West Point moved back to .500 in the Rugby East after a comeback victory over Mary Washington Saturday.

Despite dropping to 0-3, UMW put in a good performance and showed once again how the Mothers belong in DIA.

Army took an early lead with a converted try in the first few minutes—hooker Larry Williams doing the honors at the end of a nicely-executed maul by the Black Knights. But for the next 57 minutes it was all Mary Washington. At halftime Mary Washington had rolled out to a 15-7 lead on two tries, one converted by tighthead prop Adam Thomson, and a penalty from Thomason, too. Wing Jackson Elder and fullback Bradlee Nicholls both touched down for Mary Washington.

Mary Washington continued to control the tempo for the first 20 minutes of the second half, but were unable to add any additional points. That was key, as Army did score, somewhat against the run of play, with Williams pushing through to score and make it 15-14.

Then in the final ten minutes prop Marco Carrabotta scored, and, perhaps as a nod to Thomson's skills with the boot, popped the conversion over. Now up 26-15, Army got the bonus point when Maxwell Brown scored to make it 31-15.

"The most pleasing part was our ability to not panic and just stay the course," said Army Head Coach Matt Sherman. "It was awesome having parents weekend [tonight] and there was just a lot of energy that the boys fed off of and I think they were proud of the effort and the resiliency the team showed." 

While Kutztown has clinched the conference, there is still plenty of rugby to play in the Rugby East. Army is now 2-2, and 3rd in the conference. Mary Washington still has games against St. Bonaventure and Notre Dame College, and could pass both of those teams. Penn State and Army also meet up for a game that could well decide which of those teams secure a spot in the DIA playoffs next year. 

(David Hughes photos and contribution to game writeup.)