DENVER – It's Homecoming Week at MSU Denver, and there are multiple sporting events lined up for fans and alumni to see the Roadrunners in action.
 
There are men's and women's soccer doubleheaders both Thursday and Sunday at the Assembly Athletic Complex, home volleyball matches Friday and Saturday at the Assembly Athletic Complex, and the Roadrunners Athletics Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Saturday night.
 
Also this week, the MSU Denver men's and women's tennis teams travel to Azusa, Calif., for the ITA West Regional.
 
WOMEN'S SOCCER
Regis at MSU Denver, Thursday, 6:30 p.m.
Black Hills State at MSU Denver, Sunday, 11 a.m.  
 
The MSU Denver women's soccer team kicks off Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play with Thursday's Homecoming Game against crosstown rival Regis on Thursday at 6:30 p.m., then plays host to Black Hills State on Sunday at 11 a.m.
 
The Roadrunners once again received votes in the Division II national top 25 poll and are ranked third in the South Central Region by the United Soccer Coaches.
 
Pretty encouraging indeed since the Roadrunners have scored just one goal this season.
 
Their stellar defense, spearheaded by backs Maddy Rueter, Emily Sirois and Sami Spring as well as goalkeeper Kylie Bach, has helped hold the fort and will continue to do so once the goals start flowing.
 
MSU Denver is 1-1-4 after playing four 0-0 ties and winning another game 1-0. The Roadrunners finally surrendered a goal this past Sunday in a 3-0 loss to Cal Poly Pomona, now ranked No. 5 nationally.
 
Regis, picked to finish fourth in the RMAC, is 1-4-1 this season, with three one-goal losses. The teams have one common opponent in Angelo State (Texas), and both played the Belles to a 0-0 draw. The Roadrunners are 42-20-6 all-time against Regis, but are just 2-7-2 in the series since 2014.
 
Black Hills State, picked 12^th in the 13-team league, is 0-3-2. MSU Denver is 8-0 all time against Black Hills State, outscoring the Yellow Jackets 26-2.
 
VOLLEYBALL
No. 2 MSU Denver vs. No. 18 Colorado Mesa, Friday, 6 p.m.
No. 2 MSU Denver vs. Westminster, Saturday, 3 p.m.
No. 2 MSU Denver vs. Colorado Christian, Tuesday, 6 p.m.
 
The MSU Denver volleyball team, ranked No. 2 in Division II, renews acquaintances with league rival Colorado Mesa, ranked No. 18, on Friday at 6 p.m. at the Auraria Event Center.
 
MSU Denver 9-1 overall and 2-0 in the RMAC, also plays Westminster at 3 p.m. Saturday, then faces conference foe Colorado Christian in a non-conference match Tuesday at 1 p.m.
 
Despite replacing two all-region and four-year starter middle blockers, MSU Denver ranks second in Division II in blocks per set (3.04) and third in hitting percentage (.302) while also leading the RMAC in opponent hitting percentage (.149). Sophomore Kryssa Moerman ranks eighth in Division II in blocks per set (1.49) and freshman Alyssa Boyte ranks 14^th in the same category (1.40). Moerman also leads the RMAC in total blocks (52) and hitting percentage (.417), while Annika Helf leads the league in aces per set (0.65) and All-American Riley Anderson is sixth in kills per set (3.5).
 
Colorado Mesa, 8-2 and 2-0, has a veteran cast returning led by outside hitter Sydney Leffler and setter Sabrina VanDeList, who leads Division II with 12.2 assists per set in the Mavericks' 5-1 system. Leffler leads the RMAC with 4.4 kills per set and 5.2 points per set. Mesa is second nationally in kills per set (15.3) and 10^th in hitting percentage (.279). The teams have one common opponent this season – both defeated nine-time national champion Concordia-St. Paul (Minn.).
 
