HS Boys

State Championship Latest: Minnesota, Illinois, NY, Ohio

Edina defeated Eagan 22-17 in the Minnesota Youth Rugby Boys HS final, capping off an undefeated league season.

(Photos from the game courtesy of Guy Warren)

Meanwhile, in Illinois, Brother Rice edged Neuqua 36-33 to take the Rugby Illinois Boys D1 title.  Brother Rice ran out to a 24-7 lead just after halftime, and with 15 minutes to go still held onto a 19-point lead at 36-15. In the closing minutes, Neuqua stormed back and powered through to make it a three-point game. Neuqua had the ball at the end of the game and worked their way into Brother Rice territory. But the Rice defense held and forced a knock-on to end a dramatic game.

Neuqua will be left ruing yellow cards that made them shorthanded for far too much of the game.

Other results from Illinois:

Nike Selects Face EIRA SoCal In Age-Grade All-Star Clash

This Sunday the NIKE Rugby Camp Selects will play against EIRA Southern California in what promises to be an action packed affair. The match will take place at the University of San Diego as a curtain raiser to the San Diego Legion and NOLA Gold match.

EIRA Director of Rugby Salty Thompson stated, "EIRA Southern California appreciates the opportunity to play Nike. Both teams will feature many of the best young prospects in the region and it will be fun for the kids."

The match marks the second match of the NIKE Rugby Selects domestic schedule before they head to the Great Northwest Challenge Regional Cup Tournament in June and ultimately Australia for a ten day tour in July. In early May, NIKE was victorious against the Arizona Bobcats in Phoenix.

Howell Wins Michigan In Dramatic Fashion

Howell defeated Rockford in dramatic fashion to win the Rugby Michigan Boys HS championship this past weekend.

The playoffs produced plenty of drama throughout.

Rockford themselves had to work very hard to get to the final … even the semifinal. The quarterfinals included a tight 19-17 defeat of Detroit Central Catholic.

Grand Rapids Catholic Central moved on as well, beaten Troy United 33-5, while Sparta took care of Downriver 47-7, and Howell beat frequent national champs Grandville 23-7.

In the semifinals, Rockford race out to a 20-0 lead against Grand Rapids Catholic, but GR mounted a comeback. Rockford eventually held on 27-12.

Howell had a tough, back-and-forth battle with Sparta. Down 16-15, Howell scored a try with six minutes to go and then held on with a defensive stand 22-16.

State Winner List: Royal Irish Claims Indiana

In a game where both teams had scoring opportunities only to see them go begging, Royal Irish garnered some measure of revenge in beating Penn HS for the Indiana state title over the weekend.

Penn had beaten Royal Irish in league play and in the Midwest final, while both teams had left the Boys HS Rugby National Championships feeling like they hadn't acheived all of their goals—Royal irish made the HS Club final only to be beaten fairly handily by Back Bay; Penn lost its opener to East HS of Utah on the final play, and ended up 6th.

It was a dramatic game, and Penn clawed back to within three late at 15-12. But Royal Irish won the restart and scored to finish off the win 20-12. Both teams played very tough defense.

So that helps fill out most of our state champions.

St. Augustine, Union Co. Win In New Jersey

St. Augustine and the Union County Mudturtles secured Rugby New Jersey state titles over the weekend.

Led by a player-of-the-game performance from Andrew Whiteman, the Hermits battled in a tight game with Delbarton. Delbarton led 12-7 at halftime but St. Augustine came back, tied it 12-12 through a try from John Lawson, and then Whiteman scored the game-winner.

Giovanni Sabelli scored the Hermits' other try, with Mario Licciardello converting.

The Mudturtles won yet again in the HS Club bracket, beating Jersey Shore 38-24. For Jersey Shore, it was a solid season, as they only lost to the Mudturtles during league play. But Union County held firm.

Aspetuck Shocks Greenwich, Wins Connecticut

After taking 3rd place in Tier 2 at the Boys High School Nationals tournament in Salt Lake City, Utah, Aspetuck Valley Rugby Club defeated Simsbury HS and Greenwich HS to win the Connecticut State Championships.

The final, 20-12 over Greenwich, was considered something of an upset, as Greenwich has generally dominated the Nutmeg State in HS rugby for years.

In the semifinal against Simsbury, Aspetuck was down a few senior starters, with captain and lock Ryan Barrett out due to a shoulder injury, and star open side flanker Derek White also out with a knee issue.

Then they lost their star HSAA 7s player and starting fullback Louie Gryspeerdt. 

Charlotte Tigers Win NC Over Raleigh

The Charlotte Tigers followed up on their 3rd-place finish at the Boys HS Rugby National Championships with a 48-24 defeat of the Raleigh Redhawks to win the North Carolina state HS club championships.

The Tigers B side also won the Tier 2 championship.

Flanker Eddy van Heerden had a huge day, scoring three tries, while No. 8 David Grant and center Darius Law also touched down.

