VICTORIA — Battling the Pacific Pride, the mighty Vikes' electric second half elevated them to a 43–36 victory, Sept. 13 at Wallace Field.

Pride take an early lead

• At the 6-minute mark, the Pride capitalized on several UVic errors, with a rolling maul sending the visiting side over for the first try of the game. The score stood at 7–0 following the conversion.

Vikes respond minutes later

• UVic's lineouts were crisp on the day. After some unsuccessful visits to the Pride's 22, Jordy Auger found his mark in Adam Doane, and the maul was on. The Vikes' first try mirrored that of the Pride's—in the 12th minute, the score was 7-5 for Pacific Pride.

Pride build their lead

• On the back of some slick hands and a few favorable bounces, the Pride's lead grew to 24–5 by the 29th minute.
• The Vikes are typically known for slow starts, and today was no different. Nonetheless, just before halftime, Reece Thompson spotted space for a box kick deep in the Pride's half. Morgan Di Nardo was all over it and dumped it off to Thoran Koyote for a fantastic finish.
• The Pride answered back quickly, with their hooker spotting space outside a maul. With this try and the ensuing conversion, the score stood at 31-12 in favour of the Pride at halftime.

Vikes find their second wind

• In the 45th minute, off a set lineout play, the Vikes slung the ball out to Morgan Di Nardo, who cut up his defender on the outside. Once he saw the picture he liked, Di Nardo dumped it off to Thoran Koyote, who sped down the sideline for his second try of the match. Young Michael Oughtred's boot was true, bringing the score to 31-19 for the Pride.
• Later, the Vikes stretched their legs, showing off some dazzling offloads and interplay around the ruck. This led to Lockhart MacGregor distributing wide to a pacing Adam Doane, who broke the line and crossed over for his first try of the season. Following another Oughtred conversion, the score narrowed to 31–26 at the 60-minute mark.
• The guests would score once more, but it was all Vikes for the last 20 minutes. Off a scrum penalty 10 metres out, some heads-up thinking from Muiredach Casey saw him take a quick tap and pass the ball to Brendan Kim, who ran over the opposing scrum-half on his way to the end zone.
• Thereafter, Keegan Neary dotted one down in the corner on his Vikes debut, bringing the score to 41–36 for the home side.
• To seal the deal, Oughtred took points in the 79th minute, making it 43–36. This score would hold until the final whistle.

Up Next
The Vikes host UBC next Saturday, September 20 at 2:30 p.m. in the first leg of the Wightman Boot. This match also marks the beginning of their qualification journey for the 2025 Canadian University Men's Rugby Championship.