RAPID CITY, S.D. --- The South Dakota Mines soccer team was back at home at Dakota Fields for a Sunday afternoon matchup.
The matchup was a close one with the two teams close in all the statistical categories, but it was also close on the pitch in addition to the stats which saw Regis hold a slight lead in shots, 15-11, but a tie in shots on goal at six apiece, and an advantage to South Dakota Mines on corner kicks, 5-3.
The two teams would battle back and forth throughout the first half with each team having waves of possession but no overly dangerous chances, until 2022 RMAC Player of the Year Rayhan Carlson-Du Toit got loose in the 31st minute, scoring a goal to break the scoreless tie. The Hardrockers would up the aggression over the last 10 minutes or so of the first half, giving themselves chances, but were unable to put one into the back of the net, going into halftime, trailing 1-0.
In the early stages of the second half, the two teams were consistently battling for possession, but things changed in the 60th minute, when Michael Jimenez received it. Immediately following that, within a minute, the Rangers went on the attack when a beautiful ball was played by Vilhjamur Kaldal found Du Toit for his second goal. The Hardrockers weren't done fighting as
Dominic Delka connected on a bouncing ball outside of the 18-yard box and struck it into the left corner in the 80
th minute, giving the Hardrockers life. Following that, the Hardrockers were the aggressors, giving themselves a pair of chances including a header that went just over the top from
Rider Grow but it wasn't to be as the Hardrockers fell 2-1.
UP NEXT
The Hardrockers close the regular season with a pair of home matches at Dakota Fields next weekend, taking on UCCS at 7:00 p.m. on Friday night and Sunday afternoon at noon against CSU Pueblo.
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.
