Black Hills State women's soccer is all set to open its 2022 RMAC slate, hosting Colorado Christian and Colorado Mesa for a pair of weekend matches.

BHSU will take on CCU on Friday, Sept. 16 at 3 p.m., and then CMU on Sunday, Sept. 18 at 11 a.m.

The Yellow Jackets are 0-2-2 on the season, coming off a pair of draws to wrap up the team's non-conference schedule. They tied with MSU Billings 1-1 on Sept. 9 with a goal from Sophie Brassard, which followed a 1-1 tie the week before with Minot State in which Emma Avery scored.

"The group seems eager to enter conference play," said Head Coach Andrew Conniff. "We want to evaluate our success and progress based on how we perform in the RMAC."

 

BLACK HILLS STATE  Vs.  COLORADO CHRISTIAN   FRIDAY, SEPT. 16 // 3 P.M. // SPEARFISH, S.D. // RONNIE THEISZ FIELD Live Stream / Live Stats

Black Hills State (0-2-2) vs. Colorado Christian (1-4-0)
In five non-conference matches this season, CCU is 1-4 with their lone victory coming in a 1-0 win over Eastern New Mexico. The Cougars have been outscored 8-2 so far this year, but have gone up against some tough opponents including No. 25 Angelo State.

"They are an incredibly hard-working team that makes it difficult to score and have conceded just five goals in their last four games," said Conniff. "They play with belief in each other and have a player or two that can change a game."

BHSU is 2-4 all-time in six meetings with CCU. The Yellow Jackets won their match last season, 1-0 in Lakewood Colo. and will look for the victory in back-to-back years.

"It will be important for us to have confidence in our style of play even under pressure," Conniff added. "We really need to see our outside backs perform in this game. Taylor Hernandez has been great all season and we hope to see her continue being a difference maker from outside back."

 

BLACK HILLS STATE  Vs.  Colorado Mesa   SUNDAY, SEPT. 18 // 11 A.M. // SPEARFISH, S.D. // RONNIE THEISZ FIELD Live Stream / Live Stats

Black Hills State (0-2-2) vs. Colorado Mesa (2-3-1)
Colorado Mesa finished last season as RMAC Regular Season Champions, going 14-4 overall and 10-2 in league play. This season, the Mavericks are 2-3-1 with shutout victories over Nebraska-Kearney (4-0) and Cal State-Dominguez Hills (5-0).

Contrary to what their record would show, CMU is actually outscoring their opponents 15-10.

"They have been scoring a ton of goals this season and their forward Lila Dere is a very tough matchup," Conniff said. "What stands out to me about this team is their speed of thought. Their players have great anticipation and activity. They often are the first to loose balls and they have great timing with their movement."

BHSU has had a tough time with CMU, historically, with an all-time 0-5-1 record against them. Since the 2-2 draw in 2018, BHSU is 0-3 against the Mavericks, but will look forward to hosting the match this season after playing in Grand Junction, Colo. each of the last two seasons.

"For us to be successful we need to match their activity in the midfield and will rely on Kayla Osegueda, Lena Homan, Chloe Lonneman, and Leah Day to compete there," Conniff added. "We also need to have some quality individual performances from our attacking players. This is the kind of matchup we need to see Emma Avery and Darby Whiteley be at their best. I feel the two of them have been creating great opportunities and we should see more of those chances turn into goals soon."