Old Dominion rugby captain and No. 8 Michael Rigual is now back at home after surgery and a stint in intensive care following a vicious beating incurred Nov. 2 in which two of his teammates were also hurt.

An arrest has been made in the incident - 19-year-old Chris Slade is in custody with a hearing scheduled for December. However, there are more suspects still at large. Rigual, who was one of the teams very best players and one who ODU Coach Mike Herron said was a national-caliber player, was badly beaten and sustained significant brain trauma in the attack, an attack so horrific some thought he had been shot. According to various reports, a private party was held at a private, off-campus residence following ODU's defeat of Longwood to end the regular season.

At around 1:30am on Nov. 2, some people reportedly tried to gain access to the house where the get-together was being held. They were told it was a small, private party. The visitors became angry, and one of them three a chair through a house window. Rigual came outside to see what the source of the noise was, and was set upon by multiple assailants, who beat him using a blunt implement from a nearby Halloween display. His teammates intervened, with club president Robert Sokol sustaining serious injuries and River Piercy also being injured.

Herron credited those two and other teammates with saving Rigual's life. Piercy was treated and released. Sokol suffered facial fractures and recently underwent surgery on his orbital bone. He is expected to recover.

"It was horrific," said ODU Coach Hennie van Zyl. "We know there's a legal process to this so we are not saying a lot. Michael has been such a great rugby player and a leader, and a great person."

Herron echoed van Zyl's description. "It was just horrific," he said. "This was not a big raucous party. It was a get-together for friends. The attack was closer to a home invasion than anything else. It was just hugely traumatizing for everyone.

Rigual was taken to a local hospital and was in the ICU for several days. He was visited daily by his coaches and his teammates. The Old Dominion team played in the Cardinals Conference playoff, but missing half their starting forward pack, lost. Rigual was eventually able to breathe on his own and has since been moved to the DC_area, where his family lives. He was in a hospital there and is now at home. He still has cognitive issues, according to a local TV interview with his father, Roly Rigual.

"He is doing better," said van Zyl. "We do get regular reports. We do know a lot more needs to happen - therapy, surgery. But he's with his parents and that's good."

According to the latest family update on that page, Rigual's last memory of before the attack was getting dressed that evening. He remember nothing of the two weeks following. However, Herron said he posted on a Facebook invitation to the team's awards dinner that he intends to be at the banquet.

A Give Forward page has been set up for Rigual, who will need a lot of recovery treatment:
https://www.giveforward.com/fundraiser/n0f6