GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. --  The Chadron State Women's Wrestling team came away with four individual qualifiers and a third place finish as a team at the NCWWC Region V Tournament in Grand Junction, Colorado on Sunday, February 19.
 
The four qualifiers, Kinsey Smith, Isabell Ortiz, Kayley Garcia and Kamila Montenegro helped the Eagles score 123.5 team points.
 
CSC's lone champion and first regional champion in school history, Kayley Garcia, defeated three wrestlers on her way to the 143-pound title. After a first-round bye, Garcia, a freshman from Vista, California, earned her lone pin of the day in 2:31 against Diriann Porras from University of the Ozarks.
 
In the semi-finals, the freshman defeated Celine Cooke of Colorado Mesa 10-0. Another Colorado Mesa opponent in Erica Schroeder met Garcia in the finals. The champion ended her day with another tech fall, this time 11-0.
 
Smith, a senior from Windsor, Colorado, had a first-round bye which earned herself a spot in the semifinals. The 101-pound champion, Jennesis Martinez of Colorado Mesa, pinned Smith in 2:43.
 
In the first round of the 101-pound bracket, Isabella Morales of Colorado Mesa defeated Britley Lopez of Chadron State, creating a matchup of Eagles in the loser bracket. Smith defeated her teammate with a 10-0 TF before earning fourth place after being defeated by Odelia Lopez of Schreiner University.
 
Isabell Ortiz recorded a first-round pin in 1:54 over Carisa Epling of Colorado Mesa. The freshman from Lakin, Kansas earned a matchup with Ivy Threatful from Simon Fraser in the semifinals. Threatful earned a 11-6 decision over Ortiz.
 
Ortiz answered her lone defeat of the day with back to back falls to receive third place in the 116-pound bracket. She defeated Mercedes Nerios of Texas Women's University in 4:06 before defeating Jaia Ashley of Schreiner in 5:28.
 
Montenegro received silver in the 170-pound bracket. After a first-round bye, she won a 10-6 decision over Samantha Vasquez from Colorado Mesa. The junior from Las Vegas, Nevada, pinned Aubrey Yauger of Texas Women's University in 4:55 before losing in the championship to Emily Cue.   
 
Four Eagles finished fifth in the tournament, falling one spot short of being a national qualifier.
 
The four Eagles qualifying for nationals will be back in action March 3-4 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Eagles’ Bryce Latimer scores 43 during 85-76 win

Chadron State College's "Mr. Quick," Bryce Latimer, tallied 43 points Tuesday night while bringing the Eagles from behind to win 85-76 over South Dakota Mines in a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference game in Chadron.
             
The win was the Eagles' 10^th in 11 games, giving them an 18-9 season record and a 15-6 RMAC mark.  Mines is 9-18 and 8-13.
            
Latimer, a 5-10 dynamo who comes off the bench, scored 15 points while playing that many minutes in the first half, then poured in 28 points in 16 minutes in the second half. He's the first Chadron State male basketball player to score 40 or more points in a game this century and his 43 points ties him for fifth on the Eagles' all-time single game list.

The Stone Mountain, Ga., native was 13 of 19 from the field, including four of seven on 3-pointers range, and made 13 of 14 free throws. The Hardrockers tried to guard him. He was fouled 10 times, usually while driving to the basket for a short jumper or a layup.

This was the first time in the Eagles' 27 games this winter that he has attempted and made so many 3-pointers. He'd made just 10 treys entering the game.
             
The Eagles needed Latimer's boost off the bench.

It was the Hardrockers' Alejandro Rama, a dynamic player in his own right, who lit things up early.  The 6-foot-1 Red Cloud High graduate opened the game by hitting six consecutive 3-point shots as Mines took a 30-17 lead midway in the half. 

Boosted by Latimer's 15 points, the Eagles finally gnawed at the Hardrockers' lead and trailed by only 44-39 at halftime. While the margin was never greater than seven points and was a single point on three occasions, the South Dakota visitors remained ahead the first 14 minutes of the second half.
             
It was a Latimer 3-pointer that put the Eagles on top 66-65 with six minutes remaining.  That turned out to be the game's only lead change.

The Eagles certainly never ran away and hid.  CSC's advantage was just 75-72 with 1:26 to play after the Hardrockers' Kolten Mortensen hit a 3-pointer.  Latimer then drove for one of his layups, did something of a double clutch while he was in the air, and made the shot to give the Eagles a 77-72 cushion with 56 seconds to play.

After Mines failed to score on its ensuing possession, Latimer made two sets of free throws and his teammates tacked on four more points in the final 16 seconds.
             
