The Auburn Men's Rugby Club's season is off to a good start, including a last-second thriller against Alabama.
After defeating Troy in their preseason match by a large margin, the Tigers dropped their first match against Alabama, 36-17. Auburn rallied with a blowout victory over Ole Miss, defeating the Rebels, 55-10.
In its most recent match, Auburn faced Alabama in an attempt to exact revenge from the Tigers' first loss of the season. The Tigers also needed a victory to secure a position in the league tournament.
Both teams played very defensively, and the game came down to the final seconds with rookie Cameron Porter scoring on the last play to beat Alabama, 12-8.
Captain Sebastien Kamyab described the crazy ending as something comparable to the "Kick Six" play.
"At the very last second, we made a miracle play, almost like the Iron Bowl, and put up five points on the board to make it 12-8," Kamyab said.
Junior Patrick Klatte said he was sore after the game, but was definitely pleased with the outcome.
"It was 80 minutes of do-or-die, straight-up, hard-nosed, smash-mouth rugby, and we pulled out the win," Klatte said. "Knowing what could've happened, and knowing that we took another big step towards the [rugby league] Championship, made all the scrapes and bruises hurt a little less after the game."
The Tigers have been led in scoring by Ben Winiarczyk, who was selected as a 2013 SCRC All-Conference First Team member in the 2013 7's league.
Kamyab also gives credit where credit is due to the players in the shadows.
"We've had a lot of guys stepping up to the plate and working hard," Kamyab said. "Just because some haven't scored doesn't mean they haven't contributed to the team."
Senior Michael Pietkiewicz said he thinks the win against Alabama had to do with one outside factor: facial hair.
"The last time we played Alabama, the equation was not balanced because they had a player with a mustache," Pietkiewicz said. "In the three-week span [between games against Alabama] our fearless leader, Sebastien Kamyab, grew a mustache that was vastly superior to their mustache, and the outcome was an Auburn victory."
The Tigers face struggling Mississippi State this weekend in Starkville, in a game that the Tigers are heavy favorites in.
"We're pretty confident going against Miss State," Kamyab said. "They don't have a win yet, and they've gotten kind of run over."
The Tigers follow the Mississippi State road trip by heading to Florida to face the Gators.
The Tigers host their final game of the regular season at home against LSU.
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