The Tigers also received a penalty try when Ethyn Baker ran in from 50 meters, and was tackled illegally just before he was going to score. Fullback Carson Green was a pefect 7-for-7 on kicks, with five conversions and two penalty goals.

Neuqua To Illinois Final

The Neuqua Wildcats defeated Marist 26-12 to reach the final of the Rugby Illinois Boys HS playoffs.

The match started with a little back-and-forth through the first three minutes. A penalty against Marist about 30 meters from the Neuqua tryline provided the 1st early opportunity for Neuqua as the home side went wide with ball in hand on the quick tap.  Winger Garen Leland brought possession back to midfield and then Neuqua crossed into Marist territory on a short rumble up the five-meter line by second row forward Eric Rice.  Neuqua shipped the ball to the far sideline in two phases and caught Marist without coverage on wing Brandt Stare, who did the rest to go in under the sticks from 40 meters out. Will Chevalier converted and Neuqua led 7-0.

West Shore Wins Rugby PA HS Club Final

Susquehanna Conference powers Berks County and West Shore United met on the campus of Penn State University’s Berks County campus Saturday to battle it out for the Rugby Pennsylvania Division 1 Club State Championship this past weekend.

This would be a rematch of an earlier league game, one in which Berks County defeated West Shore United 38-31 on the final play of their week 4 Susquehanna Conference match. To get to the championship match Berks, the #2 seed, defeated #3 seed Downingtown of the Valley Forge Conference 34-22 in one semifinal, while #4 seed West Shore United, defeated #1 seed Doylestown from the Liberty Bell Conference 60-7 in the other semifinal. 

(Lisa Schlager photos)

Want To Win In HS? Start In Elementary School

If you want a great high school rugby team, start in elementary schools—then work at it over time.

That is the long view philosophy of the Charlotte Junior Rugby Association (CJRA), the parent club of the Charlotte Tigers. The splash the team made in the Tier I club bracket was a surprise to some (finishing 3rd overall) but to those who have spent any time around youth rugby in the southeastern United States, it is not a surprise at all.

Dramatic Finish As Regis Jesuit Wins Colorado

Regis Jesuit edged East HS Saturday to win the Rugby Colorado Boys HS Championship.

The game, played at Infinity Park in Glendale, Colo., was a thriller. Sophomore Eddie Maxfield broke a 14-14 tieby scoring with less than a minute to go, and the conversion iced it for Regis.

Both teams played well defensively, East prop Trevor Borrios was very good on the day and scored the opening try, charging in as a support runner and finishing the play off to set up a 7-0 lead for East. That lead held until halftime.

Early in the second half,Regis Jesuit prop Mariano Adame scooped up a loose ball and ran in from 22 meters out. East replied when Will Crocket, who had come on for an earlier injury, stretched over. Flyhalf Liam Peck converted and East led 14-7 with 12 minutes left.

Gregory The Great Wins Rugby PA

Gregory the Great held off Cumberland Valley 18-10 to win Rugby Pennsylvania's single-school boys title over the weekend.

On a day that saw temperatures climb past 90 degrees, GGA finished off what was a very difficult Rugby PA playoff series. Last week, GGA held off Bishop Shanahan 10-7 in the quarterfinals. Then this weekend Gregroy the Great won out on another hot day, beating St. Joseph's Prep 32-24.

On Sunday, GGA got two tries from flyhalf Eli Ziglinski, and Anthony Audino converted one and kicked two crucial penalty goals to secure the victory. Audino has been outstanding all season, not only getting points with his boot, but playing strong defense and being an effective part of the attack.

It was an undefeated season for the Highlanders, made possible by GGA's team defense against a potent Cumberland Valley team.

HS Games May 16-19

These scores are a bit late as you know your beloved editor was at the HS Nationals.

The Nationals themselves were excellent, despite issue revolving around weather and field usage. All but four games in the single-school bracket were decided by less than a try, and another was decided by just nine points. The club bracket wasn't quite as close but produced several surprises, including a last-play upset of #8 over #1 (seedings), and comeback wins for Danville (twice, including a last-play try), Royal Irish, and Back Bay. The team that finished 8th led the the eventual winners at halftime in the opener.

Fort Hunt Wins Virginia

Fort Hunt won the Virginia State Championship over the weekend, defeating a tough West End team 28-5.

The Warriors also took the JV title 27-14 over Richmond.

While Fort Hunt started slowly this year, the Warriors have come on strong since then. Led by center Charlie Martel, who was game MVP, they held off a solid West End attack to take the state title. 

Head Coach Dale Roach said his team started to come into its own late in the spring, especially after a tour to Ireland.

"They get better every week," he said before the game. 

Martel was dominant, leading the way on attack and also serving as a leader, steadying the ship when things for difficult. Up front James Hughes continued his strong form and the locks Aaron Hale and George Heard have been excellent.