NSCRO Men: 3rd Place
Saint John’s University
v California Maritime Academy
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SJU player (red and blue) takes ball into tackle image: Bob Lyon |
St. John’s University Johnnies banked a brace of second stanza scores on a 26-5 first forty
account to secure victory over California Maritime Academy Keelhaulers and 3rd
place at the NSCRO Championships in the Infinity Park Rugby Stadium on Sunday.
A chill and rainy day for rugby and the Johnnies kept the pill close within and
around their sizable forwards group whose maulwork proved fundamentally significant
throughout the contest. The Minnesota collegians worked tight forward play in
conditions well-suited to slow-flowing mauls and short, pick-and-go thrusts from
the breakdown, wearing down and sucking in the Keelhaulers defense until overlap
were obtained and then adeptly exploited out wide.
The CMA
gameplan of testing the SJU back-three backs with the high hangers were
well-played by Johnnies fullback, Sam Olmscheid, and his returning counters
deep into Keelhaulers territory enabled St. John’s to setup shop and advance
into the CMA 22. Johnnies won their put of a five-meter scrum and 8-man Steven
Oczak sliced into goal for a try and it was SJU 5, CMA 0 after 16 minutes of
action.
St. John’s
scored again when flyhalf Casey Walsh backed himself through a crease into
space and fought his way over goal for a touch down converted by outside
center, Tanner Hersch: SJU 12, CMA 0 in the 24th minute.
A yellow
card for dangerous play to Cal Maritime at minute 25, and three minutes later,
a third try for SJU in the form of a well-sold dummy by blindside Ricky Kiley
en route for 15 fast and a dot; with Hersch’s additional deuce, 19-nil for the
Johnnies.
Bit of footy
in the corner with Keelhaulers on attack meant joy for CMA when hooker Shane
Bracken, in perfect support of a teammate taken down at the goaline, grounded a
skittery jouncing pill and CMA were on the board with tallies of 19 and 5 yet
in the Johnnies favorable account.
Backrow lock
Oczak got his brace carrying a tackler into goal before touching down a Hersch-completed
goal and the Johnnies took a 26-5 halftime advantage into the lockers at
referee Marc Nelson’s midway whistle.
SJU tidied
up the play for the third-place trophy with a try by lock Benny Bissonette in
the 44th minute (31-5) and added the final numbers on the day when
Bissonette’s engine roomie, Zach Meuhlenbein, shrugged of a pair of would–be stoppers
on his way to a Hersch-completed goal at the hour mark and 38-5 the record at Nelson’s
last blast.
Scoring
SJU – Try: Oczak (2), Walsh, Kiley, Bissonette, Meuhlenbein; Con: Hersch (3);
CMA – Try: Bracken
Match
Official(s): Marc Nelson (referee);
Stu Geiger (ra)
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