Gonzaga Shocks WWU

In what was a bit of a shock result, Gonzaga University edged Western Washington 22-20 Sunday in Northwest Collegiate Rugby Conference action.

WWU Coach Paul Horne said his Vikings were plagued by penalties and turnovers, as well as mistakes that hurt scoring opportunities.

“We left five tries on the field,” said Horne, who acknowledged that playing two games within 24 hours was tough on his squad. However, he added, “we live to fight again.”

Meanwhile, Gonzaga has to be ecstatic to improve to 2-2 against the conference favorites.

“The key to our play all game was defense,” said Coach Matthew Hoffeditz. “Our boys flew up on their line, didn't miss tackles, and suffocated their backs. Their forward pack did push ours around a bit, but the fact that we made our tackles kept us in the game.” 

The Bulldogs were also able to use their kicking game to gain territory and make it harder for the Vikings to get ito scoring position.

Jacob Bills was outstanding on the day and made two big runs for tries. Nick Soldati picked off a pass for a try in the first half, and lock Caleb Brejda powered one through as well. Flyhalf and captain Darragh Ruane converted one of those first-half tries, and that was crucial in the result.

With the Gonzaga win and the Western Washington loss, WWU stays in 3rd in the NCRC, although the Vikings gain a bonus point for a close loss. Gonzaga remains 4th, at 2-2.

The clash between WWU and Washington State on February 20 now looms every larger. After that, WWU v Washington on March 5 is another big game.

Unofficial NCRC Standings:

Report on Saturday's games.