Season Opener: CofC vs. Outlaws B-Side

Details: Category: 2011 Fall News; Created on Sunday, 18 September 2011 22:00; Written by President; Hits: 272

The College of Charleston Men's RFC opened their 2011 Fall season up with a surprising draw against the Charleston Outlaw's B-Side. Despite having never come close to beating the Outlaws in the past, the Cougars consistently outplayed the bigger side. The Outlaws began the game with quick try after a succession of early penalties given up by the Cougars, but from there the college side tightened up and played incredible defense for the rest of the game, making multiple goal line stands. Centers Brenden DeLuke and Andrew Tsafos stepped up to effectively shut down the Outlaws backline, which included former CofC captain Austin Coon. After the Outlaws scored their first try, Charleston defensive pressure kept them on their side of the field for most of the first half. The Cougar pack won ruck after ruck against the bigger Outlaws, and the frustrated Outlaws started committing penalties, which would lead to CofC's game tying try. Captain George Woolston kicked a ball deep into the Outlaw's twenty-two, which was fielded by Austin Coon. Then, while attempting to juke out Flyhalf Ian Mueller, he was crushed by new Winger Kenny Evans. English Scrummy Brian Abplanap then grabbed the ball out of the ruck, passed it to George, who then barreled through multiple Outlaws to score the game tying try. At the beginning of the second half, a botched kickoff by Woolston helped the Outlaws advance the ball into the Cougar 22, but again the CofC defense held the line and the Outlaws were unable to hammer the ball through. The Cougars would have many more opportunities to score thanks to the impressive speed of the backline and relentless forward play, but these were offset by their less impressive ball handling and decision making. In particular, Winger Kenny Evans nearly scored the game winning try, but instead of racing for the corner he decided to cut back inside, which allowed an Outlaw to knock the ball out of his hand at the last second. The hard fought match eventually ended in a draw, but the Cougars demonstrated a side with perhaps the most potential in team history.

Man of the Match: Kenny Evans for multiple big hits and big runs

Dick of the Day: Kenny Evans for letting the Outlaws catch him and knock the ball out of his hands when he should have scored it