Life University Athletics

MARIETTA, Ga. – Life University knocked off Arkansas State 69-5 on Saturday.
 
"I am proud of the guys today most of all because they were smart in the way they executed the game plan," Head Coach Colton Cariaga said. "It wasn't the prettiest rugby we have played, but that's how it goes sometimes. The big thing to a man is concentrating on a specific role and being tenacious in carrying it out. Arkansas State did catch us on multiple occasions, and we'll have to look at those. We look forward to building on this performance with another opportunity to train and compete next week."
 
In total, eight Running Eagles scored tries in the match. Brian Muntanga paced the squad with a double.
 
The Running Eagles got things rolling when Duncan Van Schalkwyk nailed a kick to put them on the board at 3-0. Austin White added to the lead as dotted the ball down for Life U's first try at 10-0. Van Schalkwyk later blocked a kick, which was return by Keegan Sparks for a try. Muntanga scored his first try of the day as strong pressure on A-State's half of the field allowed him to score to push the lead to 24-0. The Red Wolves got on the board with eight minutes left in the half to pull within 24-5. The Running Eagles answered back and closed out the half as Sebastian Banos dove into the try zone to push the lead to 31-5.
 
The second half was all Life U as Harley Wheeler found pay dirt to get things started. During the ensuing kickoff, Daemon Torres got a great charge off and dotted the ball down to increase their lead to 43-5. Muntanga scored his second try with just over 22 minutes left in the game. A few minutes later a scrum led to a penalty try. With less than seven minutes left, both Ryan Reese and Sean Coughlin score tries to secure the 69-5 victory.
 
The Running Eagles are back in action on Saturday, Feb. 10 as they travel to Clemson, S.C. to face off against Clemson.