Check out my video recap:
This weekend college rugby fans had the privilege of witnessing two old rivals and rugby powerhouses, BYU and Cal, go head to head in Berkley. Every year this is one of the most exciting matches. The last meeting between these two teams was the D1A Semifinal. In that match exploded in the second half to put an end to BYU's playoff run. There's no doubt that match was still in the minds of the BYU players as they were clearly out for revenge.
Coming into this matchup, undefeated Cal sat at #4 in the rankings and BYU at #5. BYU's only loss of the season so far coming in the fall to Lindenwood. The college rugby world anticipated this to be a tight matchup between these two physical teams. And that was what college rugby fans got for the first 35 minutes of the match.
The first 35 minutes were back and forth. Cal struck first with a try in the fourth minute. Will Shankland made a Cougar miss with a nice step inside and dove over the line. Cal looked very strong in the early minutes of this match. BYU answered six minutes later with a try in the corner, by Brook Vaitohi still trailing the Bears 5-7 after a missed conversion. The Bears lack of discipline in this match manifested itself early with a yellow card for dump tackle in the eight minute.
Just two minutes later, flyhalf Wyatt Parry put BYU fans through an emotional roller coaster. He missed a kick to touch, seemingly forfeiting a critical attacking opportunity. Then Parry sprinted forty meters, completely undetected by the Cal counter attack. In perfect stride, the flyhalf intercepted the ball and sprinted in for the try. Gripping the ball nonchalantly in his left hand, Parry stared down the Cal faithful and wagged his finger in a "not today" sort of way. It was truly one of the coldest tries I've ever witnessed.
As Parry demonstrated, the Cougars played with a swagger and confidence we really haven't seen from them this season. Even when things didn't work out perfectly for them in this match, they stayed composed and made the next play. Cal on the other hand was riddled with handling errors and penalties, racking up eight knock on to BYU's three. But the Bears fought hard when they had the ball in hand. They retook the lead in the twentieth minute on a blazing run from Caleb Thomasine. Cal seemed like they might be regaining some momentum and lead 14-12.
From that point on in the match, it was really all BYU. The Cougars put together an outrageous sequence, featuring a line break from prop James Tenney and a number of impressive offloads. BYU's Lilo Clark finished off the sequence and dove over the line in the twenty-fifth minute to give them a 19-14 lead. From there, BYU continued to extend their lead. Hooker Kaiki Piena bumped off two bears and spun over the line. This try was a direct result of another a miscue from Cal in the lineout. The defensive lineout from BYU caused some serious issues for the Bears. BYU took the lead 26-14
With less than three minutes left in the half, most teams would wind down the clock and end play. But not BYU, not on this day. Inside center Cole Semu, took the kickoff in the air, made a handful of Bears miss and broke into open space. Once in open space Semu skillfully chipped the ball over the waiting fullback and then outran him and regathered his own chip. Semu showed why he is one of the most difficult players to tackle in college rugby. The Cougars earned a penalty in coming phases and Taysan Hammer put the ball through the posts for three points. BYU lead 29-14 at halftime. The penalty resulted in another yellow card for the Bears, handicapping them going into the second half.
Coach Steve St. Pierre must've the halftime speech of his life, because BYU came out swinging in the second half. BYU scored just a minute into the second half. Semu once again created something out of nothing with a filthy flick pass off the deck to an at pace Wyatt Parry. Parry found his other center who carried the ball all the way to the opposing 22. Cal really struggled to find any line speed off the linebreak and BYU moved the ball all the way to the left edge. After one strong hit up with the forwards, Parry dished it to a forward pod, who gave pivoted and hit Campbell out the back. Campbell played early to Ben Austin. Austin then drew in the defender perfectly and gave the ball up to Mendenhall who stepped a defender and dove over the line. Mendenhall's try put the Cougars up 36-14.
The Bears were wounded but not ready to give up. Just two minutes later Cal won a penalty just ten meters from the try line. A Cal player went to quick tap and lost the ball in the process. It was just that kind of day for the Bears. They couldn't catch a break. BYU continued to capitalize on Cal mistakes and found the tryline once more in the fiftieth minute. Captain Ben Austin once again set up a winger for a try with some impressive quick hands. BYU led 41-14 at this point.
Cal finally caught a break when BYU knocked on the ball in their own territory. Instead of a clean exit, BYU gave Cal an ideal attacking scrum. The Bears worked a nice move off the scrum and Thomasine carried the ball down within meters of the tryline. Two pick and go's later and Emilio Shea found himself over the line. Cal still trailed 41-19.
But the Cougars had no intentions of letting the Bears close that gap. BYU worked a masterful looping set piece move in which fullback Taysan Hammer sliced his way down inside the 10 m line. BYU patiently worked throw the forwards from there and Jakob Barker scored another try for the Cougars to give them a 48-19 lead.
Cal continued to fight. BYU fails to exit again and Cal wins another attacking scrum. Alex Aguero took the ball off the back of the scrum and put together a powerful run. He run over a would be tackler and rolled across the line to make the score 48-26, still in favor of BYU. The last fourteen minutes of the match were rather uneventful. However, on the final play BYU scored on final try in the corner. Final score: 53-26 BYU wins.
This match was nothing short of shocking. BYU has looked very dangerous at times this season, but had lost a game to Lindenwood and just come of a lackluster performance against Cal Poly. But to anyone who had questions about the firepower of this BYU team, consider your questions answered. BYU proved that they are serious contenders this season and are peaking at the perfect time. BYU went into one of the toughest environments in college rugby and frankly demolished one of the best teams in the country. The Cougars are dangerous. As I said in my match preview, the real test would be if BYU could maintain integrity on the defensive side. They gave up breaks here and there, but by and large they maintained their shape through countless phases that Cal put together. If they continue to play like that, they will inevitably secure the top seed in the west.
On the other side, Cal will look to learn from the mistakes they made in this match and finish their season strong. The Bears still have a number of important matchups on their schedule including Arizona, Amry, Navy, and St. Mary's. If they can right the ship and win out, they will be in a good place going into playoffs. It's obvious from the penalty count in this match and the number of handling errors that the final score could've been closer. The Bears made a frustrating number of unnecessary mistakes and BYU made them pay over and over again. Cal has some very good athletes across the board, especially Aguero, Shae, Thomasine, and Shankland. If the Bears can figure out how to fix their mental errors, they have the potential to make a run.
As always, best of luck to both teams the rest of the season.
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