Both teams had four players reach double figures. While Latimer scored a bit more than half of his team's points, Isaiah Wyatt added 15 and both Marcus Jefferson and Josh Robinson netted 11.  Robinson also grabbed a game high 14 rebounds, giving him his ninth double-double this season.
             
CSC Coach Shane Paben also commended Robinson for containing Rama in the second half.
             
Both Rama and forward Brevin Walter finished with 24 points, Keagan Smith added 15 and Mortensen 11. Walter was the only Mines player to go to the free throw line, where he was seven of eight.
             
The Eagles shot exactly 50% from the field in each half, going 15 of 30 in the first 20 minutes and 13 of 26 in the second.  Mines was 18 of 29 in the opening half for 62%, 12 of 38 in the second half for 42.9% and 52.6% for the game. 
             
Both teams had eight turnovers. 
             
The Eagles are due to host Black Hills State on Thursday night for both teams' final regular season game
             

    S.D. Mines—Alejandro Rama 24, Brevin Walter 24, Keagen Smith 15, Kolten Mortensen 11, Kolton Frugoli 2. Totals: 30-57 (9-22) 7-8 76 points, 27 rebounds, 8 turnovers.
             
     Chadron State—Bryce Latimer 43, Isaiah Wyatt 15, Josh Robinson 11, Marcus Jefferson 11, Jarrett Taylor 3, Porter Anderson 2. Totals: 28-56 (11-26) 18-21 85 points, 29 rebounds, 8 turnovers.
             
             South Dakota Mines          44       32        ---76
              Chadron State                     39      46         ---85
              3-pointers: SDM—Rama 6, Mortensen 1, Smith 1, Walter 1.  CSC—Latimer 4, Jefferson 3, Wyatt 3, Taylor 1.
 
Chadron State's single-game scoring leaders:
Josh Robinson, 51 vs. Dana College, 1989-90.
Russ Crafton, 48 vs. Adams State, 1992-93
Otis Frazier, 46 vs. Nebraska-Kearney, 1999-00
Randy Lotton, 45 vs Colorado College, 1983-84
Mike Kinnaird, 43 vs. Colorado College, 1968-69
Bryce Latimer, 43 vs. South Dakota Mines, 2022-23.

Eagles fall to Hardrockers

CHADRON, Neb. --  Three players scored in double figures for the South Dakota School of Mine's Hardrockers as they defeated the Chadron State women's basketball team 64 to 58 Tuesday night in the Chicoine Center.
 
Piper Bauer led both teams with 20 points while Bailey Johnson and Naomi Hidalgo added 17 and 14 points, respectively.
 
Chadron State had their largest lead of the game after a Shay Powers jumper made the score 17-9 with 4:15 remaining the first quarter. CSC held a three-point lead at the end of the period.
 
The teams traded scores in the second quarter before Johnson made a three pointer as time expired to give the visitors a 30-27 lead at half.
 
The Hardrockers shot 50 percent from the field in the second half and managed to never lose the lead again.
 
A late Olivia Waufle three pointer and a layup by Allison Olsen dropped the Hardrocker lead to four with 35 seconds remaining. Bauer made two free throws with four seconds remaining and a last second shot by CSC fell short.  
 
Chadron State finished 42.6 percent (23 of 54) from the field and 3 of 15 (20 percent) from three. The victors made 25 of their 60 shot attempts (41.7 percent) and eight of their 19 attempts (42.1 percent) from beyond the arc.
 
CSC was 9 of 16 from the charity stripe while the Hardrockers were 6 of 11.
 
The Eagles were outrebounded 41 to 31. 10 of the South Dakota Mine's 41 rebounds were offensive.
 
Both teams managed to be below their season average in turnovers. Chadron State committed 11 and the Hardrockers had 12, resulting in 10 points for both teams.
 
Powers led the Eagles with 18 points and six rebounds, a team high in both categories. Olsen finished with four assists.
 
Sydnee Durtsche had a game high 12 rebounds for the visitors.
 
The loss drops CSC to 4-23 overall and 4-17 in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play. South Dakota School of Mines improves to 5-22 and 5-16 in conference play.
 
The Eagles are in the Chicoine Center for their season finale and senior day on Thursday, February 23 at 5:30 p.m.

