Tri State Finalists Set
The Tri-State Conference helds its semifinals Sunday, with one or two surprises.
Women
In New Jersey on Sunday the Fairfield University Women came from behind to tie the game and then in the second period of overtime scored to finish up 29-24. Fairfield will face the Vassar College Women on Saturday in the final. RPI and MSU will match-up for third and fourth place.
Men
The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Men also won in overtime defeating the USMMA, Kings Point Men 22-15. RPI will travel to Marist College and play against the Red Foxes on Sunday.
This was a bit of a surprise because RPI had fallen to Kings Point during the regular season. But RPI has been known to finish seasons strong, and they've done it again.
Berks Fends Off Tough Competition in Rugby PA Fall 7s Championship
A hugely competitive Boys Fall 7s Championships ended in driving rain and mud, and no excuses as Berks County pulled off two upsets to win the title.
Berks, St. Joseph’s Prep, Conestoga, and La Salle all came into the tournament with a legitimate shot at winning it all. Conestoga had some impressive power runners and a strong defense. La Salle had depth for days and shifty runners. St. Joe’s had the best kicking game and a really polished sevens approach. Berks had pieces of all of that (maybe not the kicking game … until they needed it).
Berks went into the final tournament with a 13-1 record, and yet with Lasalle going 8-1 (participating in fewer tournaments), St. Joe’s 7-3, and Conestoga at 14-4, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who automatically pegged Berks as the favorite.
BYU Completes Dominant Rocky Mountain Fall
BYU won the Rocky Mountain Conference title Saturday with a convincing 62-0 victory over Colorado State.
Center Tayson Hammer, who has been enjoying a really strong fall, scored in the opening two minutes and converted his own try to put BYU in front to stay. Hammer would end up with 17 points on the day. The game remained at 7-0 for the next 11 minutes as CSU battled, but then BYU lock Brittain Hale was over and prop McKay Johnson scored a few minutes later.
The Ika brothers scored either side of halftime, with Tevita running in before the break and Spencer after the break.
No. 8 Josh Nielsen, scrumhalf Nathaniel Edlefsen, flanker Jacob LIttlefield, back John Campbell, and lock Jacob Hall all got in on the scoring act. Four players came off the bench to score tries.
MAC Latest: BG, WMU WIn
Bowling Green beat IUPUI 26-12 and Western Michigan got by Cincinnati 37-20 to solidify the top four in the Mid American Conference.
In a complete mudbath, with a chunk of the field under water, Bowling Green's forwards held sway, especially on defense and in the scrums. They ruined IUPUI ball and while neither set of backs could do much with it, Bowling Green could do a little bit more.
Flyhalf Jake Kubicki and center Joe Johnson both got tries for the Falcons, while flanker John Stuhldreher touched down twice.
Both of IUPUI's tries came as a result of blocked kicks, and both times center Joey Sturgill was the man to rumble in and score.
Still Tight at Top of MARC
It's still all clogged at the top of the Mid-Atlantic Rugby Conference with the top four all winning.
The key result was Salisbury beating Rutgers 29-5. Rutgers had come into the game at 2-1 and with aspirations to break into that top four, but the Sharks put paid to that. Led by strong performances from No. 8 Marcus Montgomery, who scored two tries, and center Caleb Riley, who had one, Salisbury retains a thin grasp on 1st.
Why? Because West Chester won as well, beating Temple 41-12. Lock Dominic Caccese was excellent and the player of the game, dominating the point of contact and poaching balls.
Rowan smacked JMU and St. Joe's beat Delaware. So Salisbury, West Chester, and Rowan are all 4-1, with St. Joe's 3-1.
Unofficial standings:
Queens Downs #1 UMW to Take Chesapeake
Queens University of Charlotte beat GRR's #1-ranked DIAA team Mary Washington 32-5 to cap off Senior Day and clinch the Chesapeake Conference championship Saturday.
The manner of the Queens victory was impressive. Yes UMW came very close to scoring more, but to hold the Mothers to five points when they had been averaging more than 60 before then is notable.
"I'm a defensive coach first off so I wanted to be sure we'd tightened up our defense going into this game," said Queens Head Coach Frank McKinney. "UMW has a backline that is just scary. [Coach] Hennie [Van Zyl] has done a great jon with them. I knew we had to improve on several aspects of play to beat them. One of those was defense."
Illinois State, Northern Iowa to Great Midwest Final
The South division of the Great Midwest Conference shook things up with Northern Iowa and Illinois State both winning semifinals Saturday.
That sets up a championship final November 6 in Cottage Grove, Wisc., while Wisconsin-Whitewater and Marquette will battle for this.
UNI's high-flying offense flew high enough with a 33-17 defeat of Whitewater, while it was Illinois State's defense that shut down Marquette 15-10.
