CHADRON, Neb. -- With the conclusion of spring football practices drawing near, the Chadron State College football team continues to prepare for an intrasquad scrimmage on Friday and a joint practice with Wayne State College on April 20.
 
Friday's scrimmage, which will begin at 3:30 p.m., will be open to the public in preparation for the official spring game in Wayne, Nebraska.
 
Head Coach Jay Long said Friday "will most likely not be tackle to limit injuries and will be limited to around 45 plays."
 
Long said with the team being a little over the hallway point of spring practices, they are hoping to start securing up the quarterback position over the remaining couple weeks.
 
After combining for 1586 yards and 15 touchdowns a year ago, Preston Pearson and Mason Hamilton are joined by graduate transfer DJ Ralph in the quarterback room this spring. Ralph joins the team after spending the previous two seasons as a member of the San Diego State Aztecs.  
 
Zachary Kapushion, who appeared in one game last season, and three other redshirts from a year ago are also earning reps at the position.
 
The Eagles offensive line is a group that Long said has shown improvement during the spring. The unit will look to replace four-year starter Michael DeCamillis and one-year starter Malik Mashek from last season's group. Junior college transfers Iskandar Albitar and Levi Banuelos and Kyler Barrett all joined the team as offensive lineman this spring.
 
Defensively, a group of veterans is guiding a unit that looks to replace two senior starters from the 2023 season.
 
All-conference defensive line selections Tanner True and Hunter O'Connor and a young core of returnees have filled in to replace seniors Kobe Whipple and Gabe Perkins on the defensive line and Joey Geil at linebacker.
 
Long also noted that the secondary, which had four different junior college players join at semester, has "been improving every day."
 
Admission is free to Friday's scrimmage at Elliott Field. A more in depth look at CSC Football's spring practice schedule and roster will be provided prior to the joint practice against Wayne State.

Colorado Mesa completes sweep over Eagles

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. -- After being defeated twice on Saturday, the Chadron State College softball team fell in two more games against the Colorado Mesa Mavericks on Sunday, losing 4-0 and 12-3.
 
The game two loss for Chadron State was its 17th consecutive loss, dropping them to 5-33 overall and 5-23 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.  Colorado Mesa improves to 31-7 overall and 29-3 in conference play.
 
Colorado Mesa scored runs in the first, third and sixth inning during their 4-0 game one victory.
 
Solo homers scored one run in the first and third inning and another run was added with an RBI-Double in the third. An RBI-single scored the final run in the sixth inning.
 
The Eagle had two hits and two errors in the loss. Mesa finished with four runs, nine hits and one error.
 
Kenzi Garner receives the loss for Chadron State in a complete game showing. Preslee Christensen improved to 11-3 for the Mavericks.
 
In the hosts 12-3 game two victory, Colorado Mesa used six runs in the bottom of the second inning to overcome a 2-1 Chadron State lead.
 
Scoring started in the top of the first when Jazlyn Arvizo scored from third after a Lauren Zimmerman single. Arvizo reached first on a throwing error and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt. A wild pitch allowed her to advance to third base.
 
A solo homer by Colorado Mesa's Ava Fugate tied the game at one in the bottom of the inning.
 
The Eagles regained the lead when Mackenzi Kroll started the second inning with a solo homer to center field.  
 
Colorado Mesa used 12 at bats and six hits to score six runs and gain a 7-2 lead in the bottom of the second inning.
 
CSC's final run came in the top of the third inning. After Zimmerman singled to right field and was pinch ran for by Jolynn Niegocki, Niegocki was able to advance to third base on a wild pitch.
 
Ashland Baca scored Niegocki with a sacrifice fly to center field, making the score 7-3.
 
Colorado Mesa was unable to add any runs in the bottom of the third inning but scored three in the fourth and two in the fifth.
 
Leading 10-3 in the bottom of the fifth, Ally Distler recorded her fifth RBI of the day when she hit a walk off two-run homer to left center, giving the Mavericks a 12-3 victory in five innings.
 
The Eagles had three runs, five hits and one error in the loss. The Mavericks had 12 runs, 14 hits and one error.
 
Brooklyn Levin pitched 3.0 innings before Kenzi Garner pitched 1.1 innings of relief. Marisa Nehm improved to 6-0 overall for Colorado Mesa.
 
Chadron State softball plays host to New Mexico Highlands next, on Saturday, April 13 and Sunday, April 14.

Two CSC freshmen win events at huge meet

ERMILLION, S.D. -- The Chadron State College track and field team had some exceptional performances Friday and Saturday at the University of South Dakota Early Bird Meet in Vermillion. The meet is one of the nation's largest with at least 25 teams joining the USD Coyotes in the competition.  More than 100 athletes were entered in a few of the events and at least 60 in many of the others. 
             
