Saint Mary’s put Grand Canyon to the sword Saturday in Phoenix, defeating the ‘Lopes 79-8 on the first day of collegiate competition in the New Year.
GCU started on the front foot and got an early penalty goal to lead 3-0. But Saint Mary’s played their habitual fast ball-movement game, bolstered by a powerful scrum, and answered in short order.
In fact it was the scrum that put GCU on the back foot and a loop move and some hard running from newly-capped Dom Besag (still only a sophomore) put the Gaels in at the corner.
GCU did spend some time after that in the Saint Mary’s 22, but little execution errors and some very aggressive defense from the Gaels kept the ‘Lopes from scoring—Besag made a try-saving tackle to keep it 7-3.
About seven minutes of GCU pressure yielded, in the end, a Saint Mary’s try as wing Iosefa Toiaivao burst in to intercept a pass and go 80 meters for a try under the posts.
That was a tough one to take for GCU.
Saint Mary’s then punished a kick out on the full but launching a more structure attack. A chip kick from Besag was fielded by flyhalf Sosaia Pongi, who unveiled a lovely chicken-wing offload to outside center Erich Storti for the next Gaels try.
Captain and flanker Kaipono Kayoshi then led the next surge which ended with wing Jake Negrete racing down the sideline, getting tackled, getting back up when he wasn’t held, and scoring.
GCU got out of trouble and kicked clear only for fullback Mario Storti weave his way in and around and through before linking with loose forward King Matu who widely just passed off to Taoiavao for the wing’s second try.
Kayoshi’s fingerprints were all over the next try as he scooped up a loose ball and carried three or four more times, all at key moments, to set the stage for lock Cathal Coakley to cruise in.
That made it 38-3 at halftime.