For Illinois State, this was a huge accomplishment for a player-coached team. Co-captains Tom Nevara and Tom Canova have taken on the coaching responsibilities, with Nevara coaching the backs and Canova the forwards. Meanwhile, Eric Jones has stepped in as a set piece and offensive structure coach.
Rivalries, Playoffs, and Conference Championship On The Line
Some big games highlight this weekend in Men's DI college rugby.
Check back for scores.
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NCR DI
Several big matchups sparkle in the NCR DI conferences. The Liberty semifinals, of course, with Fordham at Northeastern and Syracuse at Iona (which is now kicking off on Sunday 1PM ET).
This has been a bit of a surprise season for Syracuse in that they started with two very big losses, but some players returned after that, and they settled down to mete out some big scores of their own in going undefeated in their conference games.
Conference Championships Highlight DII Games This Weekend
There's been a Northern Lights sighting; the conference in Minnesota has been very quiet, but Minnesota-Duluth plays MSU Mankato on Saturday for the conference title.
Michigan State Holds Off Michigan in Friday Night Rivalry Clash
Michigan State held off Michigan 15-5 Friday night in Ann Arbor to essentially secure 4th place in the Big Ten and a spot in the 3rd-4th Game on November 13 in Chicago.
MSU has played five games in conference play—their game vs Purdue was called off but will be played November 6. Michigan, at 2-3, will be playing undefeated Indiana, and are not favored to win.
As for Friday's game, Michigan State started very well, recycling well in wet conditions and finally Josh Kipp found a gap and charged on for the first try of the night. Midway through the second half wing Samy Shelbaya broke through for a 10-0 lead, and then late in the first half Kevin Roche was over after a long period of pressure.
Roche's try on a short ball after a couple of players rescued possession after being in danger of dropping the ball, was key.
Pick'Em Time!
Congratulations to Week 8 winner, Justin Johnson, and Kaleb Boleyn who continues to sit atop the season standings
This week’s prize is another $10 Gift Card to Rugby Imports! To play, submit your picks here before Friday night.
Featured Matches
Michigan State vs Michigan (Pick’Em!!!)
Battle of the Mitten
Silverbacks Power Index: Michigan State to Win
Goff Rugby Report: MSU by 7
Ohio State at Illinois
Silverbacks Power Index: Ohio State by 6.5
Goff Rugby Report: Ohio State by 22
Kutztown at Navy
Silverbacks Power Index: Navy by 14.5
Goff Rugby Report: Navy by 16
Mary Washington at Queens
Silverbacks Power Index: Queens by 4.5
Goff Rugby Report: UMW by 6
Powerful BYU Sets Sights on Colorado State in Rocky Mt. Final
BYU has given up just one try this fall while winning five games by fairly enormous scores, so it’s no surprise, really, that you haven’t heard about it.
What with Head Coach Steve St. Pierre wanting to stay below the radar, and the games offering very little in the way of drama,
What about this week? Mose Timoteo brings his Colorado State University Rams into Provo for the Rocky Mountain Conference final, and will be looking to capture that combination of work rate, adventure, and intelligent points-taking that unseated Colorado in the key matchup earlier the season.
Teams Ready for PAC Conference 7s Nov 6-7
The PAC Rugby Conference 7s is set for Witter Rugby Field at the University of California in a little over a week, with eight teams set to compete.
Hosts Cal will be in Pool A with Utah, USC, and Oregon, while Arizona will be the top seed in Pool B with UCLA, Stanford, and Oregon State.
Players over two days, November 6 and 7, the tournament will be shown on Pac-12 Networks. Teams will play three pool games on the Saturday and play two brackets of semifinals, with the top two from each pool playing in the Cup semis (the losing teams playing for 3rd). The 3rd and 4th teams from each pool will play semifinals, with the winners playing for the Plate, and the losing teams playing for the Shield.
Every team, as a result, gets five total games.
Gamebreakers in Men's D2 College This Week
With a few surprises and some dramatic finishes, this week's DII College Gamebreakers have even more impact.
Avery Gottlob, UNC-Charlotte
The UNCC center scored a key try and set up another with a poach and kick downfield as the 49ers unseated #1-ranked Furman.
Eric Reed, Marian
While Marian has had a tough time finding games, they haven't shied away from a challenge, and their 46-16 loss to a Lindenwood XV was an indication of that. At the center of such an attitude is Eric Reed, a freshman who unleashed a staggering 35 tackles in the game against the Lions.
Drew O’Conner, Grand Valley State
With the game tied 35-35 against Ferris State, O'Conner hit a penalty goal from near the touchline to ensure a 38-35 victory for GVSU.
DIA Rankings: Official Ranking and GRR Comments
With GRR getting more involved in voting for the DIA rankings, we're keeping this ranking clear of any teams not considered for it.
So all you see here is how we voted for the official DIA rankings. First off, here is the official Top 25:
And here's how we voted at Goff Rugby Report for out Top 30:
