DENVER – Senior Day has arrived for the MSU Denver women's basketball team.
 
Brianna Bailey, Jaiden Galloway and Mya Jones will be recognized for their contributions prior to the Roadrunners' 4 p.m. game Saturday against Colorado Christian, the last home game of the regular season. MSU Denver opens the weekend with a 5 p.m. game Friday against Chadron State, which features MSU Denver's Black History Month Celebration. Both games are at the Auraria Event Center.
 
"It's always a special weekend," MSU Denver coach Tanya Haave said. "It's kind of bittersweet because, for now, it's our final home game. You want to be able to celebrate for these girls who have gone through a lot. It's a huge commitment, for whatever amount of time they've been here, to be in this program. You need toughness and perseverance to be able to commit to something that's bigger than you are. And they've done that.
 
"They are all among our hardest workers. It's a special class. I love their personalities. I have a different relationship with each of them, but a close relationship with each one of them."
 
Bailey, including two seasons at Division III Johnson & Wales (Colo.), has scored 915 career points. She's 40.2 percent 3-point shooter (43 of 107) during her MSU Denver career, which would rank third in program history but she is seven made 3s short of qualifying. In league games this season, she was first in the RMAC in 3-point percentage at 53.1 (17 of 32) before falling below the minimum to qualify in late January. In her most recent game, she was spectacular in leading short-handed MSU Denver to a 58-42 win over CSU Pueblo on Jan. 7, making 6 of 10 from 3-point range, including three straight 3s in a span of 2:31 in the third quarter. Her 18 points were her best at MSU Denver.
 
"She came to us during the COVID year (joining the program at the semester break in December, 2020) and even though she wasn't blessed with great size or speed, she has a tremendous amount of courage and heart, and a lot of confidence to want to come and play with us," Haave said. "She's bought in to everything we're doing from the beginning and she's the type of player you really respect because she knows what her strengths are and works hard to maximize them."
 
Galloway, an All-RMAC second team performer in 2019-20, returned to the Roadrunners' program for her final season in 2022-23 after playing the previous two seasons for Division I Northern Colorado. She has scored 652 career points between the two programs and, at MSU Denver, she now ranks seventh in program history in assists per game (3.5), ninth in steals per game (2.0), ninth in assists (280) and ninth in steals (156).
 
"Jaiden took a circuitous route here," Haave said. "She tried the Division I thing, and I don't hold anything against her for that. I was so thrilled with what she thought of the program to come back for her final year after graduating. After a little bit of a slow start with a new team, from midseason on she has been the glue of our team, on and off the floor. She's such a great influence on our younger players and has such a nice, friendly disposition. We're communicating all the time during games, and you could see the impact on our team when we had to play without her last week."
 
Jones returned to action for the first time in nearly a year earlier this month after missing the final eight games of last season and then the first 21 this year. She was impressive in her 19-minute season debut during 62-52 win at Black Hills State, scoring eight points on 4 of 6 shooting while matching career bests of two steals and one blocked shot. She has career totals of 128 points and 86 rebounds in 22 games for averages of 5.8 points and 3.9 rebounds. The Roadrunners are hopeful they can successfully lobby the NCAA for another season of eligibility for Jones.
 
"She wasn't comfortable coming to school during COVID, so I'm glad she waited a year before joining us," Haave said. "She's fit in so nicely, and it's a shame she got hurt at the end of last year. She did a great job in her rehab, and even though she wasn't playing most of this year she was a good leader and a great role model – really all three of the seniors are. Mya is one who won't back down from the truth to anybody, and I appreciate that about her. We had some rough spots early, but that has helped us develop our trust in each other."