DENVER – MSU Denver will celebrate another senior class on Saturday.
 
The 4 p.m. Senior Night game against UCCS at the Auraria Event Center will wrap up a two-game weekend that includes a 5 p.m. game Friday against New Mexico Highlands.
 
"Most senior groups are special, but this one has been really great," Haave said. "It's a great group of true student-athletes who will all graduate. And they're all really good players."
 
MSU Denver's senior group includes two players who have exhausted their collegiate eligibility in forward Allie Navarette and guard Maggie Justinak. Two others, guard Alex Carlton and forward Morgan Griego, have determined that this will be their final season. And two others, forward Jaela Richardson and guard Brianna Bailey, will also graduate but their basketball future isn't yet determined.
 
With the current state of collegiate athletics during a pandemic, and the extra season of competition granted by the NCAA because of COVID-19, determining what's next can be difficult.
 
But, for this season anyway, determining what's next for this team is more straightforward.
 
At 17-6 overall and 13-5 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the Roadrunners have put together an impressive resume for a possible postseason berth. Though only sixth in the point system the RMAC is using to determine qualifiers and seedings for the conference tournament, MSU Denver is fourth in the South Central Region rankings used to determine seedings and at-large qualifiers for the NCAA Tournament.
 
Home wins this weekend would help solidify the Roadrunners' status.
 
"We're pleased that we're in the mix, but we've got to continue to take care of business," Haave said. "This is just the first step, and this is where we want to be at the end of the season and not just now. We've worked hard for it, and we want to have it continue."
 
New Mexico Highlands is 6-18 and 3-15 in the RMAC, but MSU Denver is also coming off a loss at Westminster that will be reflected in next week's regional rankings.
 
"We need to get back on track and play our game," Haave said. "We're back on our home floor and we need to take care of our business and play the way we know how to play."
 
Knowing how to play has been a hallmark of this team, and leading the way in terms of recognition and accomplishments is Navarette, the 2020-21 RMAC Player of the Year who on Monday became only the 39^th player in the history of Division II women's basketball to record at least 2,000 points and at least 1,000 rebounds in a career.
 
After three seasons at Hawaii-Hilo, Navarette has scored 683 points and grabbed 314 rebounds in 41 games with MSU Denver, giving her totals of 2,081 points and an even 1,000 rebounds for her career.
 
"What Allie has done speaks for itself," Haave said.
 
Justinak, a former junior college transfer, used her COVID exception (as did Navarette) to play a fifth season of competition. She's 16^th in program history with 94 career made 3-pointers and tied for 15^th with a career 3-point percentage of 33.3. She has scored 475 points in 65 career games.
 
"Maggie has accepted any role and has been a very good teammate," Haave said. "She is bubbly, with tons of energy, very idealistic and a risk-taker."
 
Griego, known as Morgan Lewis for her first three seasons, changed names after marrying MSU Denver practice team player Isaiah Griego. She has career totals of 647 points and 467 rebounds in 87 career games.
 
"Morgan has been a worker-bee," Haave said. "Morgan is the salt of the earth, very mature. She's also very driven and knows what she wants."
 
As for having a married couple competing in practice every day, Haave said: "They are so good at separating that and compartmentalizing it. A lot of times you would never know they are married."
 
Carlton joined MSU Denver as a junior college transfer and has started all 40 games of her MSU Denver career, averaging 7.0 points and 2.2 assists.
 
"Alex has been the perfect point guard, a floor general who doesn't turn the ball over and keeps the team together," Haave said.
 
Richardson missed one full season due to injury in 2018-19 and played in only three games in 2020-21 due to another injury. Throwing in the COVID exception, she's a fourth-year sophomore in athletic eligibility who will graduate in the spring. She has 464 points and 338 rebounds in 54 career games and is fourth in program history with 78 career blocked shots.
 
"Jaela is very loyal person, but she will also be very up-front with you and isn't afraid to tell anyone the truth – and I appreciate that," Haave said.
 
Finally, Bailey joined a short-handed Roadrunners team as a walk-on at the semester break last season. She had enrolled at MSU Denver but didn't intend to play basketball after starring for Division III Johnson & Wales, which dropped athletics as a result of the pandemic.
 
Bailey earned two starts last year and has appeared in 24 games overall and has carved out a reputation as a lethal 3-point shooter.
 
"Bri has accepted any role and has been a good teammate and person," Haave said. "She's quiet and understated, but she's also very funny."
 
On Senior Night, the Roadrunners will face a UCCS team that enters the weekend 10-14 and 8-10 and appears to be one of four teams in competition for the final two spots in the league tournament.
 
"They're battling for a spot," Haave said. "Their style is a tough one. We've been able to succeed for the most part against it, but it's a tough style."