Despite a physical showing by Cal Poly, the Mustangs fell to the Aztecs 38-22 in a hard fought match held in San Diego.

The Mustangs fought the entire match and certainly improved after half time. However, the Mustangs committed far too many penalties which led to two yellow cards toward the end of the first half and a stretch where the game was played 15 on 13. San Diego State capitalized and worked field position to keep the pressure on Cal Poly.

Cal Poly was able to punch in four tries by senior scrumhalf Colin Malcolm, senior lock Charlie Hamilton, senior flyhalf Stuart Sharpe, and junior lock Bobby McNeal.

Physicality and skilled open play were the Mustangs strong points as well as the set piece, but the penalties and defensive errors were too much to overcome.

The Mustangs are focusing this week on reloading and preparing for a home match against St. Mary’s Saturday, April 2^nd.

This upcoming weekends games against the San Diego State Aztecs will be:

1sts at Noon

2nds at 2PM

Cal Poly struggled to find an answer for the quick defense and patience of the Wildcats, as the Mustangs fell 43-17 in Washington.

The Mustangs came out of the gate playing hard, matching CWU’s physicality and intensity.

However, as the game progressed the Mustangs made too many mistakes and the Wildcats did a good job of capitalizing. Multiple times Cal Poly pushed the ball down the field only to commit a crucial turnover once within the red zone.

In general, Cal Poly did well in set pieces, but mistakes in open play and turnovers in contact gave the advantage to CWU.

Cal Poly tries were put in by rookie flanker Eric Parsons, senior scrum-half Colin Malcolm, and rookie lock Joe Cremens. Both rookies are anxiously awaiting their rookie try celebrations.

“We did well in the scrums but we made too many personal mistakes,” Cal Poly head coach Nick Massman said. “Our passing and tackling weren’t there and that’s what turned into our undoing.”

The Mustangs have two weeks to prepare for an always intense match against the SDSU Aztecs on March 26^th.

Many of the players’ parents and Cal Poly Rugby alumni attended the annual Alumni/Parents weekend dinner this last Saturday. A silent auction was held as well as many other festivities and the food was, as always, very tasty.

All of the current players in the Cal Poly Rugby Club would like to thank the Alumni who showed up to see old faces and meet some new. Of course we also thank the parents who attended and also those who couldn’t make it.

Due to the generosity of all that support the Cal Poly Rugby Club, this weekend was a fantastic success. Without the Alumni and Parents support this program would not be close to what it currently is. So, with deep sincerity we thank all of you.

The Mustangs started off the CPL with an impressive 27-14 win over the Bruins at home in front of a large Alumni/Parent’s weekend crowd.

Cal Poly came out strong and the forward pack immediately put the pressure on UCLA. Two relatively quick tries were put on the board by rookie flanker Eric Parsons and veteran lock Charlie Hamilton.

Good ball movement and impressive loose play by the Mustangs resulted in two more tries before half time by scrum half Colin Malcolm and hooker Joe Saldana. The Bruins snuck past the try-line as the half time whistle blew, but the Mustangs held a 22-7 lead.

The second half appeared to be an entirely different match as things got increasingly sloppy throughout. Each team only managed to put in one try, Cal Poly’s by a strong run from Eight-man Etuate Varea.

“I think we played a half of really good rugby,” said Cal Poly Head Coach Nick Massman. “We started out great and while we left some opportunities out there, we recycled the ball really well and got good two-second or three-second ball.”

Cal Poly’s goal kicking could have certainly been improved as they were just one of five on the day.

This upcoming weekend the Mustangs look forward to traveling up to Washington to take on the Central Washington Wildcats.

Saturday, March 5th at the Sports Complex fields on campus.

A side – 1PM

B side – 3PM

Alumni/Parents Weekend festivities to follow match