In what was perhaps a bit of a shocker, certainly it was a surprise at GRR, Saint Mary’s defeated Cal 35-26 in the second D1A semifinal of the weekend to book a place in next week’s championship match in Houston.

Playing at Cal’s historic Witter Field, the Gaels exploded for four converted tries in the first half. With the forwards ramping up the intensity against a Cal front eight that had probably outplayed them when they last met, on March 26, the Gaels linked up seamlessly to take a 28-5 lead into halftime.

That scoreline was certainly a surprise. But what was not a shocker was Cal mountain a comeback. 

With penalties leaking into the Saint Mary’s game, Cal inched their way back. 

Paced by fullback Eddie Kings three tries and scrumhalf Karl Keane’s 100% day on conversions, Saint Mary’s managed one try in the second half to keep Cal at arm’s length and win it 35-26. Tries from Emilio Shea, Will Shankland, and the redoubtable Sam Golla got Cal within two at 28-26, but King's final score at 60 minutes made it 35-26.

After that, it was a case of holding Cal at bay, which they did.

Of the nine tries scored on the day, only one was not converted.

It was a stirring comeback attempt from Cal, but the hole was just too deep.

“It was a nice program effort,” said Saint Mary’s Head Coach Tim O’Brien. “No cliché; our entire band of misfits put their heart and souls into the win. Penalties nearly became our undoing, but it was a heck of a game college rugby.”

“Oh man, I’m disappointed for our boys, it was the wrong day to have a poor start,” said Cal Head Coach Jack Clark. “We had the belief that we could climb back into the match at halftime and at 26-28 we had done just that; however, we just dug too deep of a hole in the first half. Credit to Saint Mary’s for their performance. It is great that Army is in the final, it should be a good rugby match.”

Saint Mary's will now face Army at Aveva Stadium on April 30. That game will be shown live on The Rugby Network. This will be Army's first appearance in a D1A final, and the first time for Saint Mary's since 2017, when they beat Life University.