Stanford Men’s Rugby traveled to Sacramento State looking to bounce back following the
Defeat against the defending Pacific Western Conference Champions Chico State last week.
The Cardinal knew that this would be a hard fought, physical 80 minutes and it lived up to
expectations.

Stanford got of to the ideal start Sac State failed to deal with the opening Kick off and stanford
regained and built pressure right from the start this saw Sophomore Christian Bader go over
after only 4 minutes of play to give Stanford a 5­0 lead. Sac State came roaring back and dotted
down in the corner to tie the game up at 5­5. The next 10 mins was a physical battle played in
the middle of the pitch with neither side able to assert their dominance. Two quick tries from
Stanford through #8 Sophomore Ryan Crowley opened up the game, both were converted by
Senior Guy Kasznik. Once again Sac state responded physically and managed to get another
try. Stanford were not done and scored 2 more tries before the break through Seniors Kasznik
and Senior Captain Jack Landsberg. Both converted by Kasznik. Halftime score 33­-10
The second half got of to a flying Start for the Cardinal with Senior Scrum Half Cale Williams
diving over from close range and Kasznik adding the conversion to extend the lead. The second
half turned into a very physical affair with Sac State committing numbers to the breakdown to try
and slow down stanfords momentum.

Sac state Managed to get another try to bring the score to 40­-15. After this Stanford shut them
down defensively and were able to add one more converted try through Senior Eli Zenger. For
a final score of 47-­15

Next up Stanford Mens Rugby have there home opener at Steuber Rugby Field Against San
Francisco State. Kickoff will be at 1pm on Saturday February 9th.

Stanford Mens Rugby : 47
C.Bader ‘21, R. Crowley ‘21, G. Kasznik ‘19, J. Landsberg ‘19,
C.Williams ‘19, E. Zenger ‘19
Conversions: G.Kasznik ‘19 X 6

Sacramento State: 15

Stanford Men’s Rugby traveled to Chico State to open the season against the defending Pacific Western Conference Champions. The Cardinal traveled with the knowledge that this would be a hard fought 80 minutes and it lived up to expectations.

Stanford started slowly against a well-prepared, organized Chico State side. The Wildcats forced turnovers early at the breakdown and converted the penalties into points for an early 6-0 lead. With the Cardinal attack under pressure, the defense turned up with a great launch allowed an intercept by sophomore Ryan Crowley that he took the 65m to put SMR on the board. With senior Guy Kasznik adding the extras, Stanford took the lead for the first time.

Chico State came back with more pressure creating turnovers on Cardinal ball. The turnovers led to a few penalties and the Wildcats went to their strength, calling for the option of a midfield scrum. While the forwards held up, there was too much work to stop the hard runners of Chico so close to the line. Off the ensuing kick-off, Stanford applied pressure and had a period of play in the Chico State half. With freshman Noah Folefac charging down a kick, Crowley scoped and scored for a brace of tries on the day.

The arm wrestled continued for the remainder of the first half. Chico State were able to drive deep as Stanford continued to give away penalties at the breakdown. A strong rolling maul from a 5m lineout proved unstoppable and it looked like the Cardinal would be trailing 18-12 at half time. However, Stanford showed they were up for the challenge with a cheeky turnover leading to a long range try from senior fullback, Elijah Zenger. The successful conversion by Kasznik allowed the narrowest of leads for Stanford at the break, 19-18.

Stanford started the second half poorly with a series of errors at kick-off allowing Chico State to wrest the momentum and score two tries for a 30-19 lead. However, the Cardinal did not capitulate and continued to play with determination. The half was dominated by half opportunities and strong defense as both teams had opportunities but failed to build consistent pressure. Stanford drew closer with a second intercept try, this time by Kasznik who added the extras to narrow the gap 30-26. However, a powerful Chico State scrum earned a penalty that gave them a lineout in the Stanford half from which they scored their final try.

The final score was 35-26 as the #6 team in USA Rugby D1AA were too much for the Cardinal to overcome. Next up, Stanford travels to Sacramento State on Saturday, February 2 at 1pm.

Stanford Men’s Rugby: 26
Tries: R. Crowley ‘21, E. Zenger ‘19, G. Kasznik ‘19
Conv: G. Kasznik ‘19

Chico State University: 35

Stanford Men’s Rugby traveled to take on University of Arizona on Saturday, January 20. It was the first hit out of the season and the Cardinal were looking to develop their squad before heading into Pacific Western Conference play. The match started well with Cale Williams ’19 making the best of a rushing Wildcat defense to pick his way for an early try. Unfortunately, this was the bright spark of the first half, as Arizona was able to apply pressure with strong running forwards and long kicking backs. The halftime score was 37-7.

After the halftime, break Stanford played strong defense forcing Arizona to use the boot to keep the scoreboard moving. Throughout the game, Stanford had patches of strong play mixed with early season struggles. The inconsistency allowed Arizona to keep the scoreboard ticking over. Although down, the Cardinal never gave up with Charles Vidrine ’19 punching in a try from a patient build-up and rookie Victor Yin ’21 rounding out the game with a try in the corner.

First XV 17 – 74 University of Arizona

Tries: C. Williams, C. Vidrine, V. Yin

Conv: C. Williams