STEUBENVILLE – The Franciscan rugby team pushed its winning streak to four matches as the Barons defeated Carnegie Mellon 24-15, Saturday afternoon on Memorial Field.
The Barons found themselves down 8-0 in the first half after a converted penalty kick and try from Carnegie Mellon. "CMU's flyhalf has a great kicking game and he caught our back three off guard several times," remarked head coach Dan Kramer.
The Barons regrouped and scored two quick tries from David Hawn and PJ Ernst and after converting one, Franciscan took a 12-8 lead. Both tries came from good ball movement by FUS and passing to the outside.
"At the half, I just told the guys to settle down and trust our system and attack structure," remarked Coach Kramer. "Many times it looked like we were playing like 15 individuals instead of as one unit."
The Barons came out much stronger in the second half. FUS was able to get good ball movement which eventually led to getting the ball to Matthew Hostutler on the outside. Hostutler was able to beat his man for another Baron try. Franciscan got a try from Anthony Hobbs on a heads up play at a sloppy breakdown about five meters out.
"Anthony did exactly what we asked of him – scoop up an open ball and score," complimented Coach Kramer.
Ernst was named the Man of the Match following the game. "PJ had some great tackles, poached the ball a few times, and was always a threat on attack. He also had much better composure than in the past few matches," remarked Coach Kramer.
"We still have a lot to work on," continued Coach Kramer. "Our defense is not where I want it and I think we need to work on our attack structure. We are at the midway point in our regular season and I expect better performances moving forward."
"You could tell both teams were exhausted in the match today. Playing 80 minutes of rugby in 90-degree heat with full sun takes a lot out of you," said Coach Kramer.
Following a bye week this upcoming week, the Barons will host Robert Morris on October 6.
"We have a lot of fans, family, and alumni coming out to the match," commented Coach Kramer. "We plan to be on top of our game by then."