CSC track athletes headed to RMAC Meet

About 30 Chadron State College track and field athletes have qualified for the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Indoor Championships that will take place Friday and Saturday at Adams State in Alamosa, Colo.
              CSC Coach Seth Mischke said Monday afternoon that he anticipated about 15 men and the same number of women would compete, although not everything was set in stone.  The athletes with the top 18 marks in each event qualify, but some changes usually occur because of injuries and decisions to concentrate on one or two events and skip others.   
              Mischke said his greatest concern was making sure the Eagles got to the meet ahead of the blizzard that is predicted to arrive with force on Wednesday.  He said arrangements were being made to hopefully leave Chadron before the storm arrives. 
              With Kyla Sawvell and Daniel Reynolds leading the way, the weight throw and shot put are expected to the Eagles' strongest events, but the team has other capable and proven performers. 
              For instance, Osvaldo Cano placed second and Greg Logsdon was fifth in the 400 meters at last year's meet, which was at Western Colorado at Gunnison.  In addition, Cano, his twin, Osiel, along with Logsdon and Logan Peila will team up again after placing third in the 4x400 relay a year ago. 
              The high jump was another strong event for CSC at the RMAC Meet last winter. Jourdaine Cerenil placed third for the Lady Eagles and Hector Ortega was fourth and Alec Penfield seventh for the men last year. All three will be competing again.
              Creighton Trembly has one of the top times in the 60-meter hurdles and Harley Rhoades placed in both the heptathlon indoors and the decathlon outdoors at the 2022 meets.
              Both Sawvell and Reynolds were among the Eagles who continued to excel at the Stinger Open Meet hosted by Black Hills State on Saturday.  Both won their two pet events with room to spare and appear to be reaching their peaks at the right time.' Their consistency also has been impressive.
              Sawvell hurled the 15-pound weight 65 feet, 4 inches, her second-best mark of the season and more than three feet farther than her winning throw a year ago.  She also matched her season-best of 47-7 in the shot put. 
              While competing for Black Hills State prior to transferring to CSC last fall to enroll in a graduate program that was unavailable at Spearfish, the Wall, S.D., native was a 10-time RMAC champion. She has won both the shot and the weight throw at the conference indoor meets each of the last three years.
              As a sophomore last year, Reynolds not only won the weight throw the RMAC Meet, but he hit 64-11 ½ to break the conference record that dated back to 2001 by nearly a foot.  So far this year, he's added more than two feet to that mark and leads the conference throwers by about five feet.
              The Granby, Colo., product also had a career-best of 54-11 ½ in shot put at Black Hills State on Saturday and now has the fourth best mark in that event entering the RMAC showdown, 
              Other CSC event winners at the Stinger Invite were Logan Moravec of Gering in the 800 (1:57.24), Emory Yoosook of Casper in the long jump (22-2 ½), Penfield in the high jump (6-2 ¾) and Megan Baloun of Rapid City both the long and high jumps. Baloun's 16-7 ½ long jump is a season best.
              The Eagles' placewinners at the Stinger Invitational:
CSC Men's Results
              200—2, Harley Rhoades, 23.01.
              400—3, Osiel Cano, 53.04.
              800—1 Logan Moravec, 1:57.24; 4, Cameryn Spence, 2:01.41.
              Mile—4, Garrett Avery, 4:27.79; 5, Nate Mann, 4:33.50.
              60 hurdles—2, Harley Rhoades, 9.14.
              Shot put—1, Dan Reynolds, 54-11 ½; 2, Parker Gonser, 50-3 ½; 5, Reid Spady., 44-4 ¼. 
              Weight throw—1, Dan Reynolds, 67-1 ½; 3, Parker Gonser, 54-2 ½; 4, Christopher Jennings, 52-9 ½.
Long jump—1, Emory Yoosook, 21-9 ½; 6, Harley Rhoades, 19-10 ¾.
              High jump—1, Alec Penfield, 6-2 ¾; 3, James Brenner, 6- ¾.
              CSC's Women's Results
              200—3, Caydince Groth, 26.82; 4, Shantae Morgan, 27.35.
              400—2, Caydince Groth, 1:01.0.
              800—2, Lexi Rule, 2:29.43.
              Mile—3, Alissa Wieman, 5:30.06. 
              3000—2, Lydia Peters, 12:40.18; 3, Josie Diffendaffer, 13:33.74.
              Shot put—1, Kyla Sawvell, 47-7.
              Weight throw—1, Kyla Sawvell, 65-4; 2, Courtney Smith, 56-3 ¼; 6, Madyson Schliep, 49-1 ½. 
              Long jump—1, Megan Baloun, 16-7 ¼; 2, Allison Brummell, 15-11 ½; 3, Devyn Thornton, 15-5 ½. 
              Triple jump—4, Emily Mason, 32-7 3.4.
              High jump—1, Megan Baloun, 5-2 ¼; 2, Allison Brummel, 40 10 ¼.
              Pole vault—2 tie, Kristie Hill, 10-2.