Life University Athletics

MARIETTA, Ga. --- In a cold, Saturday afternoon D1A contest, the Life University men's rugby team took advantage of Arkansas State mistakes that were forced by the team's aggressive defensive play, pulling away for a 30-8 home victory over the Red Wolves in Lupo Family Field.

The men's rugby team christened the new playing surface on Lupo Family Field, being the first varsity contest to be held on the surface since it was replaced following damage from floods in the Fall of 2021. In the game, the Red Wolves scored first, taking advantage of a Running Eagles penalty in positive territory to notch a penalty kick and an early 3-0 lead. Life U quickly responded, Bradley Crane striking true for a Life U penalty kick to even the score 3-3 and then connected on two more penalty kicks in the following minutes to see the Running Eagles lead expand to 9-3. Before the half, Life U converged on a Red Wolves kick attempt, blocking it backwards where Francisco Sied scooped it up for an uncontested try, giving the team a commanding 16-3 advantage heading into the break.

The second 40 minutes of the contest saw Life U continue to pull away, as the defense in the final meters of the field continually stopped Red Wolves scoring attempts, while the Running Eagles were able to take advantage of Arkansas state miscues. Life U's second try came via nifty foot work by Ishma-eel Safodien, receiving a quick pass and slipping out of a couple of Arkansas State tackles to dot down the try. The final Life U score pushed the lead to 30-3, when another blocked kick ended up in the hands of Orrin Bizer after a couple Life U passes, cutting his way into the try area near the far sideline. The Red Wolves finally dotted down a try of their own in the final minutes of the contest, but missed on the conversion attempt to see the game end 30-8.

When asked about the match head coach Colton Cariaga said, " Today was a great day for the program overall. It was a privilege to get back out and compete on Lupo Field for the first time since the rebuild. We played hard and fought for each other, but the season is very young and we've got plenty of work to do. We need to continue getting better day by day." Cariaga finished saying, "Lastly, big thanks to the famliy and friends who braved the cold and stuck around for both games. We look forward to welcoming them back again next week and for the remainder of the season."

The Running Eagles stay home for their next game, facing Lindenwood University Saturday, February 12th at 1:30 PM.