South Elite Rugby Academy Sets Fall/Winter Schedule
The South Elite Rugby Academy has set their official launch date for the Fall of 2016. September 24th will see the Academy kick off in upstate South Carolina. Open to all rugby players regardless of their home club/state, this overnight academy meets once a month to focus on developing individual skills.
SERA Director of Rugby Nick Whitrow believes that “the camp environment allows for the special bonds and relationships to be created among athletes from other programs”.
Whitrow is joined by several highly qualified resident coaches including Hayden Kane (formerly at RSC academy and RSC selects), Rex Whitrow (former Clemson men’s scrum coach), Chris Caso (former strength and conditioning coach at Life University) Martin Sarkees Jr. (Formerly of Clemson men’s and women’s teams).
Herriman HS Seeks Head Coach
The Herriman HS Rugby Club is looking for a head coach beginning Spring 2017 (or earlier, if desired).
The team's current head coach, Derek Smith, will be changing his role in the program due to conflicts with his occupation and playing career. He is willing to stay on and help twice per week at practice. Herriman is one of the top HS rugby programs in the country, and boasts the following since its inception in 2010:
5 state titles (3 in XVs, 2 in 7s)
A record of 98 wins and 7 losses
A coaching staff of committed, knowledgeable assistants – there are full staffs already in place for middle school and 9th/10th grade programs, as well as two Varsity assistants currently in place.
Numbers – the program currently has over 110 players, all from Herriman HS and its feeder schools – we are a single school program
The Toughest Schedules in HS Rugby
Who played the toughest schedule in high school rugby?
We have a look. We looked at how many Top-10, Top-25, and Top-60 opponents teams faced, and produced a points system. In addition, we gave points for tough foreign opposition.
And using this ranking, with a little subjective tie-breaking, we have our list of the teams that work the hardest to challenge themselves.
Think you know who had the toughest road?
Check it out by clicking here for our Honorable Mentions, and Top 10.
Rugby Washington 7s
The Seattle Vikings finished the day in the Rugby Washington 7s series Boys bracket with a 4-0 record this past weekend.
With the Vikings showcasing some snappy team play, they led the field of seven teams. Defending state 15s champs, the Rainier Highlanders, fielded two teams and they ended up going 3-2-2, tying each other and losing only to Seattle.
The Girls bracket saw, no surprise, Kent finish the day unbeaten at 2-0, with Rainier 1-1 and Budd Bay 0-2 (Budd Bay was also 0-4 in the Boys bracket).
In the co-ed 7th-8th-grade bracket, Budd Bay finally got some wins, going 3-0, with Rainier and Eastisde also winning all of their matches.
The teams meet up again this coming weekend.
Rhino Youngsters Dominate
The Rhino Academy U16s dominated the field in a long, hot, and grueling Boys Open bracket at the NAI 7s this weekend.
The younger version of the Rhino Academy was athletic, worked very nicely as a team, and took their chances. In a round-robin league where all seven teams played each other, and then a final game was tagged on at the end, Rhino showed impressive fitness and durability, and outscored their opponents by impressive margins.
The final was Rhino Academy U16s 24 Utah Lions 12
Here are the standings and the scores:
Wild Finish to NAI 7s Boys Elite
Oakville Ontario’s Upright Rugby Rogues won the NAI 7s Boys Elite with a last-second try over Eagle Impact Rugby Academy-Sacramento Saturday in Salt Lake City.
It was an impressive weekend of rugby in all of the brackets, and the final game did not disappoint. EIRA, which struggled to find the team’s best form on Friday, looked very impressive on Saturday and took an early lead - recovering their kickoff and then seeing Anthony Wiley (Granite Bay) setting up Ben Broselle (Chuckanut Bay) for one of his many tries on the weekend.
But Upright replied instantly, with Avery Oitomen going over to tie the game. EIRA’s restart didn’t go 10 meters and that gave Upright a free kick, and Oitomen just drew a defender, and then slid past him to take the gap and race in for the try.
NAI 7s Boys Elite Scores
Scores from Friday, July 29, and Saturday, July 30 at the North American Invitational 7s - this is the Boys Elite Bracket.
Friday scores and standings.
