RAPID CITY, S.D. – Down by 12 with seven-and-a-half minutes to play, Chadron State women's basketball mounted a valiant comeback to take the lead for an instant, but South Dakota Mines answered and clinched a 65-64 home victory over the Eagles Tuesday evening in Rapid City. 

Chadron State's Kyra Tanabe, who led the Eagles with 16 points, converted a layup with 13 seconds to go to put Chadron State up 64-63 for its first lead of the game since 1-0. But the Hardrockers' Savea Mansfield, who led all scorers with 21, scored at the other end to put the home team back up by one and Tanabe's layup attempt as time expired missed. 

The Eagles drop to 3-14 overall and 2-9 in the RMAC with the narrow defeat. With the win, South Dakota Mines moves to 5-13 and 5-6 in conference play. The Eagles and Hardrockers have now split the regular season series, with each team winning at home.

Ashayla Powers finished with 14 points, seven rebounds and two steals while Kylie Krise added 10 points, including a 6-for-6 night from the free throw line, to give CSC three players in double figures. 

The Eagles shot 37.5 percent from the field and 25 percent (5-20) from three. They remained strong free throw shooters, making 17 of 21 attempts from the stripe. 

South Dakota Mines had a better shooting night, finishing 47 percent from the field and 39 percent from three-point range. Chadron State edged out the Hardrockers in rebounds (33-32) and turnovers (14 to SDM's 15). 

The Hardrockers closed the first quarter on an 8-0 run to take a 20-12 lead, led by eight points at halftime (33-25), and were up by 13 at the end of the third quarter (52-39). The Eagles owned the fourth quarter, however, outscoring the Hardrockers 25-13 in the final period to come all the way back from that deficit. 

It happened with Tanabe getting hot, as the redshirt junior scored 14 points in the final frame. After an old-fashioned three-point play by Camren Morris where the junior hit a layup plus a free throw, Tanabe buried back-to-back three-point shots, a sudden 9-0 run that pulled the Eagles within three at 56-53. 

Two Powers free throws made the run 11-0 and got the Eagles within one, and the teams traded baskets after that, with the Hardrockers going up by three on three successive trips down the floor. Each time, the Eagles answered, and Powers was fouled on a putback and hit the free throw to tie the score at 62-62 with 1:49 left. 

The Hardrockers were fouled next possession and went 1-for-2 from the line to take a one-point lead. The two teams traded stops before Tanabe's driving layup gave the Eagles their first lead in 39 minutes and the Hardrockers responded with the game-winning bucket. 

Chadron State returns home to the Chicoine Center, taking on Black Hills State at 5 p.m. on Thursday evening. The Yellow Jackets are 11-6 overall and 7-3 in the RMAC.

Chadron State— Kyra Tanabe 16, Ashayla Powers 14, Kylie Krise 10, Allison Richards 9, Camren Morris 6, Megan Counts 5, Bati Assefa 2, McKenzi Petersen 2. Totals: 21-56 FG, 5-20 3PT, 17-21 FT. 64 points, 33 rebounds, 8 assists, 14 turnovers.

South Dakota Mines— Savea Mansfield 21, Alexis Backhaus 15, Morning Grace Spotted Bear 13, Piper Bauer 6, Miquedah Taliman 5, Emily Thomas 3, Reese Terwilliger 2. Totals: 25-53 FG, 7-18 3PT, 8-11 FT. 65 points, 32 rebounds, 16 assists, 15 turnovers.

Offense Doesn't Click In Loss To Hardrockers

RAPID CITY, S.D. – The Chadron State College men's basketball team suffered a setback Tuesday night when South Dakota Mines defeated the Eagles 53-47 in a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference game played in Rapid City.

The game against the Hardrockers featured 10 ties and 10 lead changes. Neither team ever led by more than four points until three seconds remaining in the game, when the Hardrockers made two free throws to extend the lead to six with the Eagles intentionally fouling to stop the clock.

Center Darrius Miles led CSC with 15 points while Zy Wright finished with 10 points and had a game-high 11 rebounds for a double-double.  None of the other Eagles scored more than five points.

The Eagles are now 9-10 overall and 5-6 in the RMAC with nine conference games still on the schedule. The win was fourth of the season and the third in six days for South Dakota Mines, who is now 4-15 overall and 4-7 in the RMAC. 

Chadron State finished below their season averages on many of their offensive numbers. They shot just 33.3 percent from the field, some 13 percent below their season figure; were only 4-of-18 from 3-point range for 22 percent, compared to 34.8 percent for the season; and made just 9-of-16 free throws for 56.3 percent, after entering the game with a conference-best 77.6 percent mark from the line. Most of all, their 47 total points scored Tuesday are 29 points below their 76 points per game average for the season. 

