Second-half surge leads to West Regional thriller vs. Western Oregon

National Collegiate Rugby Men's Small College West Regional Tournament Central


VALLEJO, Calif. – Western Oregon may have started strong in Saturday's National Collegiate Rugby Men's Small College West Regional semifinal at Bodnar Field by scoring the game's first 12 points, but a young Cal Maritime squad responded with intensity from halftime on in a postseason matchup that was a pure treat for everyone in attendance, even though the Wolves edged the Keelhaulers, 19-17.

With that result, CSUM will square off against Colorado School of Mines — it lost to the defending national champions, Cal Poly Humboldt, by a 22-11 score in the day's other semifinal — in Sunday's 10 a.m. consolation game.

Western Oregon will battle for the West Regional crown against the Lumberjacks at 12 p.m.

Following the Wolves' early 12-point outburst, Roman Portilla's try, combined with Connor Hannon's successful conversion, pulled Cal Maritime within five until Western Oregon tacked on another seven points late with its successful try-conversion combination at the end of the first half.

Those were the last points WOU scored for the rest of the day as they watched Cal Maritime dominate the next 40-minute block of action, thanks to Zion Jerge and Mohamed Albalasi, who added another five points each to their team's total as the half progressed.

Ultimately, the Wolves' early start allowed them to escape with a narrow two-point result since the Keelhaulers simply ran out of time in the first of consecutive playoff games in as many days.

All information pertaining to this weekend's Western Regional is available by clicking here and visiting Tournament Central.

Scoring Summaries

#8 Western Oregon 19, #20 Cal Maritime 17

9:48  WO #12  5
14:06  WO  #16  5,  #12  2
26:46  CSUM  Roman Portella 5, Connor Hannon 2
22:54  WO YC #20
40:00  WO #16  5, #12  2 

Halftime Score: #8 Western Oregon 19, #20 Cal Maritime 7

20:27  CSUM Zion Jerge  5
39:03   CSUM Mohamed Albalasi  5
 

#2 Cal Poly Humboldt 22, #10 Colorado School of Mines 11

14:00   CSM  #8  3
27:16   CPH #3  5
19:37   CPH #3  5, #15  2
32:43   CSM #14  3
40:00   CPH #15   3 

Halftime Score: #2 Cal Poly Humboldt 15, #10 Colorado School of Mines 6

17:03  CPH #8  5, #15  2
25:05  CSM #13  5