CHADRON, Neb. – ?For the third week in a row, the Chadron State College football team secured a one-possession victory over a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference opponent, downing Colorado Mesa 34-27 during the Eagles' Homecoming contest Saturday afternoon.

The victory marks the first time that the CSC program has won its first three RMAC games of the season since 2008, when the Eagles went on to win the RMAC with a 9-0 record and advanced to the second round of the NCAA playoffs. It also was just CSC's second win over Colorado Mesa in the past 11 years.

Chadron State had the statistical edge throughout the contest. They had 22 first downs to CMU's 13, outgained the Mavericks 428 yards to 285 and possessed the ball for more than 38 of the game's 60 minutes. 

After the teams were tied at 7-7 early, the Eagles scored twice more to go on top 17-7 by halftime and posted two touchdowns in the third period to take a commanding 31-7 lead, then withstood some explosive plays by the Mavericks in the second half to win by six points.

The Eagles continued to get off to flying starts. For the third week in a row, the Eagles scored on their first possession, needing just six plays to drive 69 yards for their first touchdown. Reigning RMAC Offensive Player of the Week Aidan Thompson, starting his second game in a row in place of the concussed DJ Ralph, connected with senior wide receiver Tommy Thomas on a 28-yard pass, inside receiver Preston Pearson with a 16-yard toss and then found Rollin George III open in the corner of the end zone for a 19-yard scoring strike.

?The Eagles seemed to be back in business on their next possession when Thompson and George III connected again on a 52-yard pass play that pinballed off a Mesa defender before settling in George III's hands at  the Mesa 22. But that drive stalled and a 42-yard field goal effort by Yee was wide right as the opening quarter was closing.

The Eagles gave up a touchdown to Mesa early in the second quarter when the snap from center got past CSC quarterback Aidan Thompson and was recovered by the Mavericks in the end zone to tie the score 7-7, but that was the only time the Eagles did not lead.

?The Eagles broke the deadlock with 4:45 left in the second quarter when Yee booted a 22-yard field goal. On their final possession of the half, Thompson's 40-yard run after he'd looked to pass carried to the Mesa two-yard line where he was knocked out of bounds. Running back Quincey Ryker scored on the next play for his first rushing touchdown of the season, giving the Eagles their 17-7 margin at intermission, when the CSC Hall of Fame inductees and the Homecoming royalty were introduced to the crowd.

?The Eagles seemed to have broken the game wide open in the third period. They initially drove 65 yards in six plays, the final one being an 18-yard pass from Thompson that Thomas caught on the run in the end zone. Chadron State scored again just a minute later by capitalizing on CMU mistakes. 

Maverick punter Sullivan Moon had launched a 62-yard punt, but a penalty on the Mavericks gave Chadron State the option to have CMU re-kick, which head coach Jay Long exercised. The decision paid off instantly when Moon bobbled the second snap and was tackled shortly after picking up the loose ball at the CMU one-yard line by Aiden Kuester. Two plays later, Daytuawn Pearson found the end zone, and Yee's PAT put the Eagles up by 24 points, 31-7, with 7:15 left in the third quarter.

Colorado Mesa unlocked the big play in the second half, however, with freshman receiver Bryson Brown in the middle of things. ?Just 11 seconds on the gameclock after Daytuawn Pearson's touchdown, Brown took a jet sweep 75 yards for a score to ignite the visitors' late rally.

Colorado Mesa got the ball back almost instantaneously when Thompson's pass in the middle of the field was picked off by senior Kash Bradley. While the Mavericks did not score on that drive, they applied pressure leading to a short CSC punt and took possession again on the 50-yard line. From there, they scored in seven plays, including a two-yard plunge by Aiden Taylor on the first play of the fourth quarter, cutting Chadron State's lead to 31-20.

?The teams traded pass interceptions in the next few minutes. Mesa's Gibson Leafgreen swiped Thompson's long pass in the back of the east end zone. But on the Mavericks' second play, Chadron State's all-conference senior safety Dax Yeradi picked off Cole Hansen by making a remarkable over-the-shoulder grab while running with the intended receiver.

?With five minutes remaining, the Eagles forced another turnover. For the second time in as many weeks, cornerback Jadon Bowen came on a blind-side blitz and forced a fumble. This time, Bowen recovered the fumble himself at the six-yard line, and the Eagles cashed in with Yee's 26-yard field goal that gave the Eagles a 34-20 advantage with 4:05 still to play.

