May 1, 1999
San Francisco, Calif. - Cal fights Penn State for the
national collegiate rugby championship Sunday after a 50-17 semi-final
win over Navy.
The scoreline flattered Cal who were in a close battle for
three-quarters of the match, fighting to subdue a large and physical
Navy side. The Bears had three tries in the last 10 minutes of the match
to pad the victory margin. Penn State, meanwhile, steadily pulled away
in the second half of its semi-final against Army, recording a 57-20 win
and setting up an all-military battle in the 3rd and 4th place playoff.
"Penn State is the biggest team in the tournament," noted Cal's head
coach Jack Clark after Saturday's semis. "The contest for primary
possession will be intense. It's important that their forwards don't get
momentum for their backs, because those backs are elusive."
It took Cal a little longer to assert itself Saturday than Clark would
have liked. Navy drew first blood with a converted try in the 16th
minute, the result of a quickly taken penalty that caught Cal's defense
off-guard.
Cal lock Matt Kane answered a few minutes later, diving over a for try
that he had initiated by hauling in crucial line-out ball near Navy's
22m. Hooker Kirk Khasigian had a short burst up the sideline from that
possession, then center Alex Houser and No. 8 Kort Schubert had their
turn moving the ball close to the line for Kane to finish with a pick
and jam.
Khasigian had the Bear's next try, a team effort that saw Cal play
several phases near Navy's line until the defense could hold no longer.
Holding a slim 12-7 lead, the Bears got an unexpected bonus right before
the halftime whistle. Wing Brandon Sams somehow burst clear of a maul
30m out, and streaked in for a try under the posts.
At 19-7 to Cal, Navy weren't ready to roll over, however. The Midshipman
opened the second half with a converted try in the third minute, closing
to within five points.
Shortly after, Cal took advantage of a Navy knock-on near their own
line, turning on the power in the ensuing scrum and allowing No. 8
Schubert to score on the push-over. But the Midshipman rejoindered
almost immediately from the restart with a penalty kick to keep their
nose in the game.
It was nearly halfway through the second period before Cal could put
some distance on the Navy team. A beautifully judged run and pass from
flyhalf Matt Sherman put center Ryan Fried over the line and with a
conversion from Tamayo, the margin was 16 points-more than two scores
for the first time in the match.
With about 10 minutes to play, Navy began to lose some of their fight.
Sherman crossed from an attacking movement that started near halfway
with Schubert and scrumhalf Andy Armstrong creating space for center
Houser to breach the Navy's backline defense. Good support play from the
Bears put Sherman over the line.
Cal repeated that try almost verbatim after winning another scrum, this
time against the feed, at midfield. Some quick hands by the Bears' backs
put center Fried into space for a 30m run and fullback John Buchholz
finished. Finally, in injury time, replacement center John Knueppels
crossed after a period of broken play confounded Navy's disheartened
defense.
The Bears were able to keep a handful of starters on the bench in the
semi-final win, giving them four or five fresh players for the match
with Penn State. And those who will play again tomorrow survived the
very physical contest without serious injury. The two teams met in
1997's national title game which Cal won 41-15-part of the Bear's run of
eight straight consecutive championships.
The Navy-Army play-off will be at 12.00 PM with the Cal-Penn State final
at 2.00 PM. Both games are at Balboa Park, San Francisco.
1st Half 2nd Half Final
Cal 19 31 50
Navy 7 10 17
Scoring First Half: 16th minute, Navy try (5) & conversion (2);
Matt Kane try, Andy Tamayo conv.; 29th min., Kirk Khasigian try; 39th
min., Brandon Sams try, Tamayo conv.
Second Half: 3rd min., Navy try &
conv.; 11th min., Kort Schubert try, Tamayo conv.; 15th min., Navy
penalty kick (3); 16th min., Ryan Fried try, Tamayo conv.; 29th min.,
Matt Sherman try; 33rd min.John Buchholz try; Injury time, John Knueppel
try, Tamayo conv.
Cal Record: 15-1-0
