BERKELEY – California concludes its regular season Saturday when the Golden Bears host Saint Mary's College at 12 p.m. PT on Witter Rugby Field. The match will be broadcast nationally on Pac-12 Network and regionally on Pac-12 Bay Area.
 
Advance tickets to Saturday's meeting between the Bears and Gaels, with a reserve-grade contest to follow the First XV, are available at CalBears.com. Admission to Witter Rugby Field is $10 each for adults, $5 each for youth ages 10-19 and seniors 65 and older, and $3 each for groups of 10 or more. All Cal students are admitted free, as are all active and veteran military with valid ID.
 
Last Saturday, Cal (14-1) outscored Arizona, nine tries to one, for a 55-13 victory and the PAC Rugby Conference championship on Witter Rugby Field. The last time out for Saint Mary's (16-0) was a 20-7 win at Navy in Annapolis, also on March 23.
 
Cal's 23-year winning streak against SMC ended in 2012 with a 20-18 result on Pat Vincent Field in Moraga. The Bears and Gaels have split their last six meetings. 

Saint Mary's scrumhalf Sean Yacoubian, a 2018 first-team All-American, scored 10 of Gaels' 20 points in their windswept win against the Midshipmen last weekend, and the senior from Scotland will be a threat once again against the Bears as he dictates the tempo between a strong group of forwards and dangerous backline.
 
Saint Mary's returns its forward group from last season, starting with a front row that features Payton Telea, a member of the U.S. U-20 National Team in 2018. At the base of the Gaels' scrum is fifth-year No. 8 Vili Helu, a senior All-American who is projected to be joined by two senior flankers in Marcus Viscardi and 2018 All-America camp attendee Ronan Murphy.
 
In the backline, Yacoubian can deliver the ball to fellow All-American Aaron Matthews, now a senior, at flyhalf; junior center Taveti Lopeti, a transfer from Chabot Community College who also played for the Life West Gladiators; Antoine de la Fontaine, a wing who was named to the Canada U-20 side in January; and Eddy King, an Australian who started for SMC March 23 against Navy at fullback. King played for Sydney Universities prior to joining the Gaels and was a member of the NSW Waratahs U-20s in 2017.
 
Cal will hope that sophomore Jack Manzo can return to the lineup from injury and join senior Jack Iscaro and junior Damon Wiley in the front row. Senior captain Nic Mirhashem will pair with junior Thomas Spradling at flanker.
 
In the backs for the Bears, freshman Henry Poon appears to have locked down the starting halfback role, which will likely move junior Keanu Andrade into the centers. Poon will pair with senior Elliot Webb or freshman Sam Walsh at flyhalf. Junior Sam Cusano looks certain at one wing with senior Troy Lockyear at fullback.
 
"What a great match to conclude the regular season," said head coach Jack Clark. "The Gaels are an excellent side. They field an almost exclusively upperclassmen team that plays with a tremendous nous for the game. We are fortunate to have a match of this caliber in our backyard."
 
Following Saturday's finish to the regular season, the Golden Bears will host two rounds of the national collegiate postseason, starting with the Round of 16 on Saturday, April 13, at 1 p.m. against an opponent to be determined. Witter Rugby Field will also be a national quarterfinal location for two matches the following weekend on Saturday, April 20.