BYU rugby wins national championship with 49-42 victory over Arkansas State

BYU captured its second national championship in rugby Saturday night at Rio Tinto Stadium with a hard-fought 49-42 victory over Arkansas State.

The Cougars also capped a perfect season with a 17-0 record. BYU's only other national title came in 2009.

The Cougars rallied from an early 8-0 deficit to score 15 unanswered points. After ASU tied the game, Shaun Davies and Will Taylor scored back-to-back tries in a two-minute span to propel BYU to a 29-15 advantage.

The Cougars led by that score at halftime.

Paul Lasike, who has a scholarship offer at running back from the football team, scored a try with just under 48 minutes remaining in the match to give the Cougars a 36-18 lead.

BYU went up 46-23 in the 61st minute on a try by Mikey Su'a, but ASU kept battling, and scored its final try in stoppage time.

Each Cougar try was scored by a different player.