Wheeling, W. Va. - Last weekend, the Wheeling University Rugby team (2-1, 1-0) opened Big Rivers Rugby Conference (BRRC) play when they hosted Aquinas College with a 55-24 win. After getting their first taste of the conference, the Cardinals now try and take that momentum with them on the road as they face Thomas More in Crestview Hills, Kentucky. With their first BRRC win of the year under their belts, the Cardinals now know the level of talent they will face in the conference and will look to improve off their first showing of the year.
They opened their BRRC slate at home against Aquinas College as BRRC play came to Wheeling, West Virginia for the first time. The Cardinals offense was strong early, scoring on their first possession of the afternoon, and continued to pile on with eight tries scored throughout the afternoon. However, Aquinas College brought the offense as well and the score was 33-17 as the teams went into the locker room. Wheeling would add on 18 more points in the second half of the game, continuing their strong showing in the final 40 minutes of the game, to gather their first conference win of the season and second win overall.
Leading the way in the conference opener was a trio of athletes who all scored three tries in the game to lead Wheeling to victory. Krishna Kwenda added two more tries, after scoring one in the opener, and leads the team with three tries this season. Kwenda's impact on the offense has been felt immediately through the first two games of the season as he continues to find a way across the try line. Along with Kwenda's success, two other Cardinals got off the shnide with their first tries of the 2022 15's season. Bailey Brunner scored his first try of the season in the first half as he helped Wheeling as they were going blow for blow with Aquinas. Runyarao Mukangure added his first try of the season as he gets off to a strong start in conference play.
The other four tries came courtesy of two veterans in Ayoub Jalli and Joe Iye, who have also made big impacts in the kicking game. Both players scored their first two tries of the year and led the team with 19 and 16 points respectively. Jalli was the points leader, scoring two tries, three conversion kicks, and one penalty to lead the Cardinals on the day. Iye followed suit with two tries and three conversions throughout the day. Both players have been big contributors for the team so far throughout their careers and look to add on to that success here in 2022.
After the first week of Big Rivers Rugby Conference play, the Cardinals are sitting at 1-0 as they try to carve their path towards the National Collegiate Rugby (NCR) playoffs. The next two weeks will see the Cardinals go on the road as they have to take on two tough BRRC opponents and will test their resiliency on the road. Head Coach Mike Geibel said he wanted to start seeing more team success in the first half of games as the Cardinals look to get their offense going early.
The Matchup
The Cardinals and Saints will be meeting for the first time in program history on Saturday when they meet in Crestview Hills, Kentucky. The Saints will be playing in their BRRC opener this week and are currently 1-0 on the season. The two teams will welcome each other into the conference as the Cardinals look for their second straight conference win.
In their first match of the year, Thomas More battled The University of Kentucky in a match they won 24-15. It was a low scoring game before halftime, with Thomas More leading 7-3, but the team scored 17 second half points to come away with the win. The Cardinals have been a strong second half team this season and will try to match Thomas More's intensity.
The Details
Kick-off for Saturday's contest is scheduled for 1 PM at Republic Bank Field on the campus of Thomas More. You can watch the contest live by clicking HERE.
