Gaels Conquer the Aztecs 78-5

February 21, 2015

MORAGA, CALIF. - In the early 16th century, Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés captured Tenochtitlan and overthrew the Aztec empire (History.com Staff). On Saturday, it was the St. Mary’s Gaels who conquered the San Diego State Aztecs by a lopsided score of 78-5.

Playing on their beautiful home field, St. Mary’s got off to a hot start right away. Wasting no time at all, Holden Yungert cut to the right and then gracefully offloaded the ball to Cooper Maloney, who outran the Aztecs for the first try a minute and fourteen seconds into the game. Dylan Audsley made the conversion not only into the uprights, but past the net and into the green trees of Moraga. Two minutes later, Audsley scored a try up the middle. The conversion almost seemed like déjà vu because the ball went straight through the goal post into the trees for two points but then bounced off a tree branch back onto the playing field. It just goes to show the strength that the accurate All-American Audsley has in his legs.

Mason Colombo had a day that he will not forget anytime soon. The senior from Ukiah, California, had four tries. The first two both came off offloads from All-American Kingsley McGowan. Colombo’s first try was a product of great passing by the whole team. The conversion after the senior’s second try put the Gaels up 28-0 about thirteen minutes into the game.

Vili Helu made San Diego State’s offense stagnant by deflecting multiple lineout passes. The 6-3 freshman with good hands made a positive impact on the field with solid work all around. Helu was named the D1A Rugby Player of the Week in early February, which is very impressive for a freshman that has earned a starting role on the defending National Champions’ roster (Solomon, “D1A Rugby Player of the Week”).

Ryan Pratt scored a try by trucking through multiple Aztec defenders into the try zone. Before halftime, Mason Colombo earned a hat trick by scoring a try on the right sideline. At the half, the number one team in the nation was up 40-0 against the 16th ranked Aztecs (Solomon, “Canterbury D1A Top 20”).

Colombo was the first Gael to score after the break by receiving an offload from Dylan Audsley for his fourth and final try.

St. Mary’s was called for a penalty a few moments later but San Diego State was still not able to put points on the board.

To put the Gaels up 50-0, Dino Waldren shedded a defender to the dirt for the try. It was a magnificent display of pure power. Substitute Bradley Roberts scored a try on the right side a few moments after a lineout.

Earlier in the game, it was Kingsley McGowan who was offloading the ball to his teammates such as Mason Colombo. With about ten and a half minutes left in the game, his teammates decide to return the favor. Cooper Maloney, the D1A Final MVP, offloaded the ball to Kingsley McGowan, who was on the right sideline and cut back to the middle for the try (Solomon, “California Preview”).

With only eight minutes left, the Aztecs finally scored a try to make the score 64-5. However, Dylan Audsley countered by scoring a try on the left side. The conversion was good and St. Mary’s was leading 71-5.

However, the Gaels were not done yet. As time expired, Vili Helu put the final exclamation point on the match between two top twenty ranked teams by scoring a try. The Gaels made the conversion to add to their lead, 78-5. St. Mary’s had 12 tries and 9 conversions while San Diego State only had one try. The Gaels (6-1) almost scored a point per minute while holding their opponent to only one score in total. The Aztecs worshipped many gods, but what they did not know was that God is a Gael.

Next Saturday, on the last day of February, St. Mary’s will face the Cougars of Brigham Young University (BYU) at noon sharp. This will be an intense game against a formidable opponent, so make sure you come bright and early to St. Mary’s Stadium to bring a playoff level atmosphere and to support your defending national champions, the Gaels!

Works Cited:

History.com Staff. "Aztecs." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 2009. Web. 21 Feb. 2015.

<http://www.history.com/topics/aztecs>.

Solomon, Alex. "California Preview: Saint Mary's Leads Competitive Field." D1A Rugby. N.p.,

19 Feb. 2015. Web. 21 Feb. 2015.

<http://d1arugby.com/news/california-preview-saint-marys-leads-competitive-field/>.

Solomon, Alex. "Canterbury D1A Top 20: Week 16." D1A Rugby. N.p., 19 Feb. 2015. Web. 21

Feb. 2015. <http://d1arugby.com/news/canterbury-d1a-top-20-week-16/>.

Solomon, Alex. "D1A Rugby Player of the Week – Vili Helu." D1A Rugby. N.p., 5 Feb. 2015.

Web. 21 Feb. 2015.

<http://d1arugby.com/news/d1a-rugby-player-of-the-week-vili-helu/>.