California Golden Bears Athletics
Saturday, February 18
Berkeley, CA
1:00 PM
California
vs
Utah
Cal faces Utah at 1 p.m. PT in Berkeley this Saturday.
Photo by: Alex Ho / hoiho.net
Cal Continues Homestand Against Utah
2/17/2023 10:37 AM | Rugby
Bears Host Utes For PAC Conference Matchup On Saturday
BERKELEY – California rugby returns to Strawberry Canyon for the third consecutive weekend to face Utah in a PAC conference matchup. The Golden Bears will take the pitch on Saturday at 1 p.m. PT, with the gates at Witter Rugby Field to open at noon. Fans can purchase tickets here, or watch the live stream.
Cal (7-0) remains undefeated in 2023, most recently coming off a 50-13 conference victory over UCLA last weekend. The Bears put up eight tries by the same number of players and Max Schumacher and Kealan O'Connell combined to convert on five. Three scores came by a trio of freshmen starters – Max Threlkeld, Rand Santos and Solomon Williams – and junior Evan Weigold added a try to the scoreline in his first major start of the 2023 season. The result marked Jack Clark's milestone 700th win in XVs competition as a head coach.
Cal traveled to Utah last season for a 15-a-side matchup and recorded a 68-0 victory over the Utes. The last time Utah visited Berkeley for a XVs matchup was in 2019 when the Bears defeated the Utes 118-0 at Witter Rugby Field. The two programs most recently met at the PAC 7's tournament this past November when the Bears bested the Utes 39-0 in pool play on their way to winning the tournament title.
The Bears will make a handful of changes to the starting lineup this weekend versus Utah. Junior Charlie Walsh returns from injury to make his first start of the season this Saturday as the tighthead prop. Walsh was a key component of the Bears' forwards in 2022, making 10 starts in the No. 3 shirt, including the playoff matches against Central Washington and Saint Mary's.
Junior Josh Mao earns the starting loosehead prop position following his impressive performance off the bench versus the Bruins last weekend. Joining the forwards as the No. 4 lock is sophomore Hugo Schreuder. Schreuder gets his first start for the Blue & Gold against Utah after being sidelined due to injury for his freshman year.
Kealan O'Connell makes a start as the flyhalf after playing as a reserve replacement in the last three contests. O'Connell has put up a solid statistical season in 2023, going 17-for-19 on conversion attempts and logging three tries to make him responsible for 49 points this season.
Fellow frequent reserves Mack Fell and Joe Kirsten also get the call-up to the first 15 this weekend. Fell has played in seven matches this season, and is one of only two players who have made appearances in every 15-a-side contest for the Bears in 2023. Kirsten has also played an important role coming off the bench, contributing four tries this season, including one against the Bruins last Saturday.
Utah visits Strawberry Canyon this weekend with a 4-2 record in spring XVs play. The Utes opened their season at the Dennis Storer Classic where they went 2-1, defeating UC Santa Cruz and LMU and falling to Cal Poly. Utah downed San Diego State in its regular season opener, handing the Aztecs a 57-5 defeat. The Utes fell 5-95 to Arizona in Tucson on Feb. 4 and logged their second win of the regular season last weekend with a 43-0 shutout of Air Force in their home opener.
STAY POSTED
For complete coverage of Cal rugby, please follow the Bears on Twitter (@CalVarsityRugby), Instagram (@CalVarsityRugby) and Facebook (/CalVarsityRugby).
Cal (7-0) remains undefeated in 2023, most recently coming off a 50-13 conference victory over UCLA last weekend. The Bears put up eight tries by the same number of players and Max Schumacher and Kealan O'Connell combined to convert on five. Three scores came by a trio of freshmen starters – Max Threlkeld, Rand Santos and Solomon Williams – and junior Evan Weigold added a try to the scoreline in his first major start of the 2023 season. The result marked Jack Clark's milestone 700th win in XVs competition as a head coach.
Cal traveled to Utah last season for a 15-a-side matchup and recorded a 68-0 victory over the Utes. The last time Utah visited Berkeley for a XVs matchup was in 2019 when the Bears defeated the Utes 118-0 at Witter Rugby Field. The two programs most recently met at the PAC 7's tournament this past November when the Bears bested the Utes 39-0 in pool play on their way to winning the tournament title.
The Bears will make a handful of changes to the starting lineup this weekend versus Utah. Junior Charlie Walsh returns from injury to make his first start of the season this Saturday as the tighthead prop. Walsh was a key component of the Bears' forwards in 2022, making 10 starts in the No. 3 shirt, including the playoff matches against Central Washington and Saint Mary's.
Junior Josh Mao earns the starting loosehead prop position following his impressive performance off the bench versus the Bruins last weekend. Joining the forwards as the No. 4 lock is sophomore Hugo Schreuder. Schreuder gets his first start for the Blue & Gold against Utah after being sidelined due to injury for his freshman year.
Kealan O'Connell makes a start as the flyhalf after playing as a reserve replacement in the last three contests. O'Connell has put up a solid statistical season in 2023, going 17-for-19 on conversion attempts and logging three tries to make him responsible for 49 points this season.
Fellow frequent reserves Mack Fell and Joe Kirsten also get the call-up to the first 15 this weekend. Fell has played in seven matches this season, and is one of only two players who have made appearances in every 15-a-side contest for the Bears in 2023. Kirsten has also played an important role coming off the bench, contributing four tries this season, including one against the Bruins last Saturday.
Utah visits Strawberry Canyon this weekend with a 4-2 record in spring XVs play. The Utes opened their season at the Dennis Storer Classic where they went 2-1, defeating UC Santa Cruz and LMU and falling to Cal Poly. Utah downed San Diego State in its regular season opener, handing the Aztecs a 57-5 defeat. The Utes fell 5-95 to Arizona in Tucson on Feb. 4 and logged their second win of the regular season last weekend with a 43-0 shutout of Air Force in their home opener.
STAY POSTED
For complete coverage of Cal rugby, please follow the Bears on Twitter (@CalVarsityRugby), Instagram (@CalVarsityRugby) and Facebook (/CalVarsityRugby).
Players Mentioned
Center
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Fullback/Wing
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Prop/Hooker
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Flyhalf
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Center/Fullback
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Lock/No. 8
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Fullback/Center
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Center
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Prop
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Fullback/Wing
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Scrumhalf
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