SPEARFISH, S.D. --- South Dakota Mines took on Black Hills State in the 136th meeting of the Black Hills Brawl on Saturday afternoon. In a game that was a defensive battle, the Hardrockers were able to emerge with the Homestake trophy in hand, in a 13-10 victory.
In the first quarter, it was all defense as neither team was able to get much going offensively. The lone scoring chance for the Hardrockers was a 47-yard FG attempt which was no good. Going into the second quarter there was no score with the Black Hills State offense in possession of the ball.
The Hardrocker defense would continue to play well, getting a stop on that drive and getting the ball back early in the 2nd quarter. The offense for South Dakota Mines would start to get going, first getting a 15-yard rush from Orlando Westbrook-Sanchez III, then a connection from Jayden Johannsen to Isaiah Eastman would get into the Yellowjacket territory. The Hardrockers offense would continue to move the ball, however, it would end with another missed field goal. Both defenses would continue to control the game, with no scoring until a running into the kicker penalty on Black Hills State would give the Hardrockers a 1st down. South Dakota Mines would take advantage, breaking through for the first points of the game. Eastman would finish off an 11 play 76-yard drive with a 2-yard rushing touchdown to give the Hardrockers a 7-0 lead with 3:10 remaining in the second quarter. South Dakota Mines' defense would get another quick stop, giving its offense back the ball with 1:30 to go in the first half. Brandon Barrios took the first play through the right side of the line for a 26-yard gain but would fumble the ball giving it back to the Yellowjackets with a chance to score. On the first play, defensive holding pushed the ball to the Hardrocker 42-yard line. The Yellowjackets would go for it on fourth-down and convert despite a great defensive play by Cole Peterson. On the next play, Justin Broekemeier would record a sack. Black Hills State would continue to push and would score a touchdown with 3 seconds remaining in the first half to tie it up going into the locker rooms.
To begin the 3rd quarter the Hardrocker defense got another stop and was able to give their offense good field position. On the first play, Westbrook Sanchez III continued his great day, scampering for a 16-yard gain. A great drive for the Hardrockers was ended on a fumbled exchange between Johannsen and Eastman, leading to a recovery and rumble by Aric Eades all the way down to the Hardrocker 16. The South Dakota Mines defense would step up again, with Kendahl Johnson intercepting a deflected pass in the endzone. The turnover fest would continue, this time it was the Yellowjackets intercepting a pass on 3rd down, bringing it down to the South Dakota Mines 4-yard line. South Dakota Mines' defense would step up again coming up with a pair of big plays from Casey Knutsen on 2nd down for a 6-yard tackle-for-loss followed by a Broekemeier sack to force a field goal, giving the Yellowjackets a 10-7 lead with 5:18 to go in the 3rd quarter. Spencer Zur would take over at quarterback on the following drive and he would get right to work connecting with Joe Luebbers for an 18-yard completion. The drive would stall out, with the Hardrockers punting it away a couple of plays later. The Hardrocker defense would again stop the Yellowjacket offense, getting the ball back to the offense at its' own 42-yard line for good field position. On the first play, Zur attempted a deep shot to Collin Zur which drew a pass interference penalty getting the ball into Black Hills State territory to end the third quarter.
The Hardrockers after attempting trickeration to force a timeout would attempt a 41-yard field and Connor Taylor would nail it, tying the game at 10 with 14:11 to go. After another defensive stop, the Hardrockers would start with the ball at their own 22-yard line. On 2nd down, Isaiah Eastman would come up with a big 36-yard run to get down to the BSHU 37-yard line. Following that the Hardrocker would stall, punting it on 4th down inside the Yellowjacket 10-yard line. The Hardrocker defense as it has done all day got a defensive stop, forcing a punt which would once again give the Hardrocker offense good field position after an 18-yard punt return to the BHSU 41. The Hardrockers would put 3 on the board on a 27-yard field goal. With the Hardrockers marching, Black Hills State would pick it off, giving them another chance. Once again, the South Dakota Mines defense would step up on a 3rd and long, Kaleb Tischler would intercept a pass with 2:02 remaining. The South Dakota Mines offense would seal it on a 4th and 8 completion from Zur to Bridges. A kneel down would finish it, with the Hardrockers bringing back the Homestake trophy, winning 13-10.
Up Next
The Hardrockers are on the road for a contest in Las Vegas, New Mexico when they take on New Mexico Highlands for a noon matchup on Nov. 6.
About South Dakota Mines
The South Dakota School of Mines & Technology is a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) and NCAA Division II offering 11 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletic programs. The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference is a premier NCAA Division II conference with 15 members, as well as four associate members, located in the states of California, Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Utah.