Colorado Mesa answered again when Brown caught a 59-yard pass from Cole and tight-roped his way 20 or so yards down the south sideline to the end zone, closing the difference to the final seven points.

?There were more tense moments for CSC fans as the Eagles fumbled twice in the final four minutes of play, but were able to recover both loose balls.

Daytuawn ?Pearson was the Eagles' leading rusher with 16 carries for 85 yards, including several key gains late in the game. ?Thompson completed 15 of 28 passes for 232 yards and the two touchdowns. Tommy Thomas caught seven passes for 98 yards while Rollin George III had three receptions for 80 yards.?

?With the Eagles running 81 plays, several Mavericks were busy tacklers. Andre Lopez-Green was the leader with 14, followed by George Soppe with 12 and Bradley with 11. 

?Edge rusher William Stemler was Chadron State's leader with seven, also contributing a sack and 1.5 tackles for loss, while Cooper Walton, Sutton Pohlman and Logan O'Brien all had three. 

The Eagles will head to Alamosa, Colorado to take on the Adams State Grizzlies next Saturday. The Grizzlies are 0-4, but have faced nationally-ranked RMAC foes Western Colorado and CSU Pueblo over the past two weeks.

Volleyball Sweeps Western Behind Ward's Perfection

CHADRON, Neb. – Chadron State volleyball earned its first RMAC win of the season in rousing fashion, snapping a four-game losing streak by beating Western Colorado in straight sets – 25-18, 25-19, 25-16 – to punctuate homecoming weekend in the Chicoine Center. 

Mataya Ward hit 16 kills with no errors on 29 attempts as Chadron State (4-8, 1-3 RMAC) put together one of its best offensive performances of the year, finishing with a .375 team hitting percentage and only eight attack errors. 

The Eagles' 50 team kills were the second-highest single-game total by the program this year, surpassed only by one of CSC's two five-setters played in 2025. 

Bella Adams added a season-high 11 kills with just one error, hitting .476, and also blocking three shots. Gibson Beckler continued to stuff the stat sheet with eight kills, 12 digs and two blocks while Avery Lacy had 16 digs from the libero position and Jillian Donovan had 43 assists, her highest-ever total in a three-setter. 

By contrast, Western Colorado (1-11, 0-4 RMAC) hit just .202 on the night. Neither team served the ball well, as each side finished with two service aces and nine service errors apiece, but CSC's 50 kills far outpaced Western's 33 and the Eagles also came up with 51 digs to WCU's 44. 

Chadron State wrestled control of the first set with a 7-0 scoring run that turned a 13-11 deficit into an 18-13 lead. After a service error and attack error allowed the Eagles to tie the score, CSC hit five kills in a row (two from Kally Kirkwood, two from Beckler and one from Adams) to open up the cushion. Service errors by the Mountaineers allowed Chadron State to gain their 24^th and 25^th points of the opening set. 

In the second, Adams contributed two kills on a 5-0 scoring run that let the Eagles race out to a 12-5 lead. Chloe Grady finished back-to-back kills to push the margin to 15-7 before Bella Adams and Mataya Ward tallied a kill apiece then combined on a block to put the Eagles up 22-16. Once again, a Mountaineer service error ended the set. 

Western Colorado showed some desire to extend the match, taking a 10-9 third set lead on back-to-back kills from Breanna Nohava, but Chadron State scored seven of the next eight points, including an Avery Lacy ace and two solo blocks from Kally Kirkwood. The Eagles could smell the end of the match and were determined to finish it, ending the third set on a 6-1 run with all points coming via kill (three by Ward, two by Adams and one on a skip set by Donovan). 

The team will take a break from RMAC-counting games as next week will see the RMAC's "Regional Pod" matches. Chadron State will go on the road to play regional rivals South Dakota Mines and Black Hills State in nonconference matches next week, facing the Hardrockers in Rapid City on Friday, October 3 at 6 p.m. and the Yellowjackets in Spearfish on Saturday, October 4 at 2 p.m.

Women Finish Second At Ted Castenada Classic

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Lydia Peters crossed the line in seventh place during the women's 6K as the Eagle women finished in second place in the team standings to lead all Chadron State performers at the Ted Castenada Classic in Colorado Springs hosted by Colorado College.

The women placed second out of four competing teams, trailing hosts Colorado College but topping Trinidad State and Northwestern CC. The men's team placed third among five teams, finishing behind Division I Air Force and Colorado College and finishing ahead of the same two institutions as the women. 

