No. 1 BYU rugby blew out No. 3 Saint Mary’s 62-15 on Saturday afternoon.
The Cougars started off strong with an early try by sophomore Kevin Schofield. The Gaels responded with a penalty kick. BYU kept adding on points with another try from junior Joe Pikula, a penalty kick from Calvin Whiting and two more tries from Schofield. This put the Cougars in the lead 32-3 at half time.
In the second half, St. Mary’s was the first to score a try. BYU did not let up, however, and continued to score throughout the rest of the game while containing the Gaels offense. Four more Cougars contributed tries and brought the final score to 62-15.
This is the second time the Cougars are facing the Gaels this season. Three weeks ago, BYU won by just one point. Junior Matt Jensen said that BYU’s consistency throughout the game kept them in the lead.
“Last time we played St. Mary’s we let them get back in it in the second half,” Jensen said. “This time we didn’t step off the gas and executed well.”
Schofield led the Cougars in scoring with three tries. He said that he knew St. Mary’s was looking for a victory in the rematch.
“We knew we had to give it our best and take it to them,” Schofield said. “St. Mary’s is always a great team. This game there weren’t that many turnovers and we didn’t let up.”
BYU head coach David Smyth said he was very happy with the Cougars continual pressure on the Gaels.
“I felt that for the first time this year we stayed on the job for the full 80 minutes,” Smyth said. “We created chances and we finished them.”
BYU faces Army at home Thursday, March 17.
