Hawkeyes Continue Winning Ways in Week 3
Hawkeyes ride dominating 2nd half to beat Trine 54–12.
September 20, 2025
by Peter Heimer
“A tale of two halves. We kept our composure and kept the offensive pressure on.” Iowa head coach Tyler Dailey
During the first half of Saturday’s non-conference rugby match between the University of Iowa and Trine University at the Hawkeye Rugby Fields, the visiting team showed no ill effects of their seven-hour bus journey the night before from Angola, Indiana, as the Thunder matched the Hawkeyes with two deserved tries and a 12–12 score at the break. Whatever Coach Dailey and Coach Miller said to the team at halftime, it worked as the Hawkeyes wore down the undermanned Thunder and scored six unanswered second-half tries en route to a 54–12 win.
Credit to Trine for its determination and skilled play, but the Hawks’ experience and relentless attack ultimately proved too much for the Thunder.
Fifth-year senior captain Ren Heimer, playing flyhalf, led Iowa with four tries and seven of eight conversions for 34 points. Law school student and center Henry Schwob scored three tries, and fullback Easton Taylor rounded out the scoring with one try. All of the forwards, including prop Tyler Jurva, flanker Daniel Portz, and vice-captain prop Sam Zimmermann, kept the Thunder backpedaling and recycled the ball quickly for the backs to use. By the end, several younger players got significant playing time. All in all, a comprehensive team victory.
Coach Dailey commented, “We had some struggles with our set pieces in the first half, but after a couple adjustments and some beautiful TEAM efforts the boys slowly walked away with the match.”
Following the Trine match, the Hawkeyes B side took on UW Whitewater, running up a big score margin in another strong win on the season. Standout players in the second match: Rory Merrit (flanker), Matthew Comer (center), Nick Caylor (lock) scored his first try, and Jack Tomkins (center) returned to play from injury. With a strong Hawks B side, the team’s future looks bright.
Next up: Saturday, September 27, 2025 at Minnesota, a Heart of America conference matchup.
Field location: St. Paul Soccer Fields, address: 2088 Larpenteur Ave W, St Paul, MN 55108
Also: https://www.gopherrugby.com/scores-and-schedule
