Saturday, Nov. 19th both the Men and Women were in action.  Albeit in two different venues but they were in action.
     The ladies were competing in the LSWC Playoffs, meaning that they finished 5th in their conference out of 7 clubs.  They would play against Texas St. for the outright claim of 5th place.  This was a rematch of last weeks thrilling match between the 2 clubs. 
     Last week, your UT Dallas Women beat Texas St. Women 34 to 10.  And before I go the yesterday, I need to explain last week.  Last week in the finale of league play, both clubs were ready to play on a beautiful fall afternoon.  The first half had Texas St, winning 10 to 7, but it was the second half that was all UT Dallas.  The ladies put together the best game of the season when it counted and they needed it.
The Line up:
1. Kaitlyn, 2. Camille, 3. Kalena, 4. Rubab, 5. Sarah, 9. Vic, 10. Mel, 11.Kelly, 12. Kayla, 13. Natalie
    The second half was a thing of beauty, the ladies played a well timed and deliberate game of rugby.  At on point in this half, UTD had a scrum inside our 22m line, but Mel saw something and attacked the weak side. Vic heard her calls and got the ball to her.  Off she went, when she was tackled, Mel off loaded to Kalena, who ran with the ball and when she got tackled.  She off loaded to Camille, Camille then off loaded to Kaitlyn, who then off loaded to Sarah, who then off loaded to Rubab.  The bottom line is that the ball was moved from inside our 22m line to inside the Texas St. 22m line.  But more important, that possession was touched by 6 different ladies on their way to a convincing victory.
    Ladies scoring Trys Mel (3 Trys, 2 conversions), Kayla (1 Try), scoring their first Trys ever Kelly and Kaitlyn. It was a very good showing byt the Lady Comets in last weeks game.
    As far as the game yesterday, I have to wait for the report from Jonathan.  As soon as I get that and watch the video I'll post those results on the web site.

     The Men of UT Dallas traveled to Stephenville for their match against the up and coming Tarleton St. Texans Rugby Club.  Due to some strange things between their Rec Sports and their Rugby Club, our match was moved up to 1:30.  It was a great to see all the players there getting ready to play a tough match.
      I found out that only 2 of the 25 players committed to making the game, did not travel.  With that being said, we were committed to playing the game with the players we had.
The Line up:
1. Brandon, 2. Will, 3. Ryan, 4. Conner, 5. Alex, 6. Andrew P. 7. Caleb, 8. Daniel, 9. Nick P. 10. Edmund, 11. Eric, 12. Chase, 13. Steven L. 14. Clint, 15. Zack
Reserves, Manny, Seth, Colemen, Talhah, Jarvis, Yahve, John B. Isaac, Michael Y, Jarvis
    The match kicked off on time and everything was on, both sides were competing for that small patch of real estate called a rugby field.  We played a competitive match against a bigger club, it was something we tried to break away from, but we just couldn't get over that.
     We were able to get 7 points on the board, thanks to a gap Edmund saw in the Tarleton St defense, so Edmund exploited that gap and put 5 points on the board.  He then converted his own try to only be 14 points down at that point in the game.  But some mental breakdowns occurred on the field and in the final 10 minutes of the first half and Tarleton was able to put another 7 points on the board.  The end of the first half UTD 7 and Tarleton 28.
     The second half was all Tarleton, but there were brief moments of UTD flashes, but like lightning, it was that quick and gone.  In this half Tarleton St. put another 4 Trys on the board, in this half we also used it as a learning experience to get all those reserves playing time so they might learn for the future.
     The game ended Tarleton St. 61, UT Dallas 7.  From this point, we have no more games in 2016, we sit back, continue to work on our conditioning and maybe get the guys and girls to go out and practice with the local men or women's club near their home.
     In our past, we usually have a fall banquet to have fun and put this part of the season behind us, but this year due to the time of year.  Thanksgiving is next week, and the following week they're all involved in final exams and I'll be getting a new knee, there will not be a fall banquet this year. 
     So Happy Thanksgiving to one and all and I'll be posting more in the near future.

