POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (September 18, 2011) -- The Vassar College men's rugby team hosted Hofstra University men in Poughkeepsie on a simply spectacular sunny fall afternoon and with a good crowd on hand they ran amok scoring 10 tries recording their second divisional win of the season. The halftime score was 33-0 as Hofstra struggled to keep pace with the Brewers and even when the home team were reduced to 14 men for the final 10 minutes there was no serious threat to the Vassar goal-line. In the end 7 conversions of the 10 tries brought the scoreline to 64-0 and smiles to the faces of three former captains, Tom Weishaupt, Andrew Abshere, and Winston Clement back visiting campus.

Vassar College Men 64 v 0 Hofstra University Men
Tries: Tyler Blake (1), James Purtle (1), Jerry Dieudonne (1), Ian Ruginski (1), Andrew Jdaydani (3), Brett Anker (2), Nic Placeres (1).
Cons: Brett Anker (7).

Overall record: 2-0

Next week: Sunday September 25, 2011 at William Paterson University kick-off 10:00 am.

Some good possession from the forwards meant that the Vassar team was able to launch their back division repeatedly and if truth be told some pretty poor defensive work by the visitors meant that gaps opened up. Captain James Purtle ran with strength and without hesitation consistently beating his opposite number. It meant that Vassar got over the gain line and good support led to go forward ball and problems for the Hofstra defense.

The Hofstra pack put in a number of good pushes at early scrums and it looked like the day might be a tad torrid for the Brewers. But the home forwards settled down and they provided an adequate platform in the set piece. The lineout functioned well for the Brewers and tries from Tyler Blake, James Purtle, and Jerry Dieudonne in the first 20 minutes allowed them to impose their presence.

It was also another good day for Number 8 Andrew Jdaydani who scored a hat-trick and he is the team's top try scorer thus far this season. He still tends to snatch at the ball when it's at the base of the scrum sometimes and he'll need to improve in this area.

Brett Anker had a good day with the foot making 7 of 10 conversions and he also added 2 tries to his tally.

The problem for the Brewers that has surfaced in both games this year is one of organization. They failed for the second week running to control the game with their patterns. Too often there was confusion and it was compounded when poor skills didn't allow the team to implement the next phase when it looked like they had made the right decision. It looks like it's going to take a lot of hard work to improve and it is somewhat fortunate that the season has begun with 2 of the less strong opponents on the schedule.

One can dwell on the 5 tries in each half and the emphatic scoreline but there are much tougher teams ahead in both the conference and the region.

Team: 15 Hayden Moon 14 Jerry Dieudonne 13 Zach Kent 12 Akeel St. Vil 11 Brett Anker 10 James Purtle 9 Adam Steel 1 Joe Karpman 2 Hal Moore 3 Tyler Blake 4 Ian Ruginski 5 Andrew Moore 6 Nic Placeres 7 Dillon Tyksinski 8 Andrew Jdaydani Subs: Nick Graham for Adam Steel, Jehan Shams for Joe Karpman.

Vassar College Men "B" 36 v 12 Hofstra University Men "B"
Tries: Jehan Shams (1), Andrew Massey (4), Parker Reeves (1).
Cons: Nick Graham (3).

This was a big team effort as a large number of rookies took to the field and represented Vassar for the first time. They did the college proud of that there can be no debate. Parker Reeves soared in the lineout and was strong carrying the ball forward. Andrew Massey collected 4 tries and the former tennis player served up a strong performance. Up front Vassar bossed their opponents in the loose and looked effective rucking and winning the ball. Brandon Greene made a huge statement as he bashed and barged his way forward and he was well supported by his 7 other pack colleagues. The backs struggled a bit because the service from Evan Obligin was often disrupted by a Hofstra player. Even so Vassar's Nick Graham, playing in his first game at 10 managed to put rookie Michael Nishimura through a few gaps. Three first half tries gave Vassar a 21-0 lead and a further 3 took the team's total to 36.

There was some splendid defensive work as new players put in some crunching tackles. Miguel Salcedo was exceptional on the wing chasing down attackers. Tom Rafferty too was effective with ball in hand and in contact, and Kenta Hsui ran with intelligence. Hofstra showed some real character as they scored twice despite being down in the second half and they deserved the 2 good tries for all their hard work.

Team: 15 Matthew Choe 14 Kenta Hasui 13 Tom Rafferty 12 Michael Nishimura 11 Miguel Salcedo 10 Nick Graham 9 Evan Obligin 1 Brandon Greene 2 Jehan Shams 3 Dan Flynn 4 Jonathan Chu 5 Andrew Massey 6 Alan Kenney 7 Parker Reeves 8 Matt Elisofon Subs: Zac Hays for Dan Flynn.