CHADRON, Neb. — McKenzi Petersen ended her college career by having six season highs in a nail biting 73-68 loss against Westminster in Chadron State's last women's basketball game of the season.  

Petersen scored 24 points, which was both a season high and game high. Petersen also set season highs in minutes played (35) and field goals scored (12) while tying season highs for assists (two), blocks (one) and steals (two). 

Amya Winfrey also made some season highs on Saturday with 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals.  

Following Petersen in scoring, Dreanna Jackson scored 17 points and Kenna Wagner scored 13. Wagner also set a career high with eight assists and had zero turnovers. 

The Eagles outscored Westminster in both field goals and three pointers, shooting 27-59 (45.8 percent) from the field and 5-17 (29.4 percent) from three, while the Griffins shot 26-73 (35.6 percent) for field goals and 5-28 (17.9 percent) for three pointers. Westminster did have the lead in free throws, making 16-21 (76.2 percent) of them, compared to CSC's 9-12 (75 percent).  

CSC started the game off leading 16-3, before the Griffins rallied back and ended the quarter on a 14-2 run, to trail by just one point after the first quarter. They opened the second quarter to take a four-point lead at 24-20. The Eagles answered back, taking the first half 40-36, but they had difficulty holding on to it with the score being tied five times in the second half. The Griffins ultimately broke away by making three free throws in the last minute of the game to win 73-68. 

The Eagles celebrated their three seniors, Petersen, Winfrey and Bianca Bindzus, who played in the last college basketball game of their collegiant careers. Bindzus played a season high 30 minutes and finished with six points, five rebounds, three assists and a steal.  

This game wraps up the 2025-26 season for the Eagles with a 1-24 overall record and 1-19 mark in the RMAC. Westminster finishes their season with a 9-17 overall and a 6-14 conference record.  

Softball Rallies Too Late vs. NMHU

LAS VEGAS, N.M. – Chadron State softball scored five runs in the sixth inning of game two, but managed only one run in the doubleheader prior to that as the too-little, too-late offensive performance allowed New Mexico Highlands to snag 3-1 and 7-5 victories over the Eagles on Saturday.

The Eagles drop to 2-4 in the RMAC and are 2-13 overall. New Mexico Highlands improved to 2-4 in conference and 4-14 overall. 

Lani Davis had a three-hit night while Elizabeth Thorngren smacked a two-run double to lead CSC offensively. Charley Pitrat, Payton Sullivan and Brogan Allen also drove home runs for the Eagles in the second game. 

Game one was a bonafide pitcher's duel. Belle Akins threw a complete game and allowed just five hits while striking out eight but was ultimately outdueled by Highlands pitcher Jolissa Valdez, who threw seven innings while giving up just one unearned run on two hits.

New Mexico Highlands scored in the first inning when, with runners on first and second, the Cowgirls attempted a double steal and an errant throw to third base ended up in left field and allowed a run to score. 

The Cowgirls added on the fourth when another errant throw from behind the plate, this time on a back pick, advanced a runner from first to third that scored on a sacrifice fly. The Cowgirls added another that inning when, with two outs, the NMHU center fielder singled, stole second and scored on another single.

CSC's only run of game one was unearned, as well. Payton Sullivan led off with a single before the Eagles moved her around to third with a pair of groundouts. Charley Pitrat hit a grounder to short that was not fielded cleanly, allowing the run to score. Aside from Sullivan's single, a two-out single by Sophia Brennan in the seventh inning was the only hit of the opening game for Eagle bats.

Chadron State found themselves down 7-0 after five innings in the second game. Brynn Trujillo started on the mound and pitched 3.1 innings while allowing six runs (five earned) on five hits and four walks. McKenna Sides pitched the rest of the way, holding the Cowgirls to just one run on two hits in 2.2 innings of relief. 

CSC got back in the game in the sixth inning. Two singles and a fielder's choice loaded the bases with one out for pinch-hitter Brogan Allen, who came through with a base hit to left to move everybody up 90 feet and put the Eagles on the board. 

A fielding error on the pitcher on a ball hit by Sullivan brought home a second run before the Eagles went station-to-station again on a Pitrat single to make it 7-3. Thorngren followed with a double down the left field line, CSC's first extra-base hit of the day, to bring home two more runs and put the tying run in scoring position at 7-5, but Highlands escaped the threat and then worked around a two-out hit by pitch to retire the Eagles in the seventh. 

The two teams will conclude their series tomorrow, with a doubleheader starting at 11 a.m.

Two Eagles Medal on Night One of RMAC Indoor Meet

CHADRON, Neb. – Two Chadron State College athletes were medal winners Friday during the first day of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference's Indoor Track and Field Championships at Gunnison, Colorado on Friday.

Sophomore Shelby Ekwall, a graduate of Southeast High School at Yoder, Wyoming, was the silver medalist in the shot put with a career-best mark of 46 feet, 2 inches, and junior Chayton Bynes of Chadron earned the bronze medal in the long jump by leaping exactly 23 feet.  

Another Chadron State highlight was in the men's 200-meter dash preliminaries, where three Eagles qualified for Saturday's finals. They are Ryan Clapper, also from Yoder, Ayden Hartzell of Evanston, Wyoming, and Esosa Iyengunmwena, a native of Nigeria.  

Another CSC sprinter, Christopher Cormier of Sparks, Nevada, qualified for the 400-meter finals.

In addition, Courtney Williams, a freshman from Jamaica, has the lead after the first day of the men's heptathlon while placing in the top three in all four of Friday's events. He was first in the high jump after clearing 6-4 ¼, tied for first in the long jump at 22-1 ¾, was second in the 60-meter dash in 6.94 seconds and third in the shot put with a toss of 40-1 ½. 

The final three heptathlon events—the 60-meter hurdles, pole vault and 1,000-meter run—will help open Saturday's events at the conference meet. There are 18 men in the grueling competition this year, considerably more than usual.    

In the team standings after one day, the Chadron State men are 10th of 15 teams with six points and 5 of 17 events scored. The CSC women are tied for ninth with eight points, with 6 of 17 events scored.

The action will resume on Sunday, with the final heptathlon events starting at 10 a.m., the initial field events beginning at 10:30 a.m.,  and the first events on the track starting at 12 p.m.