The Massachusetts men’s club rugby team defeated LSU 27-12 in a hard-fought, windy game. The Minutemen (9-0) mounted a massive second-half comeback, scoring 22 points in the second 40 minutes.
The wind dictated the game’s play and made it difficult for the team going against the wind to get anything going offensively. Kicks into the wind were carrying an extra 10 yards in the air and going over the heads of the backs.
“This way the wind is brutal, it had a huge impact,” head coach Philip Ciccarelli said. “I mean, you just saw how fast we were moving the ball, John [McGoey] could get 40 meters on a kick, and all of a sudden, it’s a different game.”
McGoey, UMass’ fly-half and captain, stood out for the Minutemen, scoring 12 points in the second half. Down by two, with seven minutes into the second half, Cole Kennedy found a gap and ran 20 yards before being taken down illegally. UMass elected to take the penalty kick and McGoey sailed the ball through the uprights to give the Minutemen the lead over the Tigers (6-2).
10 minutes later, LSU picked up a yellow card for a high tackle, giving the Minutemen a numbers advantage that they immediately capitalized on. Oasis Allen worked the ball to McGoey, who ran it to the outside finding an open lane and putting the ball down while being tackled. He backed that up with a massive conversion from the outside of the field.
“I think he was a little, little, little off in the beginning, but I think that was more the wind than anything else,” Ciccarelli said. “Once we got our rhythm, we’re able to move the ball around, wind at our back. He was unstoppable. He did a really good job pinning them where he needed to.”
UMass was impressive in the scrums pushing the Tigers’ forwards back and forcing them to make mistakes. On all the Minutemen’s scrums, they retained control of the ball. On LSU’s nine scrums, UMass took possession after five.
“They get that opportunity to set their platform, and when you can disrupt it as we did, that’s a ball for us,” Ciccarelli said. “They got probably five or six scrum penalties, which are massive.”
The scrums gave UMass a lot of momentum but that was not the only way that the Minutemen picked up energy. It was as close as you can get to a full house at the fields behind McGuirk Alumni Stadium, with the entire touchline lined with people cheering.
“That’s the biggest crowd I’ve ever had, we’ve ever had, so that was awesome,” Ciccarelli said. “Such a cool experience, great atmosphere. Wish it was 75 and sunny. That’s all right, it is November.”
One player that was motivated by the crowd was senior captain Arthur Dehareng, who put the ball down twice in the game. Both tries came after UMass stole possession from the Tigers in the scum and within the first 10 minutes of each half. Dehareng is the eighth and leader of the Minutemen team and helped push his team to the semifinals.
“He gritted it out,” Ciccarelli said. “He’s got a bad ankle but it didn’t stop him at all. He’s a senior, this is his third attempt at a quarterfinal. His leadership, his dedication, his I mean everything, just resonates throughout the entire team.”
UMass will play No. 1 Kentucky in the semifinals. The Wildcats (9-0) won their matchup against Saint Joseph’s 63-11. The game will take place on Dec. 7 at a neutral ground on the campus of Penn State.
Myles Donato can be reached at [email protected].
