Xavier Handles Conditions, Cardinals
Xavier Handles Conditions, Cardinals
“I think Adaptability was the name of the game today,” said Xavier senior scrumhalf William Scariano. “We came in and we didn't expect the weather conditions to be what they were.”
Xavier vs Greenwich HS kicked off just the temperature dropped 40 degrees and howling winds whipped up. This created creating a 23-minute stalemate in the first half as both teams struggled with the wind.
“They had us,” said senior fullback Edward Marquz-Miles. “They played a strong first half. They might not have gotten a try in the first 20 minutes, but they kept pushing, and that was good rugby.”
Using solid athleticism, Greenwich scored with a kick that set up a try by junior prop Henry Wahl and conversion by senior scrumhalf Benja Gonzalez-Lobo with 11 minutes remaining in the half. But the Xavier Knights didn't leave the nil on the board for long. Xavier turned on the grinder and moved across the field as Scariano punched in a try a few minutes after the Cardinals. Marquez-Miles, who was 4-for-4 on conversions for the night, made a brilliant strike into the wind, leaving the score 7-7 at the end of the first half.
“I was happy with the intensity that we played with in the first half,” said Greenwich Head Coach Jamie Everett. “Unfortunately, we lost our composure a little bit in the second half and failed to adjust to the conditions.”
“I think the big change for us, a confidence booster, was scoring three minutes after Greenwich’s try. And that was done through hard work,” added Xavier Head Coach Greg Norris.
When it was their turn to play with the wind as an advantage, the Knights knew what needed to be done. “Greenwich had control of the first half for sure,” said senior captain and center Max Wyckoff, “I think we were only in their half a minute at most. They had control, but we stopped them. Our defense was great, and in the second half, we maintained control of the ball, and we executed.”
With the wind at their back, Xavier put in three tries in the second half, one by junior flanker Liam Averill and two by junior No. 8 Rob Milacci, who earned man of the match honors. The Xavier defense held Greenwich scoreless in the second half as defensive play has become key to the team’s success this season. According to Norris, the Knights played the conditions well and relied on a strong defense.
Finaly score Xavier 28 Greenwich 7.
"Ruck work was a little shaky in the first half, probably because we wanted to contest the rucks, so we committed ourselves to defense," said Norris. "That paid off because the double hits were solid after we made that decision.”
“I'm proud of our boys for fighting to the last whistle,” Everett said, “and credit goes to Xavier for playing a great game in tough conditions.”
Senior center Conor Gangemi noted that Greenwich was Xavier’s toughest opponent so far this season, and he believes that the Xavier defense will continue to be key for the rest of the season. “I think that we brought good line speed and we contested the rucks frequently, although sometimes to our downfall, but we had a good amount of jackals,” Gangemi said.
Scariano agreed and added, “Our bosses, flyhalf James Allison, and fullback Ed Marquez-Miles, both did great jobs, playing space and playing kicks. We remembered that our defense is our strong suit. And we stayed to that in the first half. And then the second half, when we got that wind, we adapted to score."
—By Mike LiVigni
