VANCOUVER – Trinity Western outscored UBC 28-21 in the second half, but it wasn't enough to overcome a 45-7 halftime deficit, as the Spartans lost 66-35 against the No. 1-ranked Thunderbirds Saturday at Gerald McGavin UBC Rugby Centre.

Lynden Duggan (Edinburgh, Scotland) had a hat-trick and Matthew Willemse (Pietermaritzburg, South Africa) earned 15 points on a try and five conversions to lead the Spartans offence. Genaro Gandolfo (Buenos Aires, Argentina) had the Spartans only other try of the afternoon. 

Willemse opened the Spartans account in the 29th minute, but with UBC already holding a 28-0 lead, it was an uphill climb the rest of the way for the visitors. 

The second half saw the Spartans come to life, with Duggan scoring three tries and Gandolfo adding another late, as TWU outscored the T-Birds by seven points over the final 40 minutes. 

Willemse converted all five tries for the Spartans. 

The 35 points marks the second most points TWU has scored on UBC. Last year (Sept. 9, 2023), the Spartans scored 38 in a 55-38 loss to the T-Birds. 

TWU Scoring
29' – Matthew Willemse TRY, Matthew Willemse CONVERSION (7-28) 
45' – Lynden Duggan TRY, Matthew Willemse CONVERSION (14-45)
51' – Lynden Duggan TRY, Matthew Willemse CONVERSION (21-45)
64' – Lynden Duggan TRY, Matthew Willemse CONVERSION (28-66)
73' – Genaro Gandolfo TRY, Matthew Willemse CONVERSION (35-66)

QUOTABLE
Andrew Evans, TWU Head Coach
"It was another tough match against a very confident UBC team. Coach Dee has his squad fine-tuned and dangerous, especially their ability to finish out wide. They made it very difficult for us in the first half when we gave them possession much too easily. It is disappointing because that is exactly how we started against them in our first match this season. 

"It is hard to be positive after allowing so many points against us today but we need to celebrate the positives. We scored five tries today, and Lynden and Matt certainly led our attack. Scoring a hat-trick against UBC should be celebrated. Getting Sam Tsoi (Hong Kong, China) back off the bench helped spark us in the second half, and his defensive presence helped us stem the UBC tide. Our bench made a great impact today, with Jacob Goroza (Coquitlam, B.C.) getting his first game with the first 15s. 

"Finally, it is Thanksgiving, and we are all grateful for all the blessings God provides us. Thank you to our families, friends and teammates and to our leaders at Trinity Western who believe in us, encourage us and support us. Let us all be thankful and aware of God's grace. It's amazing."

NEXT UP
TWU will have a week off before travelling to UVIC to play the Vikes in the Spartans final Coastal Cup contest Oct. 26 at 2:30 p.m. at Wallace Field.

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 and women's and men's disc golf. Since TWU entered U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 14 U SPORTS team championships and 34 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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