St. Ignatius Wildcats Freshman Rugby Blanks McQuaid/Fairport in Windy Showdown

The St. Ignatius High School Wildcats freshmen produced a solid performance in defeating a combined McQuaid Jesuit/Fairport HS freshman rugby team in Rochester, NY on April 13, winning 71-0. The Wildcats set the tone early, scoring, after an impressive team sequence, through lock Jace Herman. They found space out wide and combined that with some good continuity in tight to mount a 38-0 halftime lead. The cold and windy conditions did little to stop St. Ignatius, amd even with several changes in the lineup throughout the say, the Wilfcats stormed to five.more tries in the second half. The offensive prowess of St. Ignatius led to an impressive array of scorers. Players including Michael Friedl, Ben Petrus, Preston Bucsanyi, Amari Johnson, Danny Jouma, Carter Kangas (who scored twice), Ben Stefan (scoring twice on his birthday), Jace Herman, and Quinn Ferris Michael each contributed to the try count. In addition Buscanyi added five conversions and Coen Leucke added three of his own. The Wildcats' cohesion was on full display as Owen Whisler, Colin Betters, Coen Leucke, and Jake Degrandis demonstrated a high worl rate and selflessness in setting up their teammates for success. Explaining the game, a statement from Coach Alex Goff highlighted the broader goal of the game. "We were able to get a lot of players, especially newer players, some quality minutes and they all stepped up and contributed," Goff said. This strong demonstration of depth within the team points positively towards the season ahead. Key moments included a pivotal play by prop Jackson Pichotta, who fended off opponents and initiated a breakaway that led to Kangas's initial try. From then on, St. Ignatius didn't look back. Looking ahead, the Wildcats will take on St. Edward in their next fixture on April 20.