Home

Steamboat Springs — Steamboat Springs' Erik Wernig grabbed the ball from the ground, muscled through a pair of Glenwood Springs defenders and leapt over the goal line, tagging much-needed points onto the scoreboard in the waning minutes of Saturday's season-opening rugby match.

Thanks to a pair of long runs from Glenwood, however, Wernig's late dive wouldn't be enough. Steamboat dropped its first game of the season Saturday, falling at home to Glenwood, 22-12.

"We'll do better when we can come together as a team," Wernig said.

Inexperienced and rookie players dotted the field for Steamboat on Saturday. Against a tough Glenwood squad, that proved too much of a hurdle.

Glenwood's surge came after a tight first half. Robbie Shine, Steamboat's captain, dove in for his team's first try after his side won a scrum. Steamboat trailed, 8-5, at halftime.

"We had a couple phases going toward our goal line," Shine said. "They knocked the ball down, so we had a scrum at the 5-meter line. I saw an opportunity to go weak side, so I called it and passed it back to the scrum half. I got it back and just dove for the line."

In the second, though, Glenwood broke off two long runs. Steamboat tacklers couldn't stop the progress. Later, Steamboat's offense couldn't generate enough momentum to get back down the field and answer.

"We overloaded a side and didn't break down out of a scrum," Shine said. "It's really difficult when you have people that don't know what they're doing. Eventually after some more repetitions and we come together as a group, they'll get it better."

Shine said a slow start to the season showed on the field.

"We have only been able to practice once," he said. "That showed, but we'll get back on it. We'll get fit and be ready to play next week."