Cal Topples Penn State For 5th Straight Varsity Cup Finals Appearance
Cal Topples Penn State For 5th Straight Varsity Cup Finals Appearance
The Cal Bears booked their trip to the May 6 Varsity Cup championship at Santa Clara University after dismantling Penn State 35-14 in the semifinals this past Saturday.
As the Varsity Cup hopefuls run out onto the field at next week's final, at least one team should be easily recognizable. After all, the Cal Bears are the defending champions and are heading to the title game for the fifth straight year, while the Arkansas State Red Wolves will be making their debut on the big stage.
The Bears booked their trip to the May 6 championship at Santa Clara University after dismantling Penn State 35-14 in the semifinals this past Saturday.
[tweet url="https://twitter.com/CalVarsityRugby/status/855899058069622784" hide_media="0" hide_thread="1"]
After a slow start for both sides, with neither squad scoring in the first 20 minutes of play, the floodgates opened for Cal. The Bears laid on four tries in the first half while leaving the Nittany Lions scoreless to build a 20-0 lead.
Though PSU senior flanker Malcolm May scored early in the second half, it wasn't enough to put a dent in the visitors' growing deficit. Cal added three more tries in a 12-minute stretch following the Nittany Lions' converted try to pull away and move on to the finals.
"To come out and play for all the seniors was just amazing," said Cal freshman Damon Wiley, who scored two tries. "The energy and tenacity was there, and we knew Penn State was going to be physical as well. It's up to us to keep that pace through an entire 80 minutes."
The Bears booked their trip to the May 6 championship at Santa Clara University after dismantling Penn State 35-14 in the semifinals this past Saturday.
[tweet url="https://twitter.com/CalVarsityRugby/status/855899058069622784" hide_media="0" hide_thread="1"]
After a slow start for both sides, with neither squad scoring in the first 20 minutes of play, the floodgates opened for Cal. The Bears laid on four tries in the first half while leaving the Nittany Lions scoreless to build a 20-0 lead.
Though PSU senior flanker Malcolm May scored early in the second half, it wasn't enough to put a dent in the visitors' growing deficit. Cal added three more tries in a 12-minute stretch following the Nittany Lions' converted try to pull away and move on to the finals.
"To come out and play for all the seniors was just amazing," said Cal freshman Damon Wiley, who scored two tries. "The energy and tenacity was there, and we knew Penn State was going to be physical as well. It's up to us to keep that pace through an entire 80 minutes."
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