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Rocky Mountain College Athletics

Rocky Mountain College Battlin' Bears

Events and Results

Events and Results

Lira vs DSU '25
Brandon Stinson
21
Dickinson State (ND) DSU 2-4 , 0
28
Winner Rocky Mountain (MT) ROCKY 1-4 , 1
Dickinson State (ND) DSU
2-4 , 0
21
Final
28
Rocky Mountain (MT) ROCKY
1-4 , 1
Winner
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
DSU Dickinson State (ND) 7 0 7 7 21
ROCKY Rocky Mountain (MT) 6 8 7 7 28

Game Recap: Football | | Brandon Stinson | Sports Information & Media Coordinator

Rocky Football Defeats Dickinson State 28-21 To Move to 2-0 In East Division Play

BILLINGS, Mont. - Quarterback Trent Nobach threw for 438 yards, Eric Lira tallied 216 receiving yards, and Rocky's defense intercepted the Blue Hawks five times on their way to a 28-21 win on Herb Klindt Field. 

Nobach's 438 yards passing and four touchdowns both mark career highs, while Lira's 216 yards receiving marks the most by a Battlin' Bear since 2017 (Lucas Overton - 223 yards versus Montana Western). 

An exciting matchup on Herb Klindt Field had a little bit of everything, featuring nearly 1,000 total yards between both teams and a combined nine forced turnovers.  

How It Happened
Neither team cracked the score column in the first quarter, as Dickinson State punted twice, while Rocky lost a fumble and turned the ball over on downs on the first four drives of the contest. 

Dickinson State had the first opportunity to strike on the first play of the second quarter, as the Blue Hawks attempted trickery to find the endzone. Wide receiver Samaj Clark heaved a pass to the end zone, but Landen Quesnell snatched the pass out of the air to give the Battlin' Bears the ball back. 

Another costly Battlin' Bear turnover in the first half set up Dickinson State for the opening score with a three-yard rushing touchdown to go up 7-0.

Rocky wasted no time in their response, as Trent Nobach connected with Eric Lira three different times for a total of 63 yards, the final reception being for a 14-yard touchdown to tie the game at 7-7.  

Dickinson State would use a timeout, along with the two-minute timeout, to try to put together a drive to take the lead after a Rocky drive would stall. However, the Blue Hawks would go three-and-out and took just 16 seconds off the clock, allowing Rocky for their own opportunity for a go-ahead score before halftime. 

Despite an excellent Dickinson State punt, pinning the Battlin' Bears inside their own ten-yard line, the Battlin' Bears needed five plays to get their score, as Trent Nobach found Darius Haskin on a 59-yard catch and run for a touchdown, pushing Rocky ahead 14-7. With 18 seconds remaining in the half, Dickinson State would attempt a scoring drive of their own following solid field position from a kickoff out of bounds, but AQ Peternal would intercept quarterback Marus Sanders to continue the Battlin' Bears' momentum into halftime. 

The Battlin' Bears received the ball at half and quickly grew their lead to a two-score lead, as quarterback Trent Nobach completed five of six passes on the opening drive of the second half, eventually finding Eric Lira in the corner of the endzone from nine yards out, giving Rocky a 21-7 advantage. 

The Blue Hawks responded quickly, as Marcus Sanders connected with Jackson Whicker for 64 yards to cut the Dickinson State deficit to seven. 

After a Rocky turnover gave Dickinson State the ball inside the red zone on the next possession, Trey Smith stepped up for the Battlin' Bear defense, stepping in front of a slant route to intercept the Blue Hawks and give Rocky the ball back. 

After Rocky punted on their next possession, Dickinson drove the ball with a 12-play, 76-yard drive to get inside the red zone again, but a 32-yard field goal attempt would come up short, preserving Rocky's seven-point lead. 

The Battlin' Bears would drive into Dickinson State territory on their next possession, but would fail to convert on a fourth-down attempt. Rocky's defense would again come up big in the second half, forcing a three-and-out. The Blue Hawk punt would travel just ten yards, preserving excellent field position. It would take just two plays for Trent Nobach to find Eric Lira again, this time for a 44-yard touchdown to extend Rocky's lead to 28-14. 

Again, Dickinson State would respond with a touchdown drive of its own, cutting its deficit back to seven with just five minutes to go. Rocky would whittle the game clock down to the two-minute timeout, before the Blue Hawks would intercept Rocky in the endzone. Not backing down from the challenge, Sean Tutty would end up with an interception, snagging a deflection off of a Dickinson State receiver to give the ball right back to the Battlin' Bears. 

Rocky would burn the remainder of Dickinson State's timeouts, bringing the game clock down to 27 seconds, before taking a delay of game and punting the ball. Jordan Legg's punt was perfection for Rocky, as he skied a kick that bounced at the ten-yard line and rolled into the hands of gunner Taycen Genatone, who was awaiting the ball at Dickinson State's one-yard line. 

Playing prevent defense, Trey Smith would grab his second interception of the game to seal Rocky's 28-21 victory to move to 2-0 in divisional play. 

Notable Statistics
Quarterback Trent Nobach finished the afternoon passing 34-of-46 for 438 yards and four touchdowns. He had a pair of standout performances from his receivers, as Eric Lira totaled 216 yards receiving and three touchdowns, while Darius Haskin added eight catches for 160 yards and a touchdown. In the rushing game, Tuff Adams totaled 53 yards on 11 carries, averaging 4.8 yards per carry. 

The Battlin' Bear defense totaled five interceptions, as Trey Smith snagged two, with AQ Peternal, Sean Tutty, and Landen Quesnell each adding one apiece. Tutty led the team in tackling with eight, while John Aragon added two tackles for loss. 

On special teams, Jordan Legg had a strong day, punting three times for 130 yards, averaging 43.3 yards per punt, while also booting three of his five kickoffs for touchbacks. Austin Drake went four-for-four on point-after attempts. 

Up Next
Rocky Football (2-4, 2-0 conf.) will travel to Havre, Montana, next weekend to take on Montana State University-Northern. 
 
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