Calvin Whiting kicks for a conversion. BYU beat Army 71-10 Thursday night. (Ari Davis)
BYU rugby beat Army West Point 71-10 with a big second half on Thursday night.
The Cougars scored and early try three minutes in. Army responded with a try shortly after. The two teams battled through back and forth possessions until BYU landed three more tries to increase their lead. The Black Knights scored another try to conclude the half 26-10.
'The first half was slower than usual,' said freshman Zach Webber. 'We all realized that going to the locker room. We came out with heart ready to go in the second half.'
The second half brought a much faster pace for the Cougars. They scored seven times unanswered finishing the game 71-10.
Head coach David Smyth said their halftime discussion brought new energy to the Cougars game.
'Our boys mentally just weren't in the game,' Smyth said. '(In the second half) they protected the ball more, kept possession and executed much better. They stuck at it and gave a much more even performance.'
Sophomore Calvin Whiting said that though the Cougars finished strong, better mental preparation will allow the team to start stronger in future games.
'If warm-ups are lackadaisical and if we're slow with everything then we start off weaker,' Whiting said. 'We finished great, though, and we're always happy to get a win.'
BYU plays next at Weber State Saturday, March 19.