NDSU at South Dakota School of Mines & Technology – September 13, 2008

The Bison stepped out of their vans after the long 9 hour drive to Rapid City only to be greeted by a stiff wind and surprisingly frigid air. As the sun disappeared and the lights came on, both teams tried to keep moving and stay warm. The game commenced a little after 7 PM. The Bison started by passing well and controlling the game tempo, a trend that would continue most of the game. However, it was SDSMT who struck first. A tall, fast SDSMT forward dribbled down the flank and managed to work his way inside, crossing the ball as he neared the goal line. The cross reached another forward whose initial shot was deflected by sweeper Izzy Chujor, but it wasn’t enough. The forward took his rebound and shot it over the left shoulder of goalkeeper Tom Erickson. The half would end that way, at 1–0 SDSMT.

The second half was much the same, with good control by the Bison and sporadic attacks by the opponent. NDSU had a chance when a whistle was blown in SDSMT’s box. A penalty kick was awarded to the Bison. Spenser Peterson took the kick and shot a spinning ball hard across the ground, but it was killed in the center of the goal by the unmoved SDSMT keeper. With increasing momentum, the next SDSMT attack ended successfully, as an SDSMT attacker dribbled through the Bison defense and passed the ball past the NDSU keeper for a 2–0 lead.

Late in the game, NDSU finally retaliated when outside midfielder Brian Chapman rocketed a mid-range shot into the net. The frantic two minutes that followed was not enough to yield a goal for NDSU, and the Bison would drop to 2-1-0 on the season with the 1–2 loss.