Toreros move to 2-0

USD moved to 2-0 with a dominant 47-27 victory over Azusa Pacific.

The match started with some poor decision making by USD, which allowed APU to slot a penalty kick in for an early 3-0 lead to APU. The Toreros stormed back with #8 Michael Ramos starting the scoring with a trademark carry that left several defenders on their backs. Devin Hoovel would add another score soon after with a scampering run that saw the winger evade five tackles and touch down under the posts. A game changing moment when an APU player receiving a red card. On the ensuing play, captain Oliver Kane would be awarded a penalty try before the half was done to round out the first half scoring. Between the penalty try and two tries converted by Jordan Sandoval, the scoring would stand at 21-3 at the half.

The second half started with APU executing a well worked play down the weak side of the field and getting a try to make the score 21-8. This was as close as the game would get as USD ran in a barrage of tries over the next 20 minutes. Devin Hoovel added a second score before Logan Tatum, Jordan Sandoval and Michael Lewis added their names to the score sheet. With Sandoval converting ¾ of the scores USD ran out to a 47-8 lead. The bench was emptied and several Toreros saw their first league action to close out the game. Azusa would run in a few tries in the last 10 minutes to earn a bonus point for themselves.

The final score would stand at 47-27 to USD.

Director of Rugby Kevin Eaton on the win: “2-0 feels good. We continue to be pleased by the young players who are stepping up and making an impact. We are not happy with letting in those scores at the end and closing out games better will be a point of focus for us moving forward. We look forward to facing a very strong Claremont team on February 26th”

The man of the match for USD was freshman scrum half Carmine Derosa. Derosa has been a great addition to the team this spring, with two outstanding performances to start his collegiate career. The scrappy #9 is a sure passer, a solid tackler, and a menace in the breakdown. He is a well deserving recipient of this week’s man of the match.

USD is 2-0 in league play and currently stand top of the table. The biggest test of the season looms as the Toreros will travel to play Claremont on the 26th of February. Claremont are the reigning small college national champions, and have only lost 2 league games in the last 5 years.

Final Score: 47-27

Man of the Match: Carmine Derosa

Starting Lineup

1. Tyler Shelley

2. Logan Tatum

3. Oliver Kane ©

4. Hayden Laccabue

5. Nick Classen

6. Joey Shenton

7. Joey Varcoe

8. Michael Ramos

9. Carmine Derosa

10. Michael Lewis

11. Finn McCarthy

12. Micky O’Leary

13. Paul Habeeb

14. Devin Hoovel

15. Jordan Sandoval

16. Cameron Mahdavifar (40’ Shenton)

17. Nick McConnell (55’ Ramos)

18. Tristan Abeyta (70’ Kane)

19. Thomas Geloso (60’ Varcoe)

20. Alex Lim (50’ O’Leary)

21. Eoin O’Callaghan (70’ Lewis)

22. Ben Keefer (40’ McCarthy)

23. Jackson Short (70’ Hoovel)

Scoring

Tries

2 Hoovel, Ramos, Kane, Sandoval, Tatum, Lewis

Conversions

5/6 Sandoval

News

Toreros move to 2-0