True freshman Kaden Boltz was the top finisher on the men's side for CSC in 15^th place, while Samantha Rodewald (12^th) also secured a top-15 finish for the CSC women. There were 27 total runners in the women's race and 52 in the men's race. 

Behind Peters, who ran the 6K course in 23:20.20, and Rodewald, who crossed in 23:59.04, the Eagles had four women's placers within the top 20 – Katelyn Beshara (16^th, 24:24.97), Paige Kehmeier (17^th, 24:36.21), Kyndall Carnahan (19^th, 25:00.76) and Izabella Miller (20^th, 25:06.17). 

Zelma Rudd and Ivy Hise also competed for the Eagles, crossing in 24^th and 25^th place. 

On the men's side, Boltz was the team's top finisher for the first time in his young career, running 8K in 26:35.94. Boltz was followed closely by veteran Nate Mann, who finished in 26:37.68 one spot behind in 16^th. The rest of CSC's scoring five consisted of Blaine Johnson (20^th, 26:42.39), Boady Hunter (32^nd, 28:03.10) and Adam Beard (35^th, 28:09.05).

Also competing for the Eagles on the men's side were Miles Mitchell (36^th), Mizaiha Babers Webb (42^nd), Andrew Walsh (45^th) and Carmelo Ayala (49^th). 

Cross country will take two weeks off before its next competition on Friday, October 10 when they participate in the Yellow Jackets/Battlin' Bears Open in Billings, Montana. That race will be CSC's final contest prior to the RMAC Championships on October 25. 

Eagles Soar To 2nd, Kleve On Podium In Minnesota

MARSHALL, Minn. – Chadron State made up one stroke on two teams in front of them, pulling into a three-way tie for second place in the team standings for the Eagles' highest finish of the year, while Macy Kleve finished on the podium for CSC's highest individual finish in an event in two years.

The Eagles shot 25-over 313 as a team during Sunday's second round, finishing at +48 624 over two rounds. Chadron State finished tied with Minnesota-Crookston and the "B" team of Minnesota State, who entered play Sunday one stroke ahead of the Eagles. 

The Minnesota State "A" team was the event's runaway winner, finishing 17 strokes ahead of Chadron at 31-over 607. After the three-way tie for second, CSC finished ahead of Morningside, Augustana (SD), Sioux Falls, Dakota Wesleyan, Southwest Minnesota State, Gustavus Adolphus, Minnesota-Moorhead, Bemidji State and Briar Cliff. 

Macy Kleve, who entered the final round in second place in the individual standings, slipped one spot on the leaderboard but still finished in third place after carding a 7-over-par round of 79. Kleve finished five strokes behind medalist Emerson Garlie of Minnesota State and one stroke back of Garlie's teammate Victoria Woytassek, who opened the day in fourth place but shot a 74. 

Klara Kleinig also sealed a top-10 finish for Chadron State, matching her Saturday score with a round of 5-over 77 and maintaining her leaderboard position of being tied for eighth place. 

Fellow sophomore Allison Sanger matched Kleinig with a 77 on Sunday, hitting a team-high four birdies in round two and shooting 1-under-par on the back nine. Sanger rose four spots on the leaderboard up to a three-way tie for 19^th place. 

Freshman Lauren Knapp shot an 80, finishing in 26^th place, while senior Payton Wise improved from a round one 89 to card a 9-over-par 81 and shoot up to 48^th place. Wise jumped up 12 spots from her placing after round one and was in the day's top five biggest risers out of the 77-golfer field. 

Brooklyn Tychsen, competing as an individual, finished 54^th at 30-over. Tychsen remained the only player in the tournament to card an eagle or better, which the Berthoud, Colorado native did Saturday by sinking the par-4 fifth hole in two strokes. 

The second-place team finish is CSC's best since the Eagles were also second in last spring's Hardrocker Spring Invite from March 31-April 1, 2025, but that was in a field of just five teams, not 13.
 
The third-place individual finish by Kleve is the highest by a CSC golfer since Jordan Grasis's individual title at the 2024 edition of the Hardrocker Spring Invite. Senior Aubree Heinsma had CSC's highest individual finish during the 2024-25 season when she tied for fourth. 

The Eagles have one more competition left in the fall season, the Yellowjacket Fall Invitational, which will take place on Monday, October 6 and Tuesday, October 7 in Billings, Montana.