by John Fanta ‘13
Coach Dan Arbeznik wore a big smile as he watched his Wildcat Rugby program achieve their first home victory. The snow poured on to Wasmer Field on a brisk night, but the ‘Cats weren’t bothered by that. The Wildcats, who went in 1-1 after topping Southeastern (36-5) and falling to Cathedral (17-0) in the first weekend of the season out in Indiana.
Strongsville came out stunned by the Wildcats’ hitting, as Frank Rolf got the scoring going early. It was 7-0 in favor of Saint Ignatius after Ryan Linker’s conversion. Senior Mark Morek dished a pass to Ryan Linker for another Saint Ignatius try (like a touchdown, worth 5 points). Frank Rolf went on to put in his second try of the night (4th on the season). At half, Saint Ignatius led 34-0. In the second half, Cody Gulasey, strong sophomore Michael Mathews, senior Irishman Pat Carney, and rumbling John Lawler all put in tries. Michael Mathews was phenomenal. “It was a memorable night. I have been waiting for this for a long time and we were extremely excited for tonight,” said Coach Dan Arbeznik.
The Wildcats face a big showdown with the #6-ranked team in the country, Westerville North. Saint Ignatius meets Westerville at 7:30 pm (JV at 6 pm). Senior captain Ian McDonald said it, “We need to make a statement Saturday. It’s time for Saint Ignatius Rugby to begin showing teams what we are made of this year.”
