Individual Game Recaps UC Davis vs Santa Clara University 11/10/2007 AGGIES WIN BIG Saturday November 10, 2007 The Aggies have begun their season 2-0 with another convincing win at Russell Field. The Aggies proved too much for Division II Santa Clara from the opening kick, and continued to press their attack through the final whistle. The first try of the game exhibited what have been the strengths of the Davis side through the first two games: a good kicking game and great mauling by the forwards. Flyhalf Julien Howsepian placed a perfect kick into the deep corner of Santa Clara territory. The opposing player was tackled out of bounds by rookie wing Ross Warnloff. Davis won the lineout, formed a maul, and drove the ball straight through Santa Clara before it was touched down by eight-man Mark Miller. Howsepian added the conversion. The Aggie forward pack continued its dominance by winning a scrum in Santa Clara territory. Miller scooped up the ball and once again ran in for the score. Santa Clara showed great spirit by continuing to play hard, but Aggie set pieces were on form and too much for the opponent to handle. The third try of the day was scored after another won line-out deep in Santa Clara’s zone. The Davis backline made some handling errors early in the game, perhaps due to the wet pitch and light rain, but finally joined the forwards in the scoring when fullback Danny Nolan dummied a pass and ran untouched into the try zone. At this point in the game it was clear that the Aggies offense was clicking, and Santa Clara could do very little to counter it. The next try of the game came when Miller made a nice offload to Howsepian, who ran between the posts to touch it down. Halftime came with some tough words from Davis coach Andy Malpass, who was unhappy with the discipline and execution of the Davis side. The scoring continued when center Jake Mayers took a pass from Howsepian and ran past a poor tackle for the try. When the final whistle blew, the Aggies had won the second game of their season by the impressive score of 66-6. The Aggies showed superior coaching and experiencing in beating Santa Clara, and their offensive display through the first two games is reason to be excited. Yet the Aggie tackling was not great, and problems with execution have been seen in both the first two games. The next game for Davis is an important test as the Aggies will travel to San Luis Obispo to play nationally ranked Cal Poly. Davis has not beaten Cal Poly in their last five meetings and would love to end the trend and set the stages for a great season. UC Davis (1-15) Ben Reynolds, Gus Brown, Colin Clark, Levi Ryan/Andrew (Gentle Giraffe) Meeson, Reid Robinson, Jacob Litinisky, Robert Meeson, Mark Miller, John Parshall, Julien Howsepian, Tarick Abu-Aly/Ryan Gamba, Tom Warner, Jake Mayers/Andrew Hopkins, Ross Warnloff, Danny Nolan. UC Davis: 66 TRIES: Reynolds (2), Miller (2), Parshall (2), Howsepian (2), Nolan (2), Mayers CONVERSIONS: Howsepian (4) PENALTIES: Howsepian (1) B Side Gets First Win The Aggie second siders continued the good day of rugby with a 17-12 win over the Santa Clara second side. The Aggies opened the scoring when wing Ryan Gamba beat his defender to the corner for the touch down. Promising freshman flanker Sam Shackleford added his own try with an impressive individual effort. Santa Clara rallied back to score two tries of their own, but the Aggies showed their poise by scoring in the final ten minutes to win the game and notch their first win of the pre-season. UC Davis Men's Rugby Club 232 Activities and Recreation Center University of California, Davis 95616 Copyright 2006-2007, Julien Howsepian