by John Cusick
The CMU football team headed north for their longest trip of the season to take on the Black Hills State (BHSU) Yellowjackets Saturday.
Going into the game the Mavericks were a top of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) at 5-0 while the Yellowjackets were in second place tied with South Dakota School of Mines at 4-1.
All the Mavericks needed to do was handle the Yellowjackets and the conference title was all, but locked up with one of their toughest tests coming in the last game of the season against a non-conference opponent in Azusa Pacific.
After this weekend, their goal to lockup the conference will be tougher as the Mavericks fell to the Yellowjackets, 48-34.
To open the game, the Yellowjackets forced a three and out on the first possession and then drove down the field and scored on a Phydell Paris 38-yard run to put them up 7-0 early.
After a quick drive, kicker Ryan Sheehan was able to connect on a 45-yard field goal to bring the Mavericks within four at 7-3.
On the ensuing kick off Maverick head coach Russ Martin called for an onside kick that was executed perfectly. The kick was recovered by defensive back De’Angelo Lindsay, which gave CMU a short field in front of them.
Quarterback Sean Rubalcaba was able to hit receiver Marcus Hines for 22 yards, down to the BHSU 12. From there, running back David Tann received two handoffs and he covered the rest of the field and was able to get in end zone to give the Mavericks a 10-7 lead.
Black Hills’ next drive lasted a little over three minutes, but stalled at the 44-yard line and they were forced to punt. The Mavericks were not able to capitalize on the stop, as they punted the ball right back after three quick plays.
After another three and out by the Yellowjackets, they were forced to punt right before the quarter ended. It may have proved smart for them to wait for the second quarter to start as Josh Brown, who was filling in for Dustin Rivas, was able to get loose and take the punt back 85 yards for a touchdown and extend the lead to 17-7 heading into the second quarter.
It looked as if the Mavericks were ready to run away with the same one as all the momentum seemed to be on their side.
Black Hills wasn’t quite ready to surrender that early, however. On a third-and-eight, quarterback Ryan Hommel was able to find his receiver Shandon Jones for a 73-yard touchdown that brought them back within three and gave them momentum.
Black Hills got the ball back after forcing the Mavericks to punt after six plays. Punter Austin Pitchford downed the Yellowjackets at the 5-yard line and gave his defense some leverage to work with. Hommel and his offense didn’t seem phased by the long field in front of them.
The first play Paris ran for 23 yards. After that, Hommel put together four completions before a pass interference call put the ball at CMU’s 20. Paris then ripped off a 20-yard touchdown run and put the Yellowjackets up 21-17.
The next drive, Rubalcaba found Brown for two completions worth 29 yards, but his third passing attempt was intercepted by Black Hills’ Damon Goldhammer. The Yellowjackets were able to capitalize on the mistake as Hommel was able to find Jones once again, this time coming from 58 yards out putting them up 28-17.
CMU was able to put together an eight play drive that lasted just under three minutes that ended with another Sheehan field goal. After getting down to Black Hills’ 16, Rubalcaba was sacked twice and forced a field goal attempt from 38 yards out.
After the defense made a stand and force a three and out, Black Hills punted back to the Mavericks but Josh Brown fumbled the ball as he was returning and gave the ‘Jackets the ball back at CMU’s 46-yard line.
Black Hills was able to get into field goal range after a crucial pass interference call put the ball at the CMU 8-yard line. The attempt from 25 yards was good and Black Hills took a 31-20 lead into halftime.
The Yellowjackets received coming out of halftime and were forced into a three and out that gave the Mavericks a chance to regain some momentum. That was quickly erased as on the second play of the drive Rubalcaba was picked off for the second time by Isaiah Birkel.
Black Hills responded by driving 75 yards and scoring another touchdown to put them up 38-20 early in the third quarter. Mesa looked to respond with a drive of their own. Rubalcaba was leading the offense down the field and was picked off for his third of the afternoon. This time by Allan Stubbs.
The next drive ended with the same result. Rubalcaba was eventually pulled from the game as he finished 8-23 for 92 yards and zero touchdowns. Backup Eystin Salum came in for Rubalcaba and was able to add two more scores, but it wasn’t enough.
The Yellowjackets were able to defend their home field and beat the Mavericks 48-34, for their first win against CMU in program history.
The Mavericks finished with over 300 yards on the ground, but a six turnover afternoon doomed the Mavericks ever having a chance at a comeback. CMU falls to 5-1 (5-1 RMAC) on the season and will head back home to Grand Junction for a matchup against newly acquired RMAC opponent Dixie State 3-3 (3-2 RMAC) on Saturday at 7 p.m..
