STATEN ISLAND, NY ---- May 3, 2026
“We came in pretty confident, thinking we were gonna have an underdog win, but that’s not what happened.”
Xavier's confidence was certainly the story in the first half as the Knights of Xavier and the Purple Eagles of Gonzaga High School went toe to toe for the first 35-minutes of the game, leaving the score 15-10 in Xavier’s favor at the midway.
Tries by wing Leo Heyman ‘27, outside center James Allison ‘26, and a penalty kick and conversion kick by fullback Jack Cross ‘27 kept the Knights in great position for a strong second half. But Xavier failed to make adjustments in the second half, and instead deviated from what worked well in the first half of play.
Gonzaga vs Xavier
📸 Mike LiVigni
“We were bunched up a whole lot,” Averill said, “so once they got to the edges, their 9 and their 10 were slinging the ball out. We needed to make sure we weren't bunched in the breakdowns or collapsing on their forwards, but that's what we ended up doing. This let them get to the edge and score.”
Xavier’s defense seemingly collapsed in the second half, starting with a stolen pass by Gonzaga at the 38-minute mark that changed the game’s momentum. Xavier never seemed to recover from this mistake, and the Eagles would score four more times with no answer from the Knights. Xavier seemed to collect themselves at the end of the match, as Averill punched in one more try, but the damage was already done: a final score of 20-39 in Gonzaga’s favor.
Gonzaga vs Xavier
📸 Mike LiVigni
“We didn't defend as well as we normally do,” said head coach Greg Norris, “and we let their guys slip through the cracks. They picked a few holes from us, and that definitely took the wind out of our sails.”
Gonzaga dominated possession in the second half, and without possession, Xavier had little chance. “This was definitely a game where we had every opportunity to win,” Norris added, “but possession is everything, and we didn’t retain possession.” Assistant Coach Ski Bailey said that Xavier needed “better discipline about our decision-making and adjustments,” adding, “whether it be a set piece, how long we fight through contact, our work rate on the ground, all of it all needs to improve. We have to make better decisions every single time.”
According to Allison, his team needs to focus on bouncing back.
“We need to learn from our mistakes, but we also have to fix them. We gotta keep our heads high and approach the National Championship with confidence.”
Gonzaga vs Xavier
📸 Mike LiVigni