OBETZ, OHIO — In an early-season battle of top-10 teams, Pendleton Rugby prevailed early this month.

The 10th-ranked Arabians (5-0) defeated No. 4 ranked Cleveland St. Ignatius 20-10 at Fortress Obetz in Ohio. The win moved them up three spots to No. 7 in the country, according to the Goff Rugby Report.

A late JJ Kissick interception and try, and a Nick Trout conversion sealed the 20-10 victory.

A Trout penalty kick from 20 meters out got the scoring started and put Pendleton ahead 3-0.

St. Ignatius responded with a try but failed the conversion to go ahead 5-3. Clayton Reno, Nate DeRolf, Dresden Roberts, and Eli Arthur all made multiple goal-line tackles for Pendleton.

After getting the ball back, Elijah Pimental broke off a long run while Andrew Evans, Zane Davis, Eli Libler and Peyton Pollock ran tough meter-gaining runs that led to a short try by Nolan Souders. The corner kick failed and the Arabians took an 8-5 entering the half.

The second half saw another back-and-forth fight.

After several phases of tough runs, Trout found speedster Jacob Rowley on the edge where he broke two tackles and sped 50 meters for the try. The kick failed and Pendleton led 13-5.

On the ensuing St. Ignatius score, Pendleton tried to make another goal-line stand. After three stops, the Wildcats would not be denied on a fourth trip near the goal line and scored a corner goal. The kick failed and kept Pendleton out in front 13-10.

In the closing minutes, the Kissick interception out of a timeout capped off the upset win.