Beasts first yields defeat

The "Widemouth Beasts," Oberlin's Men's Rugby Club lost 8-0 to the College of Wooster last Saturday in a hard fought contest. The young Oberlin squad disappointingly failed to score against the rowdy Wooster squad.

The loss was Oberlin's second straight to Wooster. Although the two teams have recently established a biannual rivalry, Oberlin losses to Wooster were once as rare as 80 degree October afternoons.

Despite the Beasts's inability to score, effort was not lacking from several standout Oberlin players. Among these were center sophomore Salomon Borstein, who had several long runs and bone-crushing tackles, and hooker first-year, Sam Weber. Weber, in his first ever rugby match proved stoic and grueling at the rough hooker position.

Another marquee performance was displayed by the veteran senior eight-man, Matt Hayden. As the pillar of a young and inexperienced group of forwards, Hayden showed tremendous poise, particularly with his scrum play: "I simply executed tackles and used my head."

Line-outs were also strong as Oberlin not only spoiled many Wooster put ins, but secured most of their own. Hayden and lock first-year Jeremy Stone were near infallible in their line-out play. This proved helpful to the Oberlin backline who capitalized on many Oberlin-won balls.

Obvious throughout the match was sloppiness by both teams, due to inexperience by referees and players. Controversial calls were many as several confused players were left out of position.

Regardless, the Beasts held their ground throughout most of the match, giving up one late first half score. The try occurred after several tackles were missed, giving the Wooster backs an easy trip to the score board. Flanker first-year John Buff commented, "we just softened up long enough for their offense to penetrate."

Overall, the match proved a good learning experience for the young Oberlin club. Next Saturday, the Widemouth Beasts will be traveling to Bowling Green University for a much anticipated win.