1st XV come up short against Mystic River
31 Mar 2010
by: CDT D. Latino '10
West Point First XV v. Mystic River
Score: 20-21
Try Scorers: Chris Hardee (’11), Peter Belden (’11)
Conversions: Will Holder (’13) 2 for 2
Penalties: Will Holder (’13) 2 for 2
Scoreline:
West Point found a tough opponent in Mystic River, a Men’s Division I program from just outside Boston. It was a very physical game that was close to the last whistle. West Point opened up the scoring with a converted penalty kick from 30 meters out by fullback Will Holder. Possession went back and forth for the next ten minutes as neither side could get the upper hand. With 25 minutes left in the half, Mystic River found the try zone after some quality open field play. The conversion was successful for a score of 3-7. Things continued much like they had before with both sides fighting to gain an advantage. Finally with six minutes left in the match Mystic River pinned Army down on their own 5 meter with a kick. Off of a West Point scrum from the five meter, Mystic River stole the ball and dove in for the try. The Black Knights tried to answer before the half but had the ball held up in the try zone as time ran out. The score at half was 3-14 in favor of Mystic River.
West Point came out strong in the second half looking to take the initiative. Lock Chris Hardee lowered his shoulder from five meters out and powered through the defense for a hard earned try. The conversion was successful leaving the score 10-14. Will Holder struck with his boot again, this time on a penalty kick from 30meters out, with 22 minutes left in the half to bring the Knights within one. Mystic River responded several minutes later. With a scrum five meters out, Mystic River was able to finish for the try putting the score at 13-20, putting the pressure on West Point as time began to wind down. With five minutes left the Black Knights managed to work the ball down into Mystic River territory for a five meter scrum. Eight-man, Peter Belden, picked from the back of the scrum and found a hole in the defense to exploit for the try. After Holder’s conversion the score was 20-21. The Black Knights fought hard to maintain possession of the ball through the closing minutes but after several phases of play, an attempted chip and chase gave Mystic the ball, which they kicked to touch to end the game. The final score was West Point 20 - Mystic River 21, in a hard fought match.
Next Match: West Point hosts the Royal Military College of Canada (RMC) on Thursday, April 1st, 6pm at Anderson Rugby Complex.