CALEDONIA, Mich. - The Davenport men's rugby team improved to 3-0 this fall with a 34-10 win over visiting Adrian College on a rainy Saturday. The day was a busy one for the squad as the coaching staff opened the doors at 8 AM for the first fall skills/ID camp. Players aged 16-18 were treated to different drills and evaluated for their hard work. There were several Midwest teams represented including Warsaw High School, Grandville High School, Middleton Area Rugby Club, United RFC, TC Alliance, Fond du Lac Stoutmen, Detroit Catholic Central High School, West Ottawa High School, Kentwood Rugby Club, LEO Rugby Club, North Bay, and the Midwest Thunderbirds.

The game started with the Panthers kicking off the Midwest season opener into the wind that resulted in a great contest and win with a short kick into the wind. The Panthers were quick to score off of their first lineout despite a charged Adrian team challenging the maul of Davenport. The score came from "Man of the Match" Ethan Howard.

"Ethan had a complete game today," said head coach Dustin Steedman. "His throws were on point and he capitalized and punished the over throws by the Bulldogs in the lineout. He didn't falter in the scrum, and obviously put key points on the board."

The decision of who would be the "Man of the Match" was not an easy one. There are about 14 other guys that deserve a mention. Captain Colin Turner had a score and some nice runs, but his defensive presence was most notable, getting off the line making dominant tackles, while being a menace around the breakdown areas. Freshman Lucas Staggs showed up and had a great day as well. While he didn't see the try zone his work rate on and off the ball on both offense and defense was something the team was really happy to see. You gotta love it when you have a winger that likes to get off of the edge and get involved.  As the game wore on, the Adrian forwards were out-matched on both sides of the ball. While their defense was quick off the line our ability to offload into space kept them off balance. The other players that contributed to the 34-10 score were Christiaan VanderWesthuizen, Saul Pitout, and Takunda Makiwa. 

Scoring Breakdown
Ethan Howard 2 tries
Colin Turner 1 try
Saul Pitout 1 try
Takunda Makiwa 1 try
Christiaan VanderWesthuizen 1 try