GOLDEN, Colo. – The Black Hills State University football team snagged the early momentum at Marv Kay Stadium on Saturday afternoon, scoring the first six points of the contest and forcing a pair of interceptions, however, a string of 31 unanswered points in the second and third quarters from Colorado School of Mines lifted the Orediggers to a 38-13 victory. The Yellow Jackets shutout Mines in the opening quarter, and Joshua Faulkner and Jaheim Roper each picked off passes, but the CSM offense managed to find big plays with three scoring plays of 35-yards or more to swing the momentum on their home turf.
QUICK DETAILS
Score: Black Hills State 13, Colorado School of Mines 38
Team Records: Black Hills State 4-2 (2-2 RMAC), Colorado School of Mines 3-2-1 (3-1 RMAC)
Attendance: 4,655
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Following punts on each of the first three possessions of the game, the Black Hills State defense made the first big momentum play of the contest, as Jayshon Liles and Lelend Cevedia met Braelon Tate up the middle and stopped him for just a 1-yard gain on 4th and 2 at the BHSU 48-yard line for a turnover on downs with 4:53 remaining in the first quarter.
- The Yellow Jacket offense capitalized on the stop by the defense as they moved the ball forward for a pair of first downs on an 18-yard pass from Kade Weber to Jayden Williams and an 8-yard rush by Weber. The drive would end with a 31-yard field goal from Madden Aquino to give the Green & Gold a 3-0 lead with 54 seconds to play in the opening quarter.
- The Black Hills State defense came up with another big play on the first snap of the ensuing drive, as Joseph Capra overthrew his intended target and Joshua Faulkner picked off his third pass of the season, tied for the most in the RMAC, and returned the ball ten yards to the CSM 32-yard line with 45 seconds left in the first quarter.
- With the ball in plus territory again, Weber used his feet to elude the Mines pass rush and scramble for a 17-yard carry and a first down on the first play of the second quarter, however, a false start and a tackle-for-loss would halt the drive and limit the Yellow Jackets to another field goal attempt. Aquino again split the uprights for his second field goal of the afternoon, connecting from 38 yards to improve to 6-of-7 on attempts of 30-yards or more this season and giving Black Hills State a 6-0 lead with 12:05 to play till the half.
- Colorado School of Mines then began to find their rhythm the ensuing possession with a quick 5-play, 75-yard drive that was capped on a 49-yard touchdown run by Max Barnes as he managed to avoid hitting the ground by rolling over a BHSU defender and find his way into the end zone with 9:33 on the clock. Preston Kyle managed to add the extra point and make it a 7-6 game.
- Mines then ended the first half by forcing a pair of three and outs by the Yellow Jacket offense and tacked on a 44-yard field goal by Kyle with just 33 seconds remaining to take a 10-6 advantage into the halftime break.
- In the third quarter the Orediggers extended their lead with three consecutive scoring drives, finding the end zone on a 2-yard reception by Tate from Capra with 10:42 on the clock, then Capra found Pierce Richards for an 11-yard reception with 4:26 remaining in the quarter, and then Barnes ran for a 37-yard touchdown with two seconds left in the third as they pushed it to a 31-6 lead. The Mines defense forced a pair of turnover on downs by the Yellow Jacket offense, one of which occurred as the Green & Gold advanced the ball to the CSM 30-yard line early in the second half.
- Following a missed 34-yard field goal by Kyle, the Yellow Jackets would end a run of 31 unanswered points by the Orediggers with a 15-play, 80-yard drive that took 6:01 of time in the fourth quarter. BHSU picked up six first downs and converted two fourth downs to find the end zone at the end of the drive as Weber completed passes of 18-yards to Chase Lofton, 11-yards to Joseph Randle, and 13-yards to Bryce Coulson to spark the drive early. The first of two big plays on the possession came as the Gren & Gold faced 4th and 2 at the CSM 30-yard line, when Weber again used his feet to move the chains, keeping the ball on an option play and gaining eight on the play. Then facing 4th and Goal at the CSM 7-yard line, Weber rolled out right and found Williams in the flat for a 7-yard touchdown pass to cap the drive. Aquino tacked on the PAT to bring the score to 31-13 with 3:13 remaining in the contest.
- Mines closed out the scoring in the match-up the ensuing drive as Mitch Jensen found space down the left sideline for an 83-yard touchdown run with 2:15 remaining in the game, and Kyle added the extra point to bring the final score to 38-13.
BLACK HILLS STATE STATISTICAL LEADERS
Kade Weber: 17-32,161 passing yards, 1 passing touchdown, 14 rushes, 39 net rushing yards
Joseph Randle: 2 receptions, 45 receiving yards
Jayden Williams: 6 receptions, 40 yards, 1 receiving touchdown
Jack Gentile: 8 total tackles
Joshua Faulkner: 7 total tackles, 1 interception
Jaheim Roper: 2 total tackles, 1 interception
Madden Aquino: 2-2 field goals (31 & 38 yards)
UP NEXT
Black Hills State and the rest of the RMAC will be on a league-wide bye week next weekend, giving the Yellow Jackets two weeks to prepare for the 141st edition of the Black Hills Brawl as they are set to travel to Rapid City for a 6 p.m. kickoff at O’Harra Stadium against South Dakota Mines.