MSU Denver is 54-22 all-time against Mesa, including 28-7 at the Auraria Event Center. And, although MSU Denver has won seven straight in the series, Colorado Mesa forced the Roadrunners to win by reverse sweeps (winning the final three sets after losing the first two) in Denver both in 2021 and in a 2022 NCAA Tournament regional semifinal.
 
The Roadrunners face Westminster at 3 p.m. Saturday. Picked to finish 10^th in the 15-team RMAC, Westminster is 6-3 overall and 2-0 in league play, with losses only to two 2023 NCAA Tournament qualifiers and another from the loaded Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. Westminster leads the RMAC with 2.3 aces per set and is second with an opponent hitting percentage of .166.
 
MSU Denver is 11-0 all-time against Westminster, losing only one set while posting 10 sweeps, including last year in the first round of the RMAC Tournament, when Westminster was a No. 8 seed.
 
MSU Denver won 3-0 at Colorado Christian this past Friday for its 14^th straight win in the series, giving the Roadrunners a 55-10 lead in the all-time series. Colorado Christian is 6-4 this season, including a nice win this past Saturday over Colorado School of Mines.
 
Ninth-year MSU Denver coach Jenny Glenn is now an incredible 200-48 overall (.806 winning percentage) and 127-9 in regular-season RMAC play (.934).
 
HALL OF FAME
Induction Ceremony, Saturday, 7 p.m.
 
Following the volleyball match against Westminster on Saturday, the MSU Denver Athletics Hall of Fame will welcome five new inductees in a 7 p.m. ceremony that follows a 6 p.m. social hour at the Springhill Suites at MSU Denver. Joining the list of legends will be women's basketball All-American Vanessa Edwards, volleyball star Julie Green, men's soccer All-American Scott Grode, men's soccer star and longtime women's soccer assistant coach Dave Morgan and women's soccer All-American Rachel Zollner Tabbal.
  
MEN'S SOCCER
MSU Denver vs. Westminster, Thursday, 3:30 p.m.
MSU Denver vs. Colorado School of Mines, Sunday, 1:30 p.m.
 
After four straight road games against tough competition in California, including back-to-back matchups against top-10 foes, the MSU Denver men's soccer team will look to get back on track this weekend. The Roadrunners will play non-conference games against conference foes, as they kick off Homecoming Weekend with a 3:30 p.m. game Thursday against Westminster and wrap it up Sunday with a 1:30 p.m. game against Colorado School of Mines.
 
The Roadrunners, 1-4-1, will be looking to snap a four-game scoreless drought after scoring five goals in their first two games. They were 0-3-1 in California.
 
Westminster, picked to finish sixth in the RMAC, is 3-1-2. The Roadrunners are 18-7-1 all-time in the series, though Westminster has won four of the last six meetings.
 
Colorado School of Mines, picked fifth in the league in the preseason, is a surprising 1-5. The Orediggers played the same top-10 teams as MSU Denver last week, losing to Cal State Los Angeles 4-1 and Cal Poly Pomona 3-0. Those teams beat the Roadrunners 1-0 and 2-0, respectively. Mines leads the series 40-26-8, and is 7-0-2 since 2017.
 
MEN'S & WOMEN'S TENNIS
ITA West Regional, Thursday-Saturday
 
Six men and four women from the MSU Denver tennis program will represent the Roadrunners at the ITA West Regional.
 
The tournament includes both singles and doubles brackets at various levels, with the top players in the region all expected to compete.
 
Alejandro Jimenez, Lluc Limongi Ollers, Hector Cebrian Moral, Marco Jalalian, Reid Rainwater and Enzo Inghilterra will play for the men, while the women's contingent includes Hanna Haber, Kambra Roles, Monica Guarin and Victoria Ricuarte-Cabas.
 
Jimenez is 2-1 this season and is 44-29 for his career at MSU Denver, while Limongi Ollers has been a come-from-behind kid while going 5-1 in his first season as a Roadrunner.
 
For the women, Roles has a career record of 33-22, Guarin is 38-26 and Haber is 22-21. Ricuarte-Cabas, a freshman, is off to a 4-3 start.