RAPID CITY, S.D. – South Dakota Mines Football improved to 4-1 for the first time since 2016 following a 34-23 victory over New Mexico Highlands on Homecoming.
The Hardrockers outscored the Cowboys 10-7 in the first quarter. New Mexico Highlands started with the ball and cashed in on a 14-play drive for a touchdown.
The Rockers offense was ready to go, as
Gage Baker found
Kooper Koehn for a 68-yard catch to put the Hardrockers inside the Cowboys 20-yard line.
Griffin Taylor caught an 18-yard pass for a Rockers touchdown, making the score 7-7.
After the Cowboys turned the ball over on downs,
Sam Eccles coverted a 22-yard field goal to give the Rockers a 10-7 advantage.
The Hardrocker defense forced a Cowboys punt to start the second quarter. A 12-play drive was capped off by another Eccles field goal, this time from 21 yards to make the score 13-7. The Cowboys responded with a touchdown but a missed extra point tied the game at 13-13.
A 13-play drive, starting at the 6:42 mark, ended with a Hardrocker touchdown with less than a minute left.
Dawson Dunbar ran in for a one-yard touchdown to give the Rockers a 20-13 lead into halftime.
Both teams went three-and-out to begin the second half. The Hardrockers picked up another touchdown midway through the quarter to go up 27-13. Baker found
Joshua Morales for a 14-yard touchdown.
South Dakota Mines scored again following another Morales catch from Baker, this time a 33-yard score. That increased the Hardrocker lead to 34-13. A Cowboys field goal would make the score 34-16 at the end of the quarter.
The Cowboys recorded a touchdown with less than 11 minutes left in the fourth quarter, cutting the lead to 11 points. Following a missed Hardrocker field goal,
Jadon Lemmons snagged a Cowboys pass for his first interception of the year.
With 2:37 left, New Mexico Highlands got the ball back on their own eight-yard line.
Jarin Allen grabbed his first interception of the season with 1:17 on the clock. That interception was the game-sealing turnover to give the Rockers a 34-23 victory.
Baker completed 21 of his 36 passes for 287 yards and three touchdowns. He also ran for 37 yards Dunbar ran for 90 yards and had one touchdown.
Ty Harris averaged 8.5 yards per carry with 68 yards on eight carries. Koehn caught three passes for 80 yards, while Morales grabbed two touchdowns with 60 reception yards.
Aiden Werlinger totaled seven tackles, 1.5 of them for loss with half a sack. He recorded a game-high five quarterback pressures.
Gabe Frerichs recorded seven tackles with one pass defended. Allen had six tackles with his interception, while
Lang Gappelberg collected five tackles.
The Hardrockers moved to 4-1 overall with the victory. They are 4-1 for the first time since 2016. The Rockers started 5-1 that season.
What's Next
After a game at Fort Lewis on Oct. 3, the Hardrockers come back home to take on (RV) Black Hills State on Oct. 17 for the 141
st Black Hills Brawl at 6 p.m.
