By
Jeff Lund
Arizona Daily Wildcat
The UA rugby season can be summed up with the outcome of the Wildcats' last two games. After beating Division II defending champion Sacramento State Saturday 32-13, the Wildcats showcased their talent and proved they could have been conference champs once again.
Back on top, the Wildcats plummeted back to earth Sunday when they fell to undefeated Ohio State, who knocked off UA 22-10.
"We could have and should have beat everyone," coach Dave Sitton said. "We did the big things well, but did the little things bad. We just had too many mistakes this year."
Saturday was a day of few mistakes for the UA ruggers, as Pat Marek and Jonathan Gray led the team with second-half scores to turn a 13-13 tie into an impressive 32-13 victory over the defending champs.
"We had a banner day Saturday," Sitton said. "We were all on a high."
Then came the Buckeyes, a team that brought Arizona (10-4) down to earth.
Ohio State jumped out to a 10-3 halftime lead. Senior Josh Allen found the try zone for Arizona, and Andrew Brischke added the conversion to tie the game at 10. Arizona then drove deep into the Buckeye territory, but could not break the try line and turned the ball over.
OSU then marched down field and scored, ending the Wildcats' hopes of another upset.
"We should have finished off the Buckeyes," Sitton said. "We turned the ball over two yards from the try line."
The loss marked the end to a season littered with upset wins tempered with disappointing losses. After teetering on the edge of postseason elimination with wins over rival San Diego State and setting a record with a 96-point performance against San Diego, the dream of repeating as conference champs was lost with a defeat at Long Beach State.
Sitton said the weekend tournament was as important to UA's ruggers as any postseason play.
"That was their playoffs," Sitton said, referring to the weekend memorial tournament. "Sunday we tripped in the championship."
Sitton said he wished the seniors could have had a better send-off.
"For the seniors that was their last game," Sitton said. "We are losing three starters, and nine all together. They are just wonderful people. They are the type of people that keep you involved in the sport."
James Kai is one of the nine seniors who played their last game at Estevan Park.
"They were both really good teams," Kai said. "It is always great playing teams of that caliber. The loss to OSU was tough because it was my last game, but they are a good team, and they will do great in the finals."
Kai said that he was very happy to be a part of the team this year despite some disappointing outcomes.
"Its not where we wanted to be," he said. "I wish it wasn't my senior year. I was able to bond with the team and everything flowed from a team standpoint."
"What happened this year will help for next year. The team will grow and do fantastic. I have been a part of two championships, so we can say that this was a bad year, or we can say how we are going to learn from it and make things better. Its like a legacy. Everything is a building block."
Sitton said that while a 10-4 record was disappointing by UA standards, the team now has something to look forward to next season.
"I am grateful for the fact that our players have built a tradition so that a 10-4 record is unacceptable," Sitton said.
Sitton said the team will have a meeting to decide which non-championship bids, if any, they will accept for the postseason.
