Issue date: 10/22/09 Section: Sports

"Coming into the game, the key was defense and your willingness to play defense hard and shut them down," Sexton said. "It turns out [their coach] told them the same thing. They were more effective at shutting us down than we were at shutting them down."

Sexton said KSU also took advantage of some missed tackles by the Bulls on multiple breakaways, and the team did not play as aggressively as they should have in breakdowns and scrums.

"They were gutted by this," Sexton said. "This was a game that perhaps they were a little too confident in, but in reality, K-State stepped up to the plate and played very hard, and you have to give them a lot of credit."

The Bulls' struggles started long before the end of the first half. Ralph said the team did not have good practices the last couple days of the previous week, because many players went home for Midterm Break. This caused many players to meet the rest of the team at Kansas State.

The Bulls also were affected by two in-game injuries. Senior Phil Powell left with a high ankle sprain and senior Paul Edgerley left with a rolled ankle. However, even with the setbacks, the team did not have much of a dropoff.

"The reserves that came in just played excellent," McDonough said. "They showed that they can play whenever we need them. That was one of the few good things that came out of the game."

Next up for the Bulls is a match Saturday at St. Louis University, which the Bulls last played in fall 2007 with an 11-8 win. The team returns home Oct. 31 against University of Nebraska-Lincoln, which is the final match of the fall season.

< prev Page 2 of 2

Article Tools