RAPID CITY, S.D. – The South Dakota Mines football team is coming off a tough loss in Houghton, Michigan where they battled to four overtimes against Michigan Tech and are looking to get into the win column on Saturday, as they take on Upper Iowa, slated for a noon kickoff.
GAME INFORMATION
Upper Iowa:
Date/Time: Sept. 14 / 12:00 PM MT
Site: Rapid City, S.D.
Stadium: O'Harra Stadium
Series Overall: Upper Iowa leads 1-0.
Streak: Upper Iowa Won 1
Series at South Dakota Mines: Never Met
Streak at South Dakota Mines: Never Met
Last Meeting: Upper Iowa won in Fayette, 20-6 (9/9/1972).
Watch Live: RMAC Network
MAGNIFICENT MARTINELLI
Jake Martinelli made big strides from week one to week two, throwing for 443 yards on 39-61 passing and five touchdowns. In addition, he was credited with 62 rushing yards, despite getting sacked five times. Currently, Martinelli is second in the RMAC in passing yards and touchdowns. In addition, he ranks eighth in rushing yards.
GALBREATH THE GREAT
Mason Galbreath continued to build on a solid week one, posting career highs in receptions and yards with 10 catches for 160 yards and also scored a touchdown.
STURN STEPS IN
Alex Sturn picked up his first career start at tight end, stepping in for
Henry Dryden and performed well, catching four balls for 75 yards.
RECEIVING BACK
Dawson Dunbar was used out of the backfield early and often, catching six passes for 51 yards. Dunbar also contributed a rushing touchdown.
LEADING THE DEFENSE
Currently, South Dakota Mines' leading tackler is William Lester, who has recorded 13 tackles on the season, sitting in a tie for third in the RMAC currently. In addition,
Kaleb Tischler and
Hunter Newsom are tied for fifth in the conference, each recording 11 tackles thus far.
BEHIND THE LINE
The aforementioned
Hunter Newsom finds the ball and finishes as he is currently leading the RMAC with five tackles for loss.
TWO WAY TISCH
Also mentioned above,
Kaleb Tischler is thriving in his roles on the defensive back and his new role as punter. He has already picked off a pass this season and is tied for the lead in the RMAC with three passes defended.
On the special teams side, he has averaged 42.9 yards per punt on a total of 17 punts, recording an RMAC-best four 50+ yard punts.
SCOUTING UPPER IOWA
For years, Upper Iowa was a one or even zero-win team in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, but things have changed in recent years, both in conference competition and in their record as they now are a member of the Great Lakes Valley Conference and have had some upward trajectory in their program last year, winning three games and splitting their first two this season, picking up a big win last week over former NSIC foe, Concordia – St. Paul, 33-7 at home.
Their run game was impressive in the win with RJ Wells leading the team with 108 yards on 15 carries, while Jayden Mitchell also ran for 44 yards on 11 carries.
The defense was strong in the game as well, giving up just seven points, but also giving up a total of 254 yards of offense and forcing three turnovers.
Defensive back, Ben Kamara earned GLVC Player of the Week after forcing a fumble, picking off two passes and returning one for a 72-yard touchdown.
Zacarius Murray joined the party, also picking off a pass.
LOOKING AHEAD
Following the game on Saturday, the Hardrockers will be back at home the following week for M-Week also known as homecoming, where they will take on New Mexico Highlands on Saturday, Sept. 21 at 1:00 p.m.
Fans can find the latest on South Dakota Mines football all year long on X and Instagram (@hardrockerfb), while also following on Facebook at Hardrocker Football. The latest on South Dakota Mines athletics can be found by following us on X at @GoHardrockers, hardrockerathletics on Instagram and Hardrocker Athletics on Facebook.
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.
