GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. -- The Chadron State College men's basketball team's season came to an end in the first round of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference tournament with an 84-74 defeat Tuesday night, falling to RMAC tournament #1 seed and the #5 ranked team in the nation, Colorado Mesa.   
 
The loss ends CSC's season at 12-17 overall and 9-13 in RMAC play. The Mavericks improve to 26-3 overall. They will host #4 Black Hills State in the RMAC Semifinals on Friday.
 
Chadron State started 3-4 from the field to build a 9-2 lead four minutes into the game. The Eagles were able to stretch their lead to 10 points with 9:36 remaining in the half.
 
With CSC leading 23-14, the Mavericks defense answered the threat by the visitors and manufactured a 12-0 scoring run in the hosts favor, giving the Mavericks a 26-23 lead.  
 
Both teams traded baskets before Christopher Speller hit a jumper with two seconds remaining, putting the Mavericks up 37-32 at half.
 
Chadron State opened the second half by making only one of seven attempts from the field. On the other side, Colorado Mesa began the second half with five consecutive points to build a ten-point lead that stretched to 13 points with 14:31 remaining.
 
That's when Jalen Patterson, a junior guard from Galt, California, scored eight consecutive points to make the score 49-44. After an "and-1" layup, Patterson scored a jumper on CSC's next possession before knocking down a three with 12 minutes remaining.
 
Colorado Mesa quickly regained a double-digit lead but CSC slowly chipped it back down to four points with 7:31 remaining. The Eagles found themselves trailing 63-59 after making three consecutive shots and five of their last seven.
 
The Mavericks lead stood at 68-63 with 5:45 remaining when the hosts offense caught fire. With 4:03 remaining in the game, Colorado Mesa led 78-63.
 
Chadron State was able to chip the Mavericks lead back down to nine but were unable to overcome the late scoring run by the hosts.
 
The hosts finished 33-58 (56.9 percent) from the field. They made 10 of their 25 attempts from three (40 percent) and were 8-13 from the charity stripe (61.5 percent).
 
CSC finished 29 of 66 (43.9 percent) from the field and 14-19 (73.7 percent) from the charity stripe. The Eagle's finished 2-12 (16.7 percent) from three point land, their second lowest percentage this season.
 
Colorado Mesa outrebounded CSC 40 to 29.
 
Chadron State had nine turnovers in the loss, resulting in five Maverick points. The Eagles scored 15 points off 17 Mesa turnovers.
 
Josh Robinson led CSC in scoring with 30 points and had a game high 10 rebounds. The senior made 13 of his 23 attempts from the field and was 4-8 from the charity stripe.
 
Patterson and Bryce Latimer joined Robinson in double-figures with 14 and 11 points, respectively.  
 
Trevor Baskin and Owen Koonce both scored 22 points for the Mavericks. Baskin added 10 rebounds while Spiller had 14 points.
 
Chadron State has now ended its season with a loss in the first round of the RMAC Tournament in three of the last four seasons.

Latimer and Robinson named Second Team All-Conference

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Chadron State men's basketball senior point guard Bryce Latimer of Stone Mountain, Georgia and senior forward Josh Robinson of Paris, Texas were named to the 2023-24 Second Team All-Conference List, the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference announced Wednesday.

Latimer led the Eagles offensively averaging 18.67 points per game, ranking him 2nd in the RMAC. He finished the regular season making 123 of 154 free throws to end with a clip of 80% from the line. The senior was also averaged 4.48 assists per game with 121 on the season, both marks ranking him second in the conference. 

Robinson followed in his teammates footsteps on the offensive side, averaging 15.57 points on the year. He made 201 of 364 field goals for a field goal percentage of 55%, ranking him second on the Eagles. Robinson averaged 8.5 boards per game to rank first in the RMAC.

In the RMAC tournament last night, Robinson finished his career with a game high 30 points and 10 rebounds. 

RMAC Player of the Year was awarded to Trevor Baskin from Colorado Mesa. Alex Romack of Colorado School of Mines brought home RMAC Freshman of the Year. RMAC Defensive Player of the Year and Coach of the Year also went to Colorado Mesa, Mac Riniker and Mike DeGeorge winning the respective awards.

Powers named Second Team All-Conference

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Chadron State women's basketball junior forward Ashayla Powers was named to the 2023-24 All-Conference RMAC Second Team, the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference announced Wednesday. 
      
Powers led the eagles offensively on her way to celebrating her 1,000th career point, averaging 12.27 points per game. That total placed her 16th within the conference in scoring. 

The Longmont, CO native made 107 of 203 field goal attempts, shooting her way to a 53 percent mark, while taking nearly 50 more FG attempts than her teammates.

She also led the Eagles on the boards, bringing in 37 offensive rebounds and 108 defensive rebounds, to average 6.6 boards.

RMAC Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year went to Olivia Reed and Mason Rowland of Colorado Mesa. Alisha Little of CSU Pueblo took home Defensive Player of the Year. Taylor Wagner of Colorado Mesa was awarded Coach of the Year.

Three Eagles named NCAA Indoor Track & Field All-Region

NEW ORLEANS -- Chayton Bynes, Christopher Jennings and Creighton Trembly were all named NCAA Division II Indoor Track and Field All Region, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), announced on Tuesday. 

The top-5 individuals in each event from each region earned All-Region distinction, in addition to each member of the region's top-3 relay teams. The regions used for this award – Atlantic, Central, East, Midwest, South, South Central, Southeast and West – match those used during the cross country season.

Bynes, a freshman from Chadron, Nebraska,  ranked 19th in the nation with a personal best triple jump of 15.09 meters (49' 6.25"). 

In the weight throw, Jennings, a junior from O'Neill, Nebraska, finished ranked 32nd in the nation.  

While throwing over 18 meters five times this season, Jennings racked up four first places finishes and three silver medals with a personal best throw of 18.65m. 

Trembly, a junior from Longmont, Colorado, ran a new career best time of 8.04 seconds in the 60 hurdles this season, ranking him 37th in the nation. 

All three individuals placed second in their respective events at the RMAC Championships.