Boys Elite Day One at NAI 7s
Day One at the North American Invitational 7s is done with the Boys Elite Bracket showcasing some very competitive rugby.
"The competition at this tournament is at a very, very high level," said tournament organizer and Utah Lions Head Coach Michael Cressler. "The talent level is impressive."
And so it was. Atlantis won Pool A (a three-team pool after one team was a relatively late pull-out), taking both games by convincing margins. The Atlantis II team, made up of 16- and 17-year-olds in this U18 bracket, was superb in winning three tough games to win Pool B.
NAI 7s Live Stream
See the live stream of the NAI 7s below.
If you don't see the video, please refresh the page.
The coverage begins around 9am Mountain Time in Salt Lake City.
Here is the live stream schedule for Friday (links are to more info on that team):
Herriman Looks Set for NAI 7s
Herriman HS runs out an experienced 7s team to face some tough competition in the North American Invitational 7s this weekend in Salt Lake City.
Herriman will take on Play Rugby USA, Atlantis II, and ATAVUS Selects.
ATAVUS Boys Selected for NAI 7s
The ATAVUS All-Stars Boys team is set for the NAI 7s in Salt Lake City beginning Friday.
For more on the tournament, go here.
The ATAVUS lineup is gleaned from their summer residential camp, with players coming from all over the country. Watch out for tough, versatile Caleb Wood out of Kitsap Renegades in Washington state. The team is in a tough pool with Atlantis II, Herriman, and Play Rugby.
Here's the roster:
Bo Epperson - Colorado Springs (Colo.)
Caleb Wood - Kitsap (Wash.)
EIRA Sacramento Boys 7s Picked for NAI 7s
The Eagle Impact Rugby Academy has named its team to play in the North American International 7s in Salt Lake City this weekend.
See more on the tournament here.
This EIRA team is made up of players from the Sacramento area, and is coached by Jason Divine, who is Head Coach of Granite Bay HS, and Jone Naqica, former USA 7s team captain and current San Francisco Golden Gate player and coach.
EIRA Sacramento has a core of five Granite Bay players along with six players from Pleasanton, Motherlode, CK McClatchy, Sierra Foothills, and North Bay. In additional two players from outside Northern California - Ben Broselle, current HSAA from Chuckanut in Washington, and Quinn Perry from Santa Monica - have been invited onto the squad.
Atlantis Ready for NAI 7s
The Atlantis Boys age-grade 7s program is sending two teams to the North American Invitational 7s this weekend in Salt Lake City.
The games kick off on Friday at the Salt Lake Regional Athletic Complex in Salt Lake City, Utah. The Atlantis I team will face off against the Canadian-based Celtic Barbarians and the Rocky Mountain Rebels out of Colorado in Pool A.
Atlantis II, the U17s, will take on ATAVUS Selects, Herriman, and Play Rugby USA.
The younger Atlantis team looks fairly formidable, and despite being in a tough pool, could well emerge winners.
Atlantis I U18s
Touring Benefits Players' Rugby, Cultural Growth
Summer might be a time to take a break from rugby, but it’s also a really good time to plan a tour for the coming HS season.
For Gonzaga HS, touring overseas has become a habit, and while getting out of the country every year may not be in a HS team’s budget, players and coaches say if you can do it, it’s worth it.
Gonzaga went to Spain using Varsity Travel, which is a Goff Rugby Report sponsor. Coach Grant Furnary said the marriage of the two organizations works well.
Peninsula Green Wins NorCal HS 7s
The Peninsula Green Rugby Varsity team won the NorCal Sevens Championship this past weekend, logging a series of impressive victories in the process.
The Varsity team finished 5-0, beating Jesuit twice to take the title. The final itself was a very well-played and exciting game played in temperatures approaching 100 degrees. The Pen Green Beavers played a high-tempo game, and kept it going until the end.
“The Varsity Beavers played exciting Sevens throughout the day as they physically punished their opposition on both defense and offense, rucked low and effectively and set up varied and exciting offense patterns lines that oft times saw the ball move from one touchline to the other before scoring,” said Pen Green Coach Rob Benson.
Peninsula Green Varsity Results
Pen Green v McClatchy (19 – 14) – Pool play
