One of the most notable results in the non-conference games this weekend was Boston College handing Dartmouth a 43-17 loss.

BC went into the game underdogs, but in a tightly-contested first half led 12-10. Having weathered a tough first 40 minutes, the Eagles seemed to grow in confidence. Dartmouth was hit by penalty trouble, and a yellow card, early in the second half and BC scored two quick tries. Dartmouth replied with a try to make it 22-17, but after that, the BC backs exploded.

“It was an awesome day for BC Rugby, finally taking down one of the best rugby clubs in the Northeast,” said BC Rugby co-captain Ben Nathan. “We feel like our program is constantly improving and this game was a great way to kick off our fall, with our league season beginning next weekend against Albany.”

It’s all been about cohesion in the preseason, said Nathan, and with only three starters graduating over the summer, they had expectations. And now after beating Harvard a week ago, they have the scalp of the top team in the Ivy League.

“Ball retention has been key in both games, and our ability to inject speed into the game at will has proved to be the difference against both Harvard and Dartmouth, said Nathan. “We have increased our aggression in our defense coupled with some major work on our fitness.”

Up front, Nathan at tighthead prop and Willy Hock at hooker set the platform and Nathan said the pack as a whole has shown much improvement, with No. 8 Tom Edwards excelling in the lineouts regardless of who throws in.

Edwards is also running well and asked serious questions of the Dartmouth defense, while co-captain Joey D’Antonio scored four tries from fullback.

“Danny Schatzman moved to outside center this year and he continues play great rugby on offense and defense,” added Nathan. “And flyhalf Connor Shaw acts as a general on the field creating space and making great passes for the rest of us.”

 

BC starts their ECRC league schedule next week against Albany, which lost to Fairfield on Saturday. The league challenges get harder, though, with the addition of NEC and Fairfield into the ECRC.

In conference play this weekend, Fairfield beat Albany 34-5, while UMass looked very impressive in beating UConn 54-10. The big clash between defending champion AIC and defending small-college champion NEC ended in AIC’s favor 24-7 (full report here).

Latest standings

Next week:

AIC plays Dartmouth in a non-conference match.