JMU Men's Rugby Club routed Rowan 60-12 on Saturday, Sept. 19, picking up its first win of the season in the home opener at John Carr Field.
The Dukes opened the scoring less than a minute in, intercepting a Rowan pass near their own line and running it back for a try, and built a big early lead from there. JMU let its intensity slip for a stretch in the first half, letting Rowan cut into the lead, before pulling away again to start the second half.
Logan Edler led the way with four tries. Andrew Ringel, Preston Francois, Christian Ferrell, Matheo Rojas, Joaquin Meza and Max Apesa each added one, and Francois converted five. Connor O'Hehir, Matheo Rojas, JJ Tiago and Christian Ferrell led the defensive effort.
The scrummage was sharper than it was in the opener, and the Dukes did a better job finishing what they started, turning nine line breaks into points. A handful of forwards battled cramps late in the match, but nothing serious.
Rowan could not field a B-side and let JMU know the morning of the match, so the Dukes ran an intra-squad B versus C game instead, won by the B side 30-10.
JMU travels to Rutgers on Saturday, Sept. 26.
