The Wayne State College men's rugby team traveled to North Platte, Nebraska, to battle in a. top 10 showdown against the Colorado School of Mines Orediggers. Entering the contest, WSC was ranked second in the country and the Orediggers were ranked ninth, according to the National Collegeiate Rugby's top 20 Division III preseason poll. The Wildcats routed the Orediggers 71-5 to start the season off with a win.
    "It was a solid performance all around, and we looked like we had picked up exactly where we left off in December," head coach Bryn Chivers said. "It would be easy to think that we were in the National Championship's just last week and not eight months ago."
    Both teams battled through early mistakes in the beginning stages, but then WSC broke through. When the Wildcats settled into their rhythms it became clear that while both teams were equally matched physically, the WSC men were far more experienced, and the higher "Rugby IQ" began to have an impact on the game. A first half explosion saw the Wildcats take a 29-0 lead into halftime.
    The second half saw an even bigger explosion of points, as WSC continued their momentum. The Wildcats scored 42 points in the second while the defense only allowed on Oredigger try, to bring the final score to 71-5, a dominating opening win.
    Many different WSC players ended up scoring tries during the contest. Leading the way was Vuyo Mdlalose and Asante Rikhotso, who each scored two tries. Francisco Rolon, Banele Jiyane, Ayanda Khumalo, Diego Stefani, Ayabo Mlobeli, Tshidiso Letsoalo, and Trent Draper each added a try. Logan Stevens kicked eight conversions home for WSC as well. 
    "We had three new players in the starting team, Franciso Rolan, Logan Stevens, and Brennen Hruska," Chivers said. "They all made important contributions to the win."
    The Wildcats brought enough players to play a "B-side" match with the Orediggers. The game was led by captain Ricardo Pretorius and Joao Fernandez, as WSC beat the Orediggers 34-7.
    WSC is back in action in Saturday, Sept. 28 in Bethany, Oklahoma where they travel to play a top 20 Division I opponent in the Southern Nazarene University Crimson Storm.