SEARCY, Ark. – No. 24 Rogers State (5-4-4, 5-0-2 GAC/MIAA) bounced back in a major way after Thursday's draw with a dominant 6-0 rout of Harding (1-9-3, 1-6-0 GAC/MIAA) on Saturday.
 
This marked RSU's largest win since they downed Fort Hays State 7-0 last season on the road.
 
"This was a great reaction from the group after Thursday night's draw," said Head Coach Derek Larkin. "We started a little slow but came out in the second half with different energy. Several players scored a lot of goals. I'm very happy with this result on the road."
 
Five different Hillcats got on the scoresheet as Sam Ryder, Noah Preston-Watkins, Brandon O'Rourke, Erik Hjertsson and Victor Heroin all found the back of the net, with Preston-Watkins striking twice. Declan Viljoen (5-4) was outstanding in goal, earning his fourth clean sheet of the year with three saves.
 
The first half was a defensive-heavy period with both sides feeling each other out for most of it. RSU outshot the Bison 8-4 in the half with five shots on goal to one. Ryder broke the scoreless stalemate in the 40th minute as he fired in a shot off the rebound of Nic Treat's shot to give the Hillcats a 1-0 lead headed into the intermission.
 
RSU came out for the second half with guns blazing as they struck fast with Preston-Watkins finding paydirt twice in short succession. In the 51st minute, he scored off a pass from O'Rourke to the lower right corner of the goal. Just over 90 seconds later, he struck again off a short corner from O'Rourke to the lower left corner. In the 68th minute, O'Rourke got in on the fun himself with assists from Louis Bassett and Viljoen on a through-ball up to the right side. The Hillcats would earn a penalty kick in the 72nd minute, with Hjertsson driving the ball home for the fifth goal of the day. Heroin capped off the 6-0 victory in the 86th minute with a shot from the top of the 18-yard box.
 
RSU will return home on Wednesday, Oct. 23 for a Top 25 matchup against rival No.18 Southern Nazarene. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.