TUSCON, Ariz. – The Golden Bears sent the PAC Rugby 7s Championship final into overtime Sunday against Arizona before the Wildcats won the conference tournament with a sudden-death try at Kino Stadium. 
 
California and Arizona traded tries and the match was tied three times, the last after junior Elliot Webb's second score, converted by Matthew Coyle, knotted the score at the end of regulation. 

But after advancing past UCLA, 14-7, in the semifinal, and battling back against the Wildcats, Cal ended the PAC 7s as runner-up after UA took the extra-period kickoff into the try zone for the winning score. 

"We made a couple of mistakes that we definitely wanted back," said sophomore Keanu Andrade, whose physical style at scrumhalf was effective over four appearances on the weekend, contributing two tries. 

After taking a 12-0 lead over Arizona midway through the first half, and playing without important starters Aidan Flynn and Zachary Tavenner after their injuries in Saturday's pool play, Cal gave up three straight tries until senior Thomas Robles scored in the left corner at minute 10. Coyle (2-of-2 vs. UA and 9-for-12 for the tournament) nailed a very difficult conversion from the touchline to knot it up at 19-19.

After the Wildcats regained the lead, Webb sliced through the defense for his second try as regulation time ran out, managing to recover from a late hit by an Arizona player after he scored.

"He came out strong when we needed him," said Robles of Webb. Assessing the arc of Cal's weekend through the final, Robles added, "We scored some good tries and played with effort."

Webb said his two tries came in the final by "looking for gaps while sticking to the systems." A brother of graduated All-America captain Russell, Elliot Webb offered that the experience gained by the Bears this fall should prove beneficial in the spring. 

"We progressed throughout the tournament," a Webb said. "It's a good blend of youth and experience on this team, and we'll be determined to keep improving."

"In some ways we did well to get to the final, through a good UCLA team. With a bit more class and experience we could have even won," said head coach Jack Clark. "We missed Aidan and Zac in the final, we missed their attacking firepower, but we had enough to compete. This team can get there, it's just a new experience for them."

Returning to campus, the Rugby Bears will focus on the academic studies as they begin the transition as a team to 15-a-side play, which kicks off in January.
 
The Scoring Timeline vs. UCLA
 
07:00 UCLA (Cian Barry) 5, 2
 
Halftime Score: UCLA 7, California 0
 
09:00 Christian Dyer 5, Matthew Coyle 2

12:00 Marcus Shankland 5, Matthew Coyle 2
 
Final Score: California 14, UCLA 7
 
The Team vs. UCLA
 
1. Dyer, 2. Goena, 3. Robles, 4. Andrade, 5. Coyle, 6. Purdey, 7. Shankland 
Replacements: Mirhashem, E. Webb
  
The Scoring Timeline vs. Arizona
 
02:00 Elliot Webb 5, 2

04:00 Seth Purdey 5

06:00 Arizona (Ben Joseph) 5, (Matt Rogers) 2

07:00 Arizona (Ryan Hudson) 5
 
Halftime Score: California 12, Arizona 12
 
09:00 Arizona (Ryan Hudson) 5, (Matt Rogers) 2

10:00 Thomas Robles 5, Matthew Coyle 2

13:00 Arizona (Matt Rogers) 5, 2

14:00 Elliot Webb 5, Matthew Coyle 2
 
End of Regulation: California 26, Arizona 26
 
15:00 Arizona (Dante Weeks) 5

Final Score: Arizona 31, California 26 (OT)

The Team vs Arizona 
 
1. Dyer, 2. Mirhashem, 3. Robles, 4. Andrade, 5. E. Webb, 6. Purdey, 7. Fuller
Replacements: Coyle, Spradling