Saturday was a magical stretch at the Pac-10 rugby tournament for the host UCLA Bruins. At the day’s end, the team celebrated its undefeated triumph, bloodied and bruised after four victorious defensive battles.
Then the clock struck midnight.
The run came to a screeching halt Sunday when the Bruins fell 43-3 in the championship match to Cal, the nation’s top-ranked team and winner of 15 of the past 16 national championships.
“Cal is the model that everyone tries to emulate; they do everything the right way,” UCLA coach Scott Stewart said. “Our guys came out and played fantastic rugby. They showed that they are athletically capable of playing at that level.”
Fatigue may have been a factor for the Bruins. UCLA’s defense held strong for the first 20 minutes before Cal scored its first five-point try and converted the two-point extra point. Cal led 17-3 at the end of the first half.
In the second half, the 190 minutes of rugby the team had played that weekend showed as the offense struggled and the defense let up.
“I think eventually you have to run out of gas, especially when you have a team like Cal coming at you,” Stewart said.
The weekend was still a great success, Stewart said. The tournament drew teams from all of the Pac-10 schools even though there is no Pac-10 rugby league. And unlike official Pac-10 tournaments, the rugby event was held to start off the season, not at its conclusion.
“I just love (hosting the tournament),” UCLA captain Scott Hugo said. “Being able to get all 10 teams and their fans down here is great for the sport. Having the event here at UCLA is great recognition for the school and what’s happening with our program.”
The tournament was composed of two groups of five teams. On Saturday, each team played the other four teams in its group. UCLA was in Group A, along with Arizona State, Oregon State, Stanford and Washington. In its first match, the Bruins shut out the Sun Devils 13-0. Arizona State went on to capture third place in the tournament.
“It is really nice to come out and set the tone like that for the entire tournament ““ it is our foundation for the next four games,” Hugo said.
Next up for UCLA were Washington and Stanford, both of which were dominated by the Bruin defense. UCLA beat the Huskies 15-0 and the Cardinal 15-3.
“We’ve been stressing defense in practice and hitting hard, and we really executed,” UCLA flanker Allen Chen said.
The final match Saturday presented the biggest challenge for the Bruins: the Oregon State Beavers. It was another close defensive battle. The Bruin wingers, Blayne Scully and Corey Jellison, played with great pace and awareness, Stewart said. The deciding five-point try was set up by Scully when he leveled a Beaver fullback, jarring the ball out. UCLA gained possession and worked the ball to the opposite side of the pitch where Jellison was waiting to sprint to the goal line. Stewart and his team were thrilled with the performance; Hugo sprinted off the field in celebration.
“I was delighted with the spirit we played with (on Saturday). Our execution was precise, and the hustle was great to watch. It was an inspiring effort,” Stewart said.
With that achievement in hand, the team was able to swallow the very bitter pill of the Cal loss.
Cal, in fact, is at an advantage, because it is a varsity program. The Golden Bears are usually challenged only by their Canadian opponents ““ they’ve only lost to one U.S. school in the past 10 seasons. In the five games Cal played this weekend, it outscored its opponents 187-13.
The tournament provides the Bruins with a great start to a season they expect to be a great success. Playing Cal should prepare UCLA for upcoming matches with other top teams, such as BYU and Cal Poly.
“If we can play at one-tenth of the level we played (at the tournament), I’m sure we’ll have a great season,” UCLA lock Evan Lundh said.
The team is growing in popularity too, and it hopes that hosting this tournament will only increase interest in the team.
“Being able to pick up a sport like rugby is an amazing experience, and the greatest part about it is having that team environment. Coming out here to work with your teammates is priceless,” Hugo said.
And perhaps the Bruins can find yet another reason to smile in the praise from one of the sport’s most successful figures ““ Jack Clark, coach of the Golden Bears.
“UCLA is an improving rugby team, and that’s what our sport is about. They had a very good tournament and they are doing some very good things. They have a lot to be proud of,” Clark said.