Photo by Sara Dechance
The Mustangs defeated the Banana Slugs of Santa Cruz, 94-0, in San Luis Obispo on Saturday, notching another conference win as a top Canadian team visits this weekend.
Cal Poly’s offense was firing. The Mustangs racked up over a dozen tries. Star winger Troy Fletcher, a former Cal Poly football player, got the starting nod at inside center and made a handful of assists.
“I rotated some positions on the A-side,” head coach Chris O’Brien said. “Just to see if we can try to shuffle the deck a little bit and see if something works. I want my best 15 athletes on the field.”
O’Brien highlighted several players, including Jack Hodge, who played lock, as well as Declan Quinn. Hodge was shifted to the starting lineup after contributing off the bench last week. He spent time overseas during fall quarter, O’Brien said.
“But the guy who’s really stepped up is Dylan Winter,” O’Brien said. “He scored the first try on Saturday. He can basically cover anywhere in the front row, and he’s really doing a good job.”
Trinity Western of British Columbia visits San Luis Obispo on Saturday. “Canadian college teams are always very good,” O’Brien said. “I think that will be a very good test for us.” O’Brien described the Spartans as big, physical and skilled.
The Spartans defeated the Western Washington Vikings 36-19 on Saturday, Jan. 17. The Mustangs defeated the Vikings 45-12 in San Luis Obispo. The Spartans lost to Grand Canyon University 39-28 in Phoenix on Jan. 31.
Kickoff is 1 p.m. on the Lower Sports Complex fields, Saturday, Feb. 14. The match will be livestreamed.