Men's Rugby | 4/9/2016 4:30:00 PM
ELLENSBURG, Wash. (Apr. 9) – Dominic Lindstrom went over the try line twice for the Central Washington University men's rugby team in the opening round of the Penn Mutual Varsity Cup, pacing the Wildcats to a 44-15 victory over UCLA.
"We wanted to play against the wind in the first half and manage it," CWU Head Coach
Tony Pacheco said. "Hang on to the ball and keep them out of the try zone as much as we can."
The opening 40 minutes were tightly contested by both sides. A physical battle culminated in a 10-10 tie.
"The first half was a tough battle, especially with the wind," Lindstrom noted. "We chose to have it hitting us in the first half, we wanted it at our back in the second half."
Darren Cooper made his first appearance as a Wildcat and found the try line immediately. He went over in the seventh minute, giving the Wildcats a 5-0 lead.
The Bruins found the board in the 16
th minute with a penalty kick by scrum half Yoh Nakayama.
Korbin Lindell put Central up 10-3 with a try in the 17
th minute.
In the 23
rd minute Seb Sharpe grounded the ball in try and Nakayama hit the conversion, leveling the score at 10-10.
Right off the restart, Lindstrom recorded his first try of the game.
Ian Wright's kick found space in between Bruins' defenders and Lindstrom retrieved the ball in the try zone.
"It was a perfect kick," Lindstrom said smiling. "A couple guys missed it and I was fortunate enough to recover it."
The quick try jumpstarted Central in the second half.
"I've been part of rugby for quite a while now and I haven't seen a kick quite like that," Pacheco noted. "That's a hustle play by Dom there, he's the kick chase guy on that and he got in the right spot."
Lindstrom found himself on the score sheet again in the 44
th minute. The Bruins missed an opportunity to kick into touch and Lindstrom took in the kick. He weaved his way through the Bruins' defense, giving Central a 20-10 lead.
"We didn't retain the ball overly well in the first half and it was something we harped on at half," Lindstrom noted after the fixture. "We did a much better job in the second half and were able to come out on top."
The Wildcats scored again in the 47
th minute.
Seth Halliman took in a punted ball from the Bruins and maneuvered up the wing. He offloaded to Wright who found space and grounded the ball for a try.
Tanner Barnes scored off of a lineout in the 51
st minute,
Scott Dean added the conversion, giving Central a 32-10 lead.
Clint Lemkus added a try of his own in the 56
th minute.
The Bruins recorded their only try of the second half in the 69
th minute, when Luke Hoffman scored.
John Hayden rounded out the scoring in the 78
th minute, after the Wildcats forced a turnover deep inside the Bruins' territory.
The Wildcats will head on to play at Utah. The Utes recorded a 35-31 victory over Air Force in their opening round contest.
"For us it's just another ruby field," Lindstrom finished. "I'm wearing the same cleats, playing with the same people no matter where we play."
A strong recovery will go a long way towards a strong showing in Utah according to Pacheco.
"We need to win the recovery and recover tonight and tomorrow," Pacheco noted. "It'll be a long trip to Utah and we have to go out and beat someone at their field. We are up to the challenge and excited for it."
