After downing South Dakota Mines 63-60 on Saturday night, the Chadron State men’s basketball team will strive to wrap up the regular season with more wins by stopping Metro State and Colorado Christian in the Denver area this weekend.

Now 5-5 for the season, Coach Shane Paben and his players hope a 7-5 record will be sufficient to get them into the RMAC playoffs that begin next week. It also would be the Eagles’ first winning season since 2001-02.

Thinking about first things first, it’s anticipated the Eagles will have to play extra well to get a victory at Metro State on Friday night. The Roadrunners are 8-6 overall and 8-5 in the conference after winning their last four games.

Metro was slated to play in Chadron on January 30, but the Eagles had to cancel because of COVID issues.

Four Roadrunners are averaging in double figures, led by 6-foot-6 junior Mavrick Gildyard at 14.4 points. He’s followed closely by Kobe Sanders, a 5-11 freshman, at 12.5 a game. Sanders poured in 32 points in Metro’s most recent game, a 108-71 verdict over Colorado State-Pueblo.

Another Metro force is Laolu Oke, a 6-8 sophomore who is averaging 10.8 points and 11.8 rebounds, the best in the RMAC by more than four a game.

The Colorado Christian men have won just one of their 14 games. That was by 84-79 over Fort Lewis in December. But the Cougars have some firepower. Ross Williams, a 5-10 junior is averaging 20 points, 6-4 senior Andy Stafford is averaging 17.1 and 5-11 junior D.J. McDonald is at 15 a game.

Paben was naturally pleased with the hard-earned victory over South Dakota Mines.

“It’s always fun to win,” he said. “We had a good effort and that’s what it took. We know we’ll need to win these last two games to make the playoffs, but that’s a good problem.”

Teddy Parham, Jr., sparked the win by scoring a career-high 32 points on 13 of 19 shooting from the field that included four 3-pointers and five steals. The Eagles also continued to get steady play from fellow guard Marcus Jefferson, who scored 16 points and had five assists and five rebounds.

The coach said his team will work on getting the ball inbounds after turning it over three times while trying to do that so they could run out the clock in the final minute against the Hardrockers. Thankfully, the Eagles had a five-point edge at that point and Mines cashed in on only one of the opportunities.

The CSC women haven’t played as well so far in February as they played in late January, but they should have everyone available for the trip to Denver.

Metro defeated the Eagles 83-67 in the Chicoine Center on January 30. Freshman Kendra Parra led the Roadrunners with 26 points while 6-foot senior Allie Navarette poured in 23. Navarette is averaging 22 points and has led her team in scoring in 11 of the 15 games with highs of 29, 32 and 33 points. She’s also averaging 8.7 rebounds.

The Colorado Christian women are 3-14 with wins over South Dakota Mines, Adams State and Colorado Springs. Seniors Brookelyn Hurlburt and Lourdes Gonzalez are each averaging about 12 points.

Softball Home Opener Moved To Friday, Field Area Closed

The Chadron State College softball home-opening doubleheaders, originally scheduled for this Saturday and Sunday, will be played instead on Friday and Saturday, in an attempt to avoid the coldest temperatures of the weekend and meet the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference criteria for softball games. CSC hosts the University of Colorado Colorado Springs for a pair of games beginning at noon on Friday, and another starting at 11 a.m. Saturday, as conditions permit.

The league requires a “Feels Like” temperature of 25 degrees or greater in order to commence its games.

Out of an abundance of caution for student-athlete safety, the gates at CSC Softball Field will be locked during the games, however, spectators may still bring personal seating and view the games from the perimeter of the park. Chadron State will make efforts to accommodate spectators down the left field line of the ballpark. The bleachers behind home plate will remain off-limits, as well as the ballpark restroom facilities.

No admission will be charged, and no concessions will be available. Portable restrooms will also be provided.

Vehicles will be prohibited on the grassy areas near the outfield, due to the melting snow and grounds conditions. Visitors should park in the softball field parking lot on the east side of the ballpark.

Eagles Conclude Series In Oklahoma

The Chadron State College softball team put runs on the board in both of its Monday games at Broncho Softball Field, but they weren’t enough to avoid a second consecutive 0-2 day at the Edmond Regional Festival.

