BILLINGS, Mont. – Rocky men's soccer travels to Rapid City, South Dakota, to round out its nonconference schedule against South Dakota School of Mines and Dakota Wesleyan.
Week schedule
Thursday, September 10
Rocky Mountain College (1-0-2) vs. South Dakota Mines (2-0-1) (Exhibition)
5:00 p.m. (MT)
Rapid City, S.D.
Saturday, September 12
Rocky Mountain College (1-0-2) vs. Dakota Wesleyan (0-1)
12:00 p.m. (MT)
Rapid City, S.D.
Preview – Rocky
The Battlin' Bears enter the weekend riding momentum from a strong start to their 2026 campaign, following a demanding season-opening road trip through Iowa. Rocky secured a statement victory over defending national champion Grand View while earning hard-fought draws against Mount Mercy and then-No. 7 (now No. 4) William Penn.
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Rocky's defensive unit has set the tone early, allowing just two goals through three contests. Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Biruk Paulos-Negatu earned his first career CCC Defensive Player of the Week honor, highlighted by a clean sheet against a high-powered William Penn offense averaging three goals per game. Rocky's 0.67 goals-against average currently ranks 16th in the NAIA.
Offensively, three different players have found the back of the net, including freshmen Dariyan Demir and Evan Odle, alongside sophomore Fynn Sweeting. Junior defender Paul Katende has fueled the transition attack from the back line, dishing out two assists and tying for second most in the Cascade Collegiate Conference this season.
Preview – Opponents
Rocky kicks off the weekend Thursday with an exhibition fixture against South Dakota School of Mines. The Hardrockers boast a 2-0-1 start to their campaign, including consecutive 3-0 victories over NAIA opponents Mount Marty and Morningside. Coming off a 7-7-3 finish in 2025 (2-7-1 RMAC), South Dakota Mines features an attack led by freshman Lucas Miranda and senior Zach Perof, who have each tallied three goals this season. In net, junior Abdo Salem Abdullah has turned away five of seven shots faced.
The Battlin' Bears conclude the road trip Saturday against Dakota Wesleyan, which enters the matchup at 0-1 following a narrow 1-0 loss to Bellevue University. The Tigers aim to build on an 8-11 mark in 2025 that ended in the GPAC quarterfinals. Their squad is led by 2025 first-team All-GPAC honoree Evan Bolster, who tallied seven goals in 17 matches last fall, alongside second-team All-GPAC midfielder Luis Waeschle, who notched a career-high six goals in 2025.
South Dakota Mines will host both matches at Dakota Fields in Rapid City, South Dakota.
