Mar. 27, 1997

Cal Rugby Shuts Out Washington, 24-0

SEATTLE - Fly half Dave Stroble created his own homecoming party while leading Cal's rugby team to a 24-0 victory over the University of Washington Thursday. The Port Angeles, Washington native and acting Cal captain scored one try, set-up another and kicked two conversions for the Bears.

It took only 12 minutes of play for Stroble to make his mark with a 40 meter break and a precision pass to winger Ryan Fried for the first points of the match. The Cal try came against the run of play as the Huskies dominated early. Aided by a series of penalties and line-out wins, the Washington team pinned the Bears on their own goal line, but could not score. Stroble's break and the ensuing try gave Cal momentum which resulted in winger Doug Anthrop and center Deron McElroy also scoring before half-time.

Stroble's own try was the only scoring in the second period in a match slowed by muddy conditions and repeatedly stopped by the referee.

"It was a good win on the road," the Cal captain said after the game. "We jumped onto the field straight after getting off a plane. It is hard to attain mental focus under those conditions and I was proud of how we handled the situation.

"It was also good that new players got time on the field and showed that they could play a full 80 minutes."

The majority of Cal's starting players rested Thursday in anticipation of two hard games of rugby this weekend. The Bears travel to Vancouver for a match against the University of British Columbia on Saturday and then face the University of Victoria on Monday. The two Canadian sides are the only teams to have beaten Cal this season. The Bears hope to revenge those home losses while also using the games to sharpen their skills in preparation for the national championship play-offs in Santa Cruz on April 19-20. Cal will then host the final four at the beginning of May, where the Bears hope to secure a seventh consecutive national title.

Cal            19 5 = 24
U of Washington 0 0 = 0

Scoring: First Half -Ryan Fried Try (5) Dave Stroble Conversion (2) 12.31; Doug Anthrop Try (5) 28.38; Deron McElroy Try (5) Dave Stroble Conversion (2) 33.00. Second Half-Dave Stroble Try (5) 16.45. Cal Record: 10-2