RAPID CITY, S.D. --- The South Dakota Mines football team, coming off two straight losses, was looking for a bounce back in the home confines of O'Harra Stadium, taking on the Fort Lewis Skyhawks on Saturday afternoon.
A bounce back they got as the Hardrockers dominated in each phase of the game, led by the performance of
Ben Noland offensively, South Dakota Mines took an early lead and kept growing it, even allowing some backups to see some field time in the 48-10 victory.
How It Happened – The Hardrockers scored early and often in this one, going 9 plays and 85 yards on their first offensive drive to open the scoring with
Jayden Johannsen finding
Ben Noland for the score. Fort Lewis would answer with a field goal, only to see the Johannsen to Noland connection thrive once again, getting another six late in the first quarter.
Noland was just getting started at that point, early in the second he took a punt return 59 yards to the Fort Lewis two-yard line, leading to a
Ty Harris touchdown run a couple of plays later. Leading 20-3, the Hardrockers would get the ball back and Noland would have the opportunity to throw the ball on a trick play, connecting with
Mason Galbreath for 44 yards. The drive would end in a touchdown pass from Johannsen to Galbreath. Fort Lewis would have a nice drive late in the second quarter, getting all the way down to the South Dakota Mines' two-yard line, but the Hardrockers were up for the task, forcing a turnover on downs. The Hardrockers offense would waste little time in scoring again, getting a 43-yard connection from Johannsen to
Max Hoatson to go into the half leading 34-3.
The second half would start the same way even with the second quarterback,
Jake Martinelli manning the offense.
Jalen Frye and
Dawson Dunbar would run the ball four times, with Frye getting six on a 23-yard burst. Later, after a Fort Lewis touchdown, Martinelli found Noland over the middle and watched him run into the endzone for an 87-yard score, giving the Hardrockers a 48-10 lead.
Notes – Noland led the Hardrocker offense with nine receptions for 193 yards and three touchdowns, adding the 59-yard punt return and the 44-yard pass…
Mason Galbreath and
Max Hoatson added receiving scores…
Jalen Frye ran the ball 8 times for 77 yards and a score…
Dawson Dunbar averaged 10 yards per carry on 4 rushes…
Jayden Johannsen threw four touchdowns on 227 passing yards and 16 of 21 passing…
Jake Martinelli completed all four of his passes for 105 passing yards including the 87-yard touchdown and ran the ball four times for 48 yards…On the defensive end, the Hardrockers also dominated, getting two sacks and 7 tackles for loss along with an interception…
Kaleb Tischler led with 8 tackles, while
Taylor Hojer and
Thomas Fields each earned a sack…
Jacob Schwab and
Elijah Davis combined for a sack….
Jarin Allen recorded his first career interception.
Up Next – The Hardrockers head back to the road as they take on the Adams State Grizzlies on Saturday, October 28 for a 1:00 matchup.
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 13 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.