For Chadron State, redshirt freshmen Chayton Bynes of Chadron and Topi Alahuhta of Pine, Colo., won events and the Eagles' 4x100-meter men's relay team ran another outstanding race, placing second among 15 teams. 
             
Bynes won the triple jump by going 14.84 meters, or 48 feet, 4 ¼ inches, outjumping his nearest rival by a foot and a half. 
             
Alahuhta won the 10,000 meters in 31 minutes,4.42 seconds, some 40 seconds ahead of the runner-up and a Chadron State record.  The old CSC mark of 31.06.47 was set by Alejandro Garcia in 2016.
 
Another of the Eagles, Wyatt Bly, a true freshman, was seventh in the 10,000. Both Alahuhta and Bly are graduates of Conifer High School near Denver.
             
Chadron State's' 4x100 relay team made up of underclassmen Esosa Iyengunmwena, Cole Perkins, Ryan Clapper and Quincy Efeturi was the runner-up to only the host South Dakota Coyotes in that event. The Eagles' time of 41.47 seconds was not their season-best, but it allowed them to place ahead of more than a dozen teams from Iowa, South Dakota and Minnesota.
             
In addition, the Eagles' Kaden Dower of Riverton, Wyo., was sixth among 20 entries in the decathlon with 5,450 points, his career-high.
             
Chadron State also had some good results in the women's competition.   The highlight was in another distance race, where sophomore Josie Diffendaffer of Berthoud, Colo., placed sixth among nearly 50 entries in the 5000 meters.  Her time was 18:19.37. Only three CSC women have ever run the 5000 faster.  
             
In addition, junior Shantae Morgan of Jamaica continued to improve and 20th among the 71 contestants in the 100-meter dash and 22nd among the 95 entries in the 200 meters. 
             
Also, Madyson Schliep of Grand Island and Tayler Wessely of Parkersburg, Iowa, were 10th and 11th among the 49 entries in the hammer throw with career-best marks of 153-6 and 151-2, respectively.
             
This coming Saturday, the Eagles are planning to enter the Blue Hawk Games at Dickinson State in North Dakota.

CSC dominates breakaway roping at Fort Collins

FORT COLLINS, Colo. -- Led by junior Brooke McCully of Mullen, four Chadron State College cowgirls placed were among the 10 finalists in breakaway roping at the Colorado State University rodeo in Fort Collins last weekend.
             
McCully was the pacesetter. She won the breakaway championship by catching both of her calves in 2.6 seconds. She tied for fifth and sixth in the first go-round, was second in the finals on Sunday and had the fastest aggregate time to win the averages.  There were 97 contestants in the event.
             
It was McCully's best performance since she was the runner-up in the breakaway roping at the CSC rodeo that opened the season in the Central Rocky Mountain Region last September.
             
Three of McCully's teammates were strong contenders at Fort Collins.  All three also caught both of their calves.
             
Freshman Makayla Wray of Ord finished third overall. She was ninth in the first go-round in 3.1 seconds, then had the fastest time of 2.4 seconds in the finals.
             
Junior Shailey McAbee of Hyannis placed fourth overall.  She was the final qualifier for the finals after roping her first calf in 3.2 seconds, and was third in the finals in 2.7 seconds.
             
Chadron State's fourth breakaway finalist was junior Elle Ravenscroft of Nenzel and Cody. She completed her runs successfully in 2.9 and 3.9 seconds to place sixth in the final standings.
             
CSC Coach Lane Day said this was one of the college's all-time outstanding performances in breakaway roping that he remembers.  "It's great that all four caught both of their calves in such fast times so all of them placed in the top six," he noted.
             
Another Chadron State cowgirl, Bridget Romey, a sophomore from Hot Springs, had things going extra well when she won the first go-round of barrel racing in 15.37 seconds. But while trying to duplicate that run on Sunday, she and her horse knocked over a barrel.  She still won nearly $500 for her opening go-round performance.  There were 88 barrel racers at the rodeo.
             
The CSC women were second in the team standings with 305 points.  Only the University of Wyoming with 350 scored more. All but 50 of those points came in goat tying.
             
Two CSC rough stock contestants also placed high. Jack Skavdahl of Harrison was third in saddle bronc riding with scores of 66 and 75 points and Cinch Kiger of Overton tied for third and fourth in bareback riding after earning 72 and 73 points during his two trips out of the chute.
             
In addition. Grant Turek of St Paul was seventh in the tie down roping standings in 10.2 and 12.2 seconds.
             
The next to last rodeo in the region this school year will be at Casper College this weekend.