The Oregon Club men’s and women’s rugby teams ran rampant over Division II Western Oregon and rival Washington Saturday, defeating the men from Monmouth 54-5 and the Husky women 48-10.
“We were able to dictate what we were going to do,” men’s head coach Justin Roome said.
The win marks the second victory in a row for Roome’s squad.
“We played a loose game,” rugger Pete Bayly said. “When we felt like opening up, we did.”
Back Colin Daviau led the Duck unit with a hat trick against the undermanned Wolves.
“The whole back line played great,” Daviau said when asked about his scores.
The Ducks jumped out to an early lead and never looked back. Western Oregon didn’t score until the final play of the contest — well after the Duck’s starters had been removed.
“We made some amateurish mistakes,” Roome said about the lopsided win, but attributed that fact to the youth of the team.
The Duck squad, mostly freshman and sophomores, has high potential, according to Roome.
“We’re pretty young, which is promising for the future.” Roome said.
Roome also noted that he was pleased with the Ducks’ fitness level, describing his athletes as being in “really good” shape.
“Everyone’s optimistic,” the second-year coach added.
Daviau and Bayly, veterans on the squad, were pleased for the most part with the effort.
“We’re small,” Daviau said, “but we have heart and gave it our all. We played pretty good, but can play better.”
“We dictated the pace of the game,” Bayly added.
The men ruggers conclude their fall preseason schedule Nov. 20 in Corvallis against Oregon State in what Roome calls their “biggest battle” of the fall.
Following winter break, the men’s squad starts league play Feb. 12 with a home match against Washington. The Ducks compete in the Pacific Northwest Rugby Football Union (PNRFU) along with Oregon State, Washington, Washington State, Western Washington and Central Washington.
For the women, the win over the Huskies gave the team a 1-0 mark in league play.
“It’s a great feeling,” forward Trish Bronte said.
With only 18 players (rugby teams consist of 15 participants on the field), many of which are newcomers to the sport, the Ducks surprised themselves with their offensive efficiency.
“It was really surprising how well we did,” Bronte said. “It’s amazing how we came together as a team.”
The Ducks started a front line of all new faces, which is especially challenging in rugby because team cohesion is such a crucial part of play.
Bronte, the club coordinator, was also happy with her team’s defensive effort.
“Our tackling looked great,” she said.
Four players for Oregon scored their first collegiate goals in the win over Washington, according to Bronte.
The Duck women also finish their fall season on Nov. 20 against the Beavers in Corvallis in a non-league game. Following the Civil War matchup, the women ruggers don’t resume league play until Feb. 19 against Western Washington in Bellingham, Wash.
“Its nice to start off with a win,” Bronte said, adding that the Duck women will be “marked men” due to their success in the past several years.

Beau Eastes is a freelance reporter
for the Daily Emerald