SPEARFISH, S.D. – The Black Hills State University football team has seen their fair share of games come down to the wire as of late with three of their last four contests each being decided three points or less, and they improved to 2-1 in those match-ups with a 21-18 victory over Chadron State on Saturday night. Similar to the week prior, special teams played a critical role in determining the outcome and this week the ball bounced the Yellow Jackets way as the Eagles had miscues on three field goals and a PAT, including the potential game-tying field goal with two seconds remaining as the ball drifted right, preserving a three point edge for BHSU as time expired on their third win at Lyle Hare Stadium this season.
 
QUICK DETAILS
Score: Black Hills State 21, Chadron State 18
Team Records: Black Hills State 4-4 (3-3 RMAC), Chadron State 3-5 (2-4 RMAC)
Attendance: 3,142
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• A trio of first downs for Chadron State looked to see the opening drive of the game end with a promising result, however, the first of several special teams miscues for the Eagles resulted in an empty possession as the snap on the 47-yard field goal attempt went over the holders head before Brodie Eisenbraun jumped on the ball at the BHSU 40-yard line to prevent the scoop and score for the Yellow Jackets.
• For just the second time this season, the first offensive drive of the game for Black Hills State found the end zone. The Yellow Jackets picked up four first downs on the drive with chunk plays on passing plays by Luke Duby of ten yards to Connor Boyd, 18 yards to Damien Boozer, and 12 yards to Jayden Williams, while Kade Weber rushed for a 12-yard gain to move the chains. BHSU found paydirt when Cameron Goods followed the offensive line from the wildcat formation for the 1-yard touchdown run with 6:37 left in the first quarter. Ryan Ewing tacked on the extra point to make it a 7-0 contest.
• After trading punts, CSC had another crack at points after their drive was extended by a pair of 15-yard penalties by BHSU as they attempted a 42-yard field goal, however Wilson Yee's field goal drifted wide with 10:48 remaining in the second quarter.
• Following Derek Webster's second punt of the quarter, Chadron State eventually capitalized on their ensuing possession as the Eagles capped an 8-play, 88-yard drive that spanned 3:54 of game time with a 6-yard touchdown pass from DJ Ralph to Peter Krohn off the play action into the left flat with 4:08 left till the halftime break. Yee evened the score at seven apiece with his extra point attempt.
• On their final possession of the first half, Black Hills State grabbed the lead entering halftime as Weber rushed around the left side towards the pylon for six with 50 seconds left. Ewing then added the PAT to make it a 14-7 game. The drive was aided by a major 33-yard pass play as Duby found Boozer down the right sideline to move the ball into the red zone at the CSC 12-yard line.
• Chadron State looked for one last scoring opportunity in the closing minute of the first half, however Cooper Brown shutdown their momentum with a sack and a 14-yard loss on the final play of the second quarter.
• The Eagles capitalized on BHSU's lone turnover of the game as Duby's pass was picked off by Dax Yeradi at the CSC 25-yard line and he returned it into plus territory all the way down to the BHSU 38-yard line with 12:39 left in the third quarter. An 18-yard pass play by Ralph to Tommy Thomas and a BHSU pass interference penalty set up 1^st & Goal from the BHSU 3-yard line for the Eagles, and a 3-yard rush by Ralph to the end zone capped the drive with 10:48 left in the period. Yee's extra point to even the score was blocked by Isaiah Morales, the third blocked kick of the year by the Green & Gold and recovered by Doodles Quinones who returned the ball 17-yards to the BHSU 27-yard line.
• Following another punt for Black Hills State, Chadron State would take the lead, 16-14, for the first time in the game with 5:10 remaining in the third quarter as Yee split the uprights from 35-yards out after the Eagles marched 61-yards down the field.
• The teams traded punts the next four possessions until the Yellow Jackets were pinned deep within their own 5-yard line at the two, and the Eagles pressure got to Duby in the end zone, forcing him to attempt to throw the ball, however it failed to reach the line of scrimmage. With the play resulting in intentional grounding, CSC took a 4-point lead, 18-14 with 8:59 remaining in the game.
• Chadron State began to chew clock their ensuing drive as the offense started to slow down, but on a 3 & 10 as the Eagles looked to extend the drive, Ralph's pass was intercepted by Nicc Quinones at the BHSU 48-yard line after he was pressured by Cole Marquez in the backfield.
• The Yellow Jackets capitalized on the lone Eagle turnover of the night as just three plays later Goods rushed the ball 45-yards to the house down the left sideline, which resulted in his longest run of the season. Ewing converted the extra point and BHSU held a 21-18 lead with just 2:46 left on the game clock in the fourth quarter.
• Chadron State made the most of the time they had left on the clock as they moved the ball down field into plus territory in a hurry, with the biggest play of their drive being a 32-yard pass play from Ralph to Thomas down the left sideline, while Nicc Quinones then made the touchdown saving tackle in open space at the BHSU 39-yard line with 1:51 remaining in the game. Two plays later the Eagles saw another big pass play, this time a 17-yard pass play from Ralph to Tomas, which moved the ball up to the BHSU 20-yard line and into the red zone with 1:17 left in the game. The Black Hills State defense, however, would hold their ground from that point forward, with their biggest play of the drive occurring with a sack by Matthew Lofaso on a 3^rd & 3 to drop CSC back to the BHSU 26-yard line and forcing them to run the clock down and kick the field goal. Similar to a week ago the game was decided on a field goal in the closing seconds, however the best that Chadron State could possibly do was tie the game and send it to overtime with the kick attempt as two seconds remained, but once again Yee would miss the field goal wide, and the Yellow Jackets survived with a 21-18 victory at Lyle Hare Stadium.

BLACK HILLS STATE STATISTICAL LEADERS
Cameron Goods: 10 rushing attempts, 98 rushing yards, 2 rushing touchdowns, 9.8 yards per carry
Kade Weber: 4 rushing attempts, 24 rushing yards, 1 rushing touchdown, 6.0 yards per carry
Damien Boozer: 7 receptions, 89 receiving yards
Nicc Quinones: 10 tackles, 1 interception, 1 pass break-up
Lovenski Simon: 9 tackles, 2 pass break-ups
Cole Marquez: 8 tackles, 1 quarterback hurry
Cooper Brown: 5 tackles, 2.5 tackles-for-loss, 1.0 sack, 3 quarterback hurries
Mylic Ritche: 5 tackles, 0.5 tackles-for-loss, 1 pass break-up, 1 quarterback hurry
 
UP NEXT
Black Hills State will take to the road next weekend against another RMAC contender, #RV/-- Colorado Mesa on Saturday, November 2, in a 1 p.m. kick-off at Ralph Stocker Stadium in Grand Junction, Colorado.
  Read Full Article