March 24- Arizona returned from Spring Break this week to prepare for their final regular season match of the year, a clash with #12 Utah in Salt Lake City this weekend. Head Coach Sean Duffy has named the side that will take on the Utes, with Kyle Rogers and Sean Coleman in their usual leadership spots at Captain and Vice Captain, respectively for the 14th-rankd Wildcats. Arizona seeks their fourth straight victory after their 62-12 win over Notre Dame March 11th and also seek 2nd place in the PAC Conference with the automatic berth to the upcoming playoffs that comes with it.

 

In the forwards, the usual front row of Steven Branham, Jake Hedge, and Kurt Vecchio returns while Coleman pairs with standout youngster Bronson Teles to give the Wildcats three Junior All Americans in their tight five. In the back row, PAC Player of the Month in January Ryan Fitzpatrick returns to the starting lineup at openside flanker where he joins Zach Heisterkamp and Tyler Hansen. 

 

In the backs, Matt Rogers starts at Scrumhalf as he looks to continue his strong form from the past few weeks. Luke Thayer and Ben Joseph pair together at Center while Dante Weeks, Ryan Hudson, and Jack San Pietro start in the back three with San Pietro coming off a hat trick against Notre Dame. Coming off a hat trick of his own, Flyhalf Kyle Rogers looks to lead the team against a strong Utah side. 

 

In the reserves, Zach Biggs, Karl Steffany, and Cody Hunt are ready if called upon in the front row with Sam Peri and one of last week's standouts Ben Scoular providing cover at Lock and Flanker, respectively. The talented trio of Anton Grigoriou, Shane Dempsey, and Kalanie Aholelei are ready in the backs reserves to round out this week's roster.

 

Arizona faces Utah for the first time since the team's meeting in the D1A Quarterfinal last year, with the 36-14 result going the way of the Utes. For the Wildcats, this year's match features a number of players who played in last year's playoffs, with the team hoping the lessons learned will benefit the growing team. "We want to finish" said Duffy "we do not want to be the team that doesn't finish what we start, that's part of being a young team we know but we can't be young forever. We need to be able to go on the road, go toe to toe with a good team, and put in a full effort." 

 

 

Utah Lineup (click for bio)

1. Steven Branham

2. Jake Hedge

3. Kurt Vecchio

4. Sean Coleman

5. Bronson Teles

6. Zach Heisterkamp

7. Ryan Fitzpatrick

8. Tyler Hansen

9. Matt Rogers

10. Kyle Rogers (C)

11. Dante Weeks

12. Luke Thayer

13. Ben Joseph

14. Ryan Hudson

15. Jack San Pietro

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16. Zach Biggs

17. Karl Steffany

18. Cody Hunt

19. Sam Peri

20. Ben Scoular

21. Anton Grigoriou

22. Shane Dempsey

23. Kalanie Aholelei