    Your UT Dallas Women's Rugby Club competed in their last league match of the year.  Saturday, they traveled to San Marcos to take on Texas State.
     Due to the fact that I could not make the game, I relied on Jonathan to give me all the info I need to post the women's results and line up.  Since I haven't gotten that info yet, I'll post what I do know.
      The UT Dallas Women beat Texas St. 34 to 10 in what I heard was a very good match.  I know I'm more than proud of how these girls have come together to play this game. That win secured them of 5th place in the league of 7 clubs and now they may have a bye in the upcoming playoffs/championships.
       As I wait for info on the game Saturday and how the playoffs will be structured, I will post that info later this week along with the address to the UT San Antonio field for those of you who want to watch them play.
      The men will be in action this weekend also.  They will travel to Stephenville to take on the up and coming Tarleton St.  In last years playoffs, Tarleton St. made notice of who they are and what they want to compete in.  This year they've been competing in the tier 1 and they have been taking no prisoners.  They are a well coached, big and fast club.  They have no problem knocking off established clubs on their way to the playoffs next spring.
      I will post more info later this week as well as an address to their field later this week.

    This past weekend, your UT Dallas Women had their 3rd and final home league match of the fall season and the Men had their first home league match.
     The UT Dallas Rugby Club had 2 special guests attend the matches also.  2 of my former team-mates Darrell "Bump" Kee and Chris  "Thump" Perkins traveled to Richardson to talk with the players, share stories and watch what they have been reading about for the past few years.
       Before the ladies took the field, Darrell and Chris gave a pregame talk to the girls which was all good, then they took the field against Sam Houston State University (SHSU) Women.
The Line up:
1. Kaitlyn, 2. Natalie, 3. Vic, 4. Rubab, 5. Sarah, 8. Camille, 9. Elaine, 10. Kayla, 11. Kelly, 12. Brittany, 13. Cari, 14. Dimi
Reserves, Spencer and Kalena
     The first half was a good game, with both clubs battling for space and territory.  Both clubs moved up and down the field, attacking and defending like crazy.  It was UT Dallas to score first, Cari found space outside the SHSU defense and darted into goal for the first try.  She missed the conversion, and it didn't take long for SHSU to answer with a converted try of their own.  The first half ended UT Dallas 5, SHSU 7. 
     As the second half began, a couple of replacements were made, Kalena and Spencer came off the bench to boost the UT Dallas attack and shore up the defense.  It helped on the attack, Cari ran in 2 more trys and converted one of them, but those subs didn't help in the defense.  As we made a few mental mistakes, which allowed SHSU to run in 3 trys of their own and they converted 2 of those.
     The UT Dallas Women played probably the best game of the season and the score didn't reflect the actual game they played.  I know I was extremely proud of them and how they played, but it was showed in the words coming from Darrell and Chris not only after the game, but well into the night and Sunday as well.  They were truly impressed with the play of those girls and they plan on returning for another game in the future. 
     The final score  UT Dallas 17, SHSU 26.

    Because of some things beyond our control, Chris and Darrell weren't able to give a pregame talk to the guys, so they waited until after the game, at "Fuzzy's Taco Shop"
    The guys hosted Stephen F. Austin (SFA) and in the past 3 meetings against them, we had been unable to get ahead of them and usually took a beating.  But this night was special, I couldn't put my finger on it, but there was something different in the air.
The line up:
1. Ryan, 2. Nicky, 3. Caleb, 4. Connor, 5. Brandon, 6. Manny, 7. Will, 8. Daniel, 9. Chase, 10. Edmund, 11. Eric, 12. Seth, 13. Steven, 14. Clint, 15. Brian
Reserves Coleman, Talhah, Aly, John B, Otto, Maika, Spencer all reserves went in the game in the second half.
    The first half kicked off at 6:07 and 4 minutes into the match Daniel ran through, around and over a few SFA players to score the first try of the day.  With that move, which is the fastest UT Dallas has ever scored, gave UT Dallas the lead in which they would never give up.  UT Dallas played pretty good, and there is still room to improve, but tonight was theirs to own.  The end of the first half had UT Dallas up 22 to SFA's 7.
     The second half was pretty much like the first half, both teams fought for territory and the ball.  In a very entertaining match.  SFA was able to put another converted try on the board, but it was UT Dallas that rolled in 6 more trys in that 40 minute span.  The final score UT Dallas 60, SFA 14.
     On this evening Daniel ran in a total of 5 trys, Steven scored 2 trys, Clint, Coleman and Maika all scored a try.  To mark the return of Brian Martinez, he was 5 for 10 in conversions.  And he wowed his team-mates on one of his conversions from the touch line.
      It was a good showing by both the Men and Women to show off their talents on a crisp autumn evening in front of a great crowd.  The upcoming weekend, both the men and women are off from league play, the men will be hosting and playing the UT Dallas Alumni in our yearly grudge match.  This should be as good a game as it always has been since we've been able to have alumni.
      The kick off for the Alumni game is set for 6:00pm, so come on out and watch a great game as the alumni plan to show the current team, that they have game.