South Dakota Mines freshman Mac Terry, who was the game's leading scorer with 17 points, turned the tide by hitting two three-pointers in a row to put his team ahead 44-40 with five minutes remaining. Chadron State's Trey Ballard nailed a three on CSC's next possession to put the Eagles down by one. 

After another minute had elapsed, CSC's Zy Wright made a free throw, but missed the second shot to keep the score tied. Senior guard Dalton Peterson then gave the Eagles a lift by hitting a shot from behind the arc with 2:05 remaining to put the visitors ahead 47-44.

Unfortunately for the Eagles, that was the last time they scored.  None of their final three field goal tries connected and they also missed the front end of a one-and-one free throw opportunity down the stretch.

Meanwhile, Terry drove for a layup at the 1:39 mark and then sank his fifth 3-pointer with 35 seconds left to put the Hardrockers ahead for good at 49-47. Four free throws by the home team iced the game and added to the Hardrockers' victory margin. 

Besides Terry's 17 points, another Mines freshman, Tre Dowdell, scored 15 and both senior Keagen Smith and sophomore Abel Hutchinson added eight. The Hardrockers were 19-of-52 from the field for 36.5% and made 9-of-27 of their 3-point shots.

Chadron State returns home Thursday night to take on another rival in Black Hills State, with tip-off slated for 7 p.m. in the Chicoine Center.

Chadron State—Darrius Miles 15, Zy Wright 10, Trey Ballard 5, Julio Phipps 4, Jalen Thomas 4, Zach Smith 4, Dalton Peterson 3, John Jenkins 2. Totals: 17-51 FG (4-18 3PT) 9-16 FT. 47 points, 34 rebounds, 6 assists, 11 turnovers.

South Dakota Mines—Mac Terry 17, Tre Dowdell 15, Keagen Smith 8, Abel Hutchinson 8, Guillem Garcia 5. Totals: 19-52 FG (9-27 3PT) 6-6 FT. 53 points, 30 rebounds, 11 assists, 9 turnovers.

Football Adds Seven Transfers To 2025 Roster

CHADRON, Neb. – The Chadron State football team will be joined by at least seven new transfer players for spring ball ahead of the 2025 season, with head football Jay Long announcing the additions Tuesday. 

"Following the conclusion of the season, we thoroughly evaluated our team's immediate needs to position ourselves to win next year," Long said. "As part of our recruiting efforts, we've added five key offensive players to the roster – three offensive linemen, a quarterback and a wide receiver. We also brought in two defensive standouts to improve our position as one of the top defensive teams in the RMAC."

Last season, the Eagles finished with a 3-8 record but had five losses that were decided by a touchdown or less, including in games against nationally ranked opponents Western Colorado and Colorado School of Mines. 

"We believe our team is so close to getting back to being a top team in the RMAC," Long said. "We know that we need to score more points, and this recruiting cycle, we are focused on bringing in impact players who can help us turn those close games into wins next year."

Quarterback Aidan Thompson comes to Chadron State from Oklahoma Baptist, a Division II school in the Great American Conference. Originally from Abilene, Texas, Thompson started 12 games over three seasons at Oklahoma Baptist. In 17 total appearances at OBU, Thompson threw for 2,486 yards and 20 touchdowns.

Three transfer offensive linemen are joining the Eagles. Dominic Castanon, a 6-foot-1, 275-pound transfer from Fresno City Junior College, won a state championship at Central High School in Fresno, California in 2020. 

Jal Chan, a 6-foot-4, 325-pound lineman, comes to Chadron State from the University of La Verne, an NCAA Division III school in California, where he was an All-Conference tackle last season. A Colorado native, Chan is a high school teammate of Chadron State All-American and all-time sack leader Hunter O'Connor.

Carlos Orea, a 6-foot-4, 325-pound offensive lineman, spent time at the Division I FCS level with Hampton University and was previously an All-American at the junior college level at Santa Monica Junior College in California. 

The final offensive transfer signing so far is Devon Sandgren, a wide receiver and returner. A former collegiate track athlete who has run 10.6 seconds in the 100 meters, Sandgren transferred to Bakersfield Junior College to play football and impressed, leading to an opportunity with the Eagles. 

Chadron State also has added two student-athletes on the defensive side of the ball. Ja'Far Bashir is a cornerback who will join CSC from Chabot Junior College, where he led the team in interceptions and returned two picks for touchdowns last season.

Cooper Walton also joins the Eagles as a transfer linebacker from the University of Montana after spending three seasons on the roster of a perennial FCS title contender. Walton played high school football with Eagles defensive back Tucker Peterson in the state of Colorado. 

The Eagles will make more official additions on February 5th on National Signing Day, including the 2025 crop of high school signees and more potential transfer additions. 

The new Eagles will join over 90 returners to the Chadron State roster, including over 20 returners who started a game for the Eagles last season.