first quarter that ended in a 22-18 MSU Denver lead. The Roadrunners (13-12, 12-7 and T-4^th Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) were sizzling right off the bat, hitting 10 of 14 (71.4%) from the field in the opening period as Smith went for a whopping six assists in the quarter. She finished with a career-high 12 dimes along with 12 points, eight rebounds and four steals for a stat-stuffing performance that nearly ended in a triple-double. She also made just one turnover.

"I wanted to make sure I wasn't as loose as I was yesterday," Smith said. "We had a lot of turnovers, and a lot of them came from me, so I just wanted to make sure I was under control."
The Hardrockers (9-14, 6-13 and 13^th RMAC) battled back in the second quarter, taking a 33-31 lead with 3:42 remaining in the opening half. MSU Denver responded with a 9-1 lead to end the half leading 40-33. Smith racked up three more assists in the second quarter, giving her nine in the first half.

The third quarter was more of a defensive battle as each team struggled to convert from the field. South Dakota Mines started the half on a 6-0 run to cut the MSU Denver lead to one, but 3-pointers from freshman Jaiden Galloway (Aurora, Colo./Grandview) and Wittwer stifled the threat. While the Hardrockers hung around for the first six minutes of the quarter, MSU Denver held them scoreless for the final 4:01 of the third to build a double-digit advantage at 54-43 with 10 minutes remaining.

South Dakota Mines went on an 8-0 run after trailing by 13 about two minutes into the fourth, getting within five at 59-54 with 3:19 remaining. Hartegan came up with two huge buckets over the next minute and a half, the latter an and-1 conversion to give MSU Denver a seven-point lead with 1:33 to go.

Hartegan ended up with nine points over the final three minutes of the game to give her 23 on the night and help the Roadrunners seal the 12-point win. It was her fifth game of the season with 20+ points, while she grabbed a team-leading nine boards and had two swipes.

Wittwer returned to form after struggling on last weekend's road trip, hitting 5 of 9 attempts and 7 of 11 field goals overall for 19 points. Galloway added nine points on 3 of 7 shooting from long range.
MSU Denver shot 52% (26 of 50) from the field and 44.4% (8-18) from deep while missing just one of its 11 free throw attempts.

The Roadrunners have now won two straight after two losses last weekend. They'll look to make it three on Friday at New Mexico Highlands in Las Vegas, N.M., with tip-off set for 5 p.m. MT. A matchup with CSU-Pueblo is set for 5:30 p.m. the following night.