The Eagles fell 7-2 in the first game of the day versus Cameron University, and they lost 9-1 in the final contest of the tournament to the host, the University of Central Oklahoma.

Cameron’s pitchers held CSC to four hits through the first six innings, before the Eagles finally found some timeliness at the plate.

Meanwhile the Aggies pounded out runs in four of the first five innings, aided in part by a first-inning error. They scored one run in the first, three in the second, one in the fourth, and two in the fifth to get out to a 7-0 lead.

In the Eagles’ seventh and final at-bat, four consecutive batters laid down singles to load the bases with one out and score a run. Addison Spears, Ellie Owens, Angelica Maples, and Bailey Marvel started the makings of a rally, with Spears scoring. Then Bailey Rominger hit a sac fly to right, scoring Owens.

The runs came too late, however, as the final out occurred, leaving two in scoring position.

Later, although the teams managed six base hits apiece, free bases helped Central Oklahoma to a five-inning decision. Eagles pitchers gave up nine walks, one wild pitch, and one hit-by-pitch.

CSC led for the first time this season after one at-bat, when Rominger singled and advanced on the only UCO error of the game, and Gabby Russell produced the only RBI for the Eagles.

The second and third innings saw the majority of the Bronchos who walked.

UCO steadily built an 8-1 lead through three innings, and walked off with a sac fly in the fifth.

Russell, who went 3-for-6 overall Monday at the plate, had the best batting day for the Eagles.

Peyton Propp and Tia Kohl each fell to 0-2 with the losses. Propp was the pitcher of record in the early game and Kohl in the latter.

Jocelyn Bright of Cameron and Corrina Rivas of UCO both went to 2-0.

Amid a chilly weekend forecast, the Eagles are tasked with attempting to host the University of Colorado Colorado Springs for a pair of Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference doubleheaders this weekend.

CSC Volleyball Senior Night Versus Regis

The Chadron State volleyball team looks ahead to its Friday night matchup against the No. 20 Regis Rangers on Feb. 26 at 6 p.m. in the Chicoine Center.

The 4-2 (4-1 RMAC) Rangers are currently 3-0 at home, but are only 1-1 on the road.
The visitors will face the Eagles for the first time this season and match the Eagles with two seniors.

Senior outside hitter Caitlyn Burroway of league City, Tex. has 71 kills in her 21 sets played for Regis, averaging 3.39 k/s. Junior right-side hitter and Broomfield, Colo. native Rachel Siurek has 56 kills and 63.0 points in her 18 sets played on the season.

Sophomore Ayala Plummer from Arcadia, Calif. leads the Ranger defense with her 15 total blocks.

Haley Kennedy, a sophomore defensive specialist/ libero and high school teammate of Plummer, has 97 digs this season and is averaging 4.62 dig/s.

The Rangers have allowed opponents to earn 173.0 points in conference this season.

For the Eagles’ offense, sophomore Lexi Hurtado, senior Chandler Hageman, and freshman Rhiannon Nez have been leaders in the 2020 season with 35 kills from Hurtado and 33 kills each from Hageman and Nez. Sophomore Rylee Greiman, with great play against Black Hills State on Feb. 13 and Colorado Mesa on Feb. 21, has 30 kills so far.

Senior defensive specialist/ libero and senior Karli Noble has been significant on defense with 95 digs in 21 sets played, averaging 4.52 dig/s.

Rhiannon Nez, with 20 block assists and 22.0 total blocks, in conjunction with Chandler Hageman, with 12 block assists and 17.0 total blocks, have been a solid pair at the net for CSC.

Noble, Hageman, and Nez have made appearances in all 21 sets played on the season.

The match against the Rangers on Friday will be the last home match of the season and will subsequently be “Senior Night” in honor of seniors Karli Noble and Chandler Hageman.

The Eagles will then go on the road for the remainder of the season facing Adams State, Colorado School of Mines, MSU-Denver, Fort Lewis, Colorado Christian, Black Hills State, and South Dakota Mines before the RMAC Tournament begins.