MARIETTA, Ga. – The Davenport rugby program got shutout for the first time in 15's history on Saturday as they fell 53-0 to preseason  No. 1 ranked Life University. DU trailed just eight minutes into the first half and never could get on track. The game marked the debut for the Panthers in DI-A Rugby. Coach Kruger Van Biljon said, “this is a new level for us and it showed in the first half with the speed Life came out with”.

Life University's speed proved to be quite the adjustment for DU in the first half. Coach Van Biljon said, “It took us around 30 minutes to adjust and once that happened, we got things rolling and started to build phases.” In the second half, Davenport made some corrections and seemed to play much better. DU allowed 17 points in the second as opposed to 36 points in the first half. The Panthers were still unable to put any points up on the board but they had become more familiar to the speed of DI-A Rugby.

Most of the game was played on Davenport's side of the field. When the Panthers were attacking, turnovers and poor lineout play hindered any chance of scoring. Coach Van Biljon stated, “Life is a well drilled side and you can see they played a couple games this season already”.

Davenport falls to 1-1 on the season and looks to bounce back when they play at home against the Chicago Lions next Saturday at 1pm. The Panthers have a chance at revenge when Life University travels to Grand Rapids to face Davenport April 4^th.