The Cardinal started off strong with an early steal at the hands of Riley Elliot who took the quick tap and sent Kasen Stephensen on a hard line through the middle of the park. Colin Grant gathered the offload and two quick passes later, Diego Burgos found himself on a 40m sprint to the tryzone. Elliot slotted the conversion from out wide in what would prove to be a crucial conversion.  

To start the 2nd half, Grant made good on the aerial contest at the restart forcing a Sam Houston knock on. The right hand scrum left ample space for a crafty backline attack.  Co-captains Thane Brueschke and Elliot sent Lucas Cavalieri on a strike line through the middle. Elliot would convert to bring the score to 14-0.

Sam Houston would strike back quickly as the Cardinal found themselves scrambling on defense. The center conversion kick bounced off the uprights, keeping the game at a 2 score difference with time winding down. Off the subsequent kickoff, Sam Houston forced a penalty in the Cardinal 22m. They broke through the defense to score center. The successful conversion brought Sam Houston to within 2 points; 14-12 to the Cardinal. With one kickoff remaining the Cardinal secured possession and sent the ball to touch to end the game. The Cardinal faces Iowas State next in pool play. 

Starting Roster:
1. Colin Grant '24
2. Kasen Stephensen '24
4. Riley Elliot '27
5. Taki Rifai '27
6. Lucas Cavalieri '25
10. Diego Burgos '25
11. Jeff Edsall '24

Reserves:
3. Faris Bdair '24
7. Thomas Adamo '25
8. Thane Brueschke '25
9. Anders Luffman '26
12. Patrick Kennedy '27
13. Charlie Abowd '27
14. Nihar Janga '27