ELLENSBURG, Wash. – Playing one of the best collegiate teams in North America, Trinity Western's men's rugby team put in a memorable effort, but lost 27-24 after a late Central Washington try sent the hometown Wildcats to victory Friday at Tomlinson Stadium.
The Spartans held a 24-22 lead late in the game, but CWU scored a try in the 73rd minute to retake the lead for good in what was a back and forth game on a windy night.
Three different Spartans dotted down for tries in the contest, including
Matthew Willemse (Langley, B.C.),
Nate Schroeder (West Kelowna, B.C.) and
Jan Lourens (Smoky Lake, Alta.).
WIllemse also slotted a penalty and three conversions to finish with 14 points, including his try.
The effort saw the Spartans bounce back to put together a completely different performance than three weeks earlier when CWU beat TWU 61-0 in Langley, B.C.
AS IT HAPPENED
The Spartans opened the scoring when Willemse found the try area inside the first two minutes of the game. After CWU responded with back-to-back tries, Willemse knocked through a penalty to bring TWU back within two points at halftime, trailing 12-10.
CWU went ahead 19-10 with a try early in the second half, but Schroeder scored in the 49th minute to make it a two-point game again. After a Wildcats penalty put the home team ahead 22-17, Lourens scored on a brilliant run in the 61st minute that, after a conversion, put TWU head 24-22.
However, that set the stage for some late-game heroics from CWU as they escaped with the three-point win.
QUOTABLE
Andrew Evans – Director of Rugby
"I thought our team played very well as a whole and I'm really proud of how they responded and did the things we had done in training to prepare for Central Washington. We were really humbled when they came to Langley and thrashed us. We didn't want that to happen again. We worked really hard on our defence and for the most part we defended them quite well.
"It was another really windy game. I thought our best player of the match was Matt Willemse. He scored a lot of points and made some key tackles, but more importantly, he had a fantastic kicking game, tactically. Massive credit to the team. It was a much improved performance.
"We had some standout performances from
Connor Bernardin (Langley) and
Connor Gibbons (Langley) and
Fynn Murphy (Surrey, B.C.), who had a heck of defensive showing in the backs. Central Washington has a very potent attack. Our scrum played well. Ben Graci (Edmonton) and
Ethan Jurgeneit (Bracebridge, Ont.) had really good games.
Nate Schroeder and
Josh Halladay (Langley) also had great performances.
Leo Chen (Langley) had a great impact in the second half and we wish him well as he goes to Canada's U20 camp coming up."
NOTABLE
• The Spartans are 0-4 all-time against CWU.
• TWU has played three top-ranked collegiate sides in the last six weeks, having also taken perennial national championship contender Saint Mary's (losing 45-10) to go along with their previous contest with CWU.
UP NEXT
TWU will complete their 2022-23 campaign with four games in BC Rugby Division 1, starting Feb. 25 at home against the Bayside Sharks at the Langley Events Centre.
About Spartan Athletics
As official members of U SPORTS, the Spartans currently compete in 13 sports in the Canada West conference, including women's and men's soccer, volleyball, basketball, hockey, cross country and track & field, as well as women's rugby sevens. TWU also competes as an independent team in men's rugby. Since TWU entered U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 13 U SPORTS team championships and 32 Canada West team championships.
About Trinity Western University
Recognized for quality, TWU has received seven consecutive A+ rankings for Quality of Teaching and Learning, holds three Canada Research Chairs, and wins national championships in CIS sports. More importantly, lives are changed at TWU through its whole-person, Christ-centred approach to education. With a wide array of undergraduate, graduate, and adult degree-completion programs, TWU equips leaders of character and competence to make a positive impact in the lives of others.
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