SMC Rugby beats BYU 39 to 28

Image Courtesy Gael Rugby

In Saturday’s home Rugby game the Gaels stood their ground and held onto the lead in both halves. 
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By: Eden Llodrá
Sports Reporter

The Gaels went into their game this Saturday ranked no. 1 in the league, so sixth-ranked BYU knew what they were getting themselves into. Nonetheless, the team brought their A-game against their competitor. 

In the first half and at the eighteen-minute mark, SMC had scored two tries and BYU one, making it 12 to 7. In the first half alone, SMC got four tries and BYU got three, making the halftime score 24 to 21. It was tight enough that BYU could have made a penalty goal to tie up the game, but the Gaels defense held their advantage. 

At the start of the second half, Storti got a try making it 29 to 21. Just as much as the Gaels offense was aggressive and found breakthroughs in BYU’s defense, they also held a strong defensive line which put pressure on the attacking team. 

With thirteen minutes left in the second half, the Gaels were ahead 36 to 21, consistently forcing their opponents to make errors and lose possession. With six minutes left BYU scored a try, yet missed the kick, leaving the score 36 to 28. In the final minutes of the game, SMC had possession and Keane made the penalty goal, asserting their advantage and winning 39 to 28. 

After the game, Keane, who plays the fly-half position, said “We were pretty proud of the results. Beating BYU is never easy, they've always been a top 10 ranked team in the nation,” adding that “looking forward, we hope to continue what has so far been a successful season.”