Red Wolf Rugby Knocks Off Davenport
JONESBORO — Arkansas State University scored three times in the second half to come from behind and defeat Davenport University, 33-19, Saturday afternoon at Curt Huckaby Field.
“We had a good day,” said a happy Shaun Potgieter, A-State head coach. “Being down at the half, we talked and made some adjustments. We reiterated what we had talked about and planned prior to the game such as holding onto the ball at contact. When we held onto the ball, we scored.”
Potgieter also acknowledged the Red Wolves’ energy and quickness played a huge role in the victory.
The Panthers got on the board within the first five minutes to score the try. A successful conversion kick gave Davenport the early 7-0 lead. About eight minutes later, A-State’s Nick Abreus raced down the sideline and answered with a successful try to pull to within two, 7-5.
At the 18-minute mark, DU had another try to extend its lead to 12-5 and added another try four minutes later to total 19 points to the Red Wolves’ five. A-State’s Zach Young of Gold Coast, Australia, then helped cut Davenport’s lead on his successful try to trail by only seven, 19-12, at halftime.
Arkansas State came out in the second half with renewed enthusiasm.
At the 35:16 point in the second half, A-State’s Calvin Gentry bulled his way into the end zone for the score. Brock Roper’s kick was good to knot things at 19-19.
Ten minutes later, Gentry took advantage of an opportunity to zip the ball to team captain Kuda Makurvire who carried it into the end zone for the try. Roper’s conversion was good to complete the scoring play, allowing the Red Wolves to go ahead of the Panthers, 26-19.
A final late try by Preston Weigel with help from teammate Julian Moustier gave A-State the win with the final score, 33-19. A-State’s strong defense shut out the Panthers in the second half.
Potgieter noted that Weigel and Roper each played a “great game” for Arkansas State.
The Red Wolves will travel to South Carolina Saturday, March 25, to face Clemson University. The two teams were scheduled to play in Jonesboro March 11, but the game was cancelled due to inclement weather.
