BERKELEY - Down a player for the last 24 minutes of the game Saturday, and playing 13-on-15 for the final 10 minutes of the game, the California rugby team prevailed against Navy 52-45 on homecoming weekend. The Bears scored eight tries by seven different players in front of a sold-out crowd at Witter Rugby Field.
 
"Inviting the top ranked team in the country to be our Homecoming opponent might have to be rethought," head coach Jack Clark said with a smile. "As expected, Navy was good. Way too good to play shorthanded. We weren't at our best today, but the boys stayed aligned and gutted it out. We have better rugby inside of us."
 
The Bears scored the first two tries of the game, but an early injury to sophomore Chris Biller resulted in freshman Elliott Lewis coming on as a replacement. In the third minute, scrumhalf Solomon Williams found captain Rand Santos, who passed the ball to Oliver Newall with some space on the outside. Newall immediately burst into open space, running over half the field for Cal's first try.
 
Beautiful passing from the Bears led to a try by Nate Comiskey, but Navy responded with the next four scores of the game. The game went back and forth as Navy continued to push the ball deep into Bear territory and led 24-14 after a try from Drew Baublitz. 
 
In the 36th minute, the Bears pushed the ball forward inside the Navy 22. Santos found senior Michál de Beer, who broke a tackle and scored a try, the Bears first try in nearly 25 minutes of action.
 
The Bears found themselves on the wrong end of the scoring again as Baublitz found some space behind the Cal defense, hitting the left pylon, scoring a diving try as the clock hit zeros to put Navy ahead 31-21 at the half.
 
The Bears looked like a new team in the second half. They earned a lineout in the 46th minute, Brice Muller brought the ball down and the Bears drove it over for a try from Lewis to cut the Navy lead to five.
 
The second try of the game from Newall put the Bears back in front, but a scary collision in the 55th minute resulted in a red card given to Lewis, forcing the Bears to play a man down for the remainder of the contest. The collision set Navy up in attacking position, and the Midshipmen drove across the try line to retake the lead.
 
But the Bears found new life and responded in a big way. Williams found Santos inside the Bears' attacking half, and Santos passed the ball behind his back to Comiskey who passed the ball back to Santos, who had a clear path to the try zone to tie the game.
 
Navy added another try in the 63rd minute, but a highlight reel try from Masi Koi tied it up again. Center Max Threlkeld kicked the ball forward, and instead of picking up the ball, Koi kicked it forward, beating the Navy defense to the ball and diving over for the try.
 
With 10 minutes left in the contest, Santos was yellow carded for a high tackle, forcing Cal to finish the contest 13-on-15.
 
Cal was desperate to keep possession at the end of the game, methodically driving forward into the attacking half. The ball found its way to Oliver Teague, who broke a tackle and sprinted in stride for the Cal try with five minutes left in the contest.
 
The Bears earned back possession again, pushing further across the attacking half inside the 22. After a missed penalty kick from Koi, the Bears forced a Navy turnover and kept possession, running out the clock and closing the door on any Navy comeback bid.
 
After the game, Santos shared his thoughts on the victory.
 
"I want to thank Navy for bringing two teams, two competitive games," Santos said. "It's cool to get a win in front of a lot of our alums, solid crowd. So, good result, I think, not the performance we wanted, but a victory."
 
As far as our performance today, I think we can still improve on a ton of things," vice captain Cade Crist said. "There's still some poor moments, some sloppy turnovers. We'll look to clean those up.
 
"It was a great game," Navy head coach Gavin Hickey said. "Lots of back-and-forth and very high scoring. So, a lot of fun for all the fans, and it's always great here to play at Witter Rugby Field."
 
The Bears improved to 11-0 on the season and 18-3 all-time against the Midshipmen.
 
Up next, the Bears will head to Army for a matchup with the Golden Knights next Saturday at 11 a.m. ET.
 
Following the match, the Cal Reserves defeated the Navy reserves 50-21.
 
Scoring Timeline:
Cal vs. Navy
3:00  – Oliver Newall, 5, Rand Santos, 2
12:00 – Nate Comiskey, 5, Rand Santos, 2
15:00 – Roanin Krieger, 5, Roanin Krieger, 2 (Navy)
18:00 – Roanin Krieger, 3 (Navy)
26:00 – Dalton Sand, 5, Roanin Krieger, 2 (Navy)
35:00 – Drew Baublitz, 5, Roanin Krieger, 2 (Navy)
37:00 – Michál de Beer, 5, Rand Santos, 2
39:00 – Drew Baublitz, 5, Roanin Krieger, 2
Half: Cal, 21, Navy, 31
46:00 – Elliott Lewis, 5
52:00 – Oliver Newall, 5, Rand Santos, 2
55:00 – Avion Ganse, 5, Roanin Krieger, 2
59:00 – Rand Santos, 5
63:00 – Avion Ganse, 5, Roanin Krieger, 2
65:00 – Masi Koi, 5, Rand Santos, 2
75:00 – Oliver Teague, 5, Masi Koi, 2
Final: Cal, 52, Navy, 45
 
Starting XV:
1. Oliver Kirk 2. Alex Vieira 3. Cade Crist 4. Byron Finley (Talae Tuimaunei 67') 5. Brice Muller 6. Ryan Wenstrom 7. Chris Biller (Elliott Lewis 2') 8. Oliver Teague 9. Solomon Williams (Cormac Saint 78') 10. Rand Santos 11. Nate Comiskey 12. Michál de Beer 13. Max Threlkeld 14. Emmett Cook (Masi Koi 55') 15. Oliver Newall