#16 Mines at Adams State - Saturday, Feb. 1 - 2 p.m. [RMAC Network] [Live Results]
#16 Mines at New Mexico Highlands - Saturday, Feb. 2 - 2 p.m. [RMAC Network] [Live Results]

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MINES HEADS SOUTH FOR CRUCIAL RMAC WEEKEND
With the dual season rapidly coming down to the wire, #16 Colorado School of Mines tries to keep pace atop the RMAC with a southern swing this weekend, visiting Adams State (3-4, 2-3 RMAC) on Saturday and New Mexico Highlands (1-4, 0-4 RMAC) on Sunday. Both duals are set for 2 p.m. starts and will stream live on the RMAC Network.

LAST TIME OUT
Mines went 2-0 last weekend, beating CSU Pueblo on the road 24-12 and then defeating #13 Western Colorado 27-12 at home. The Western Colorado victory on Saturday was keyed by the Oredigger upperweights as they won the last five bouts to break open a 12-12 dual; Wyatt Reisz beat #1 Cole Hernandez at 174 and then Mason Diel and Ryan Cody got last-gasp wins at 184 and 197, respectively, to wrap up the victory.

REISZ EARNS RMAC HONOR
Wyatt Reisz was named the RMAC Wrestler of the Week on Tuesday for his 2-0 weekend. On Friday at CSU Pueblo, Reisz handled Solomon Arnds-Volcin 11-4 en route to the Orediggers' 24-12 team win; on Saturday, Reisz controlled start to finish to beat #1 Cole Hernandez of Western Colorado 8-2, producing takedowns in the first and third periods. 

IN THE POLLS
Mines continues to be well-represented in the latest NWCA and OpenMat polls, with the Orediggers ranked #16 in the NWCA rankings and #22 in the OpenMat tournament polls. Among individuals, Mines has eight wrestlers earning at least one ranking: Christian Lopez (NWCA #11/OM #12), Grayston DiBlasi (NWCA & OM #4), Cody Thompson (NWCA #8), Marcus Caro (NWCA #11/OM #18), Jakob Smith (OM #20), Wyatt Reisz (NWCA #14/OM #13), Ryan Cody (NWCA #12/OM #17), and Laith Ibrahim (OM #16). 

IN THE HUNT
The race for the RMAC championship is heating up as Mines (3-0) and Colorado Mesa (4-0) are the lone unbeaten teams left in the conference, with the two set to wrestle in Golden next weekend. CSU Pueblo stands third at 2-1 with Western Colorado and Chadron State at 2-2. 

THE SERIES
Mines and Adams State match up for the 64th time dating back to 1953, with ASU holding a 41-22 all-time advantage. Mines has won seven of the last eight meetings, however, including a 29-10 victory in Golden last year. The Orediggers lead their series against New Mexico Highlands 17-7 all-time as the two meet for the 25th time since 1977; Mines puts a six-dual win streak on the line that included a 31-13 win at home to open last season.

LEADING THE WAY
True freshman Marcus Caro is making a strong case for RMAC Freshman of the Year honors, leading Mines in wins at 20-5 this season. The 157-pounder is 12-5 vs. D-II opponents as he has appeared in the last two NWCA rankings. Grayston DiBlasi is next in wins (18-3) with Wyatt Reisz (17-3) right behind him. Caro and Ryan Cody co-lead the team with five falls apiece, while DiBlasi and Christian Lopez have been the Orediggers' high dual scorers with 42 and 41 points apiece, respectively, as each are unbeaten in duals this season.

DIBLASI CLIMBS ALL-TIME WINS, FALLS LISTS
Grayston DiBlasi moved across 90 career wins last week, and now stands at 91-25 in his career which has him third all-time at Mines. Ahead of DiBlasi are the only two Orediggers to reach the century mark, Glen Frank (126) and Duane Maue (113), as DiBlasi is trying to be the first Oredigger to reach the century mark since Frank did it in 1993. DiBlasi is also fifth on the career falls list with 25.

PINNED DOWN
Garrett Bakarich earned the 24th fall of his career against Cal Poly Humboldt, which now ties him for sixth all-time at Mines, a spot behind DiBlasi. Bakarich owns - by far - the highest proportion of falls among his wins in program history, having pinned his opponent in 24 of his 28 career victories including four of five this season. 

BACK ON THE MAT
One of the highlights of the Rookie Open came when Yahir Chairez-Salazar made his return to the mat with a first-period win by fall at 149 pounds, marking another milestone in his incredible comeback story. A freshman who redshirted for both the wrestling and football teams in 2022-23, Chairez-Salazar was involved in a serious car accident in the summer of 2023 that caused an amputation of his left leg above the knee. Determined to keep wrestling, he got back on the mat earlier this year to train for his comeback - a journey that culminated barely 15 months after his accident with a return to the mat and a win. You can read more about Yahir's remarkable story here.  

AT THE HELM
Head Coach Austin DeVoe is in his 12th season in charge of the Mines Wrestling program, having rebuilt the Orediggers into a national contender with a pair of RMAC titles, eight all-Americans, and eight Academic All-Americans in his tenure. With 85 dual wins under his belt, Mines has had seven consecutive winning dual seasons including the only three double-digit win seasons in program history, including tying the program wins record in 2022-23 with an 11-2 record. On the national stage, Mines has had team success as well including an 11th-place finish in 2022 which was the program's best finish since the 1990s. 

LOOKING AHEAD
Mines will host Colorado Mesa Feb. 7 at 6 p.m.
 

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PROJECTED LINEUP - #16 Colorado School of Mines at Adams State
125 - #9 Christian Lopez (13-5)
133 - Trebor Moreno (8-5)
141 - #4 Grayston DiBlasi (17-3)
149 - Carson Dulitz (0-4)/Ben Fanelli (0-0)
157 - #11 Marcus Caro (19-4)
165 - Jakob Smith (6-4)/Tristin David (5-4)
174 - #14 Wyatt Reisz (15-3)
184 - Mason Diel (5-6)
197 - #12 Ryan Cody (10-6)/Jeffery Morosini (8-3)
285 - Cade Whish (7-6)

PROJECTED LINEUP - #16 Colorado School of Mines at New Mexico Highlands
125 - Marco Romero (0-0)
133 - Trebor Moreno (8-5)/Xander Sweeney (11-5)
141 - #4 Grayston DiBlasi (17-3)/Cole O'Brien (5-6)
149 - Carson Dulitz (0-4)/Ben Fanelli (0-0)
157 - Jaron Mahler (6-5)
165 - Jakob Smith (6-4)/Tristin David (5-4)
174 - Garrett Bakarich (5-4)
184 - Ethan Kremer (1-3)
197 - #12 Ryan Cody (10-6)/Jeffery Morosini (8-3)
285 - Cade Whish (7-6)