Big Weekend in Boys HS Rugby

A few notes from the last couple of weeks and looking ahead. There was a big result in Northern California that we didn't go over in detail, but it showed the San Mateo Wolverines defeating a very good Elsie Allen side by a fairly emphatic score of 35-12.  The Wolverines wanted to be in NorCal's Premier Division but last year was a tough year for them with every game (!) an away game. That's tough to ask a team to do. They are in the Gold Division instead and playing well. They ran out to a 21-0 lead over Elsoe Allen and played very strong defense, led by lock Lyndon Bailey. Solomone Pifeleti is a big, powerful No. 8 who runs imposingly and defends well also. The backline is led by Filisione Vakalahi and Mateni Puamau who attack well and set up their speedsters.  Remember that Northern California has a single-school championship and a club championship following. Some single-school teams (De La Salle, Jesuit) remains intact throughout the spring. Others (St. Francis, St. Ignatius SF) play the single-school thing and then players splinter off to clubs or, potentially, other sports. Coach Leka Nemani's team draws from the St. Francis program, so really they are waiting for their club season to start once St. Francis finishes off their season. Interestingly, the Wolverines had so many players that they worked with Silicon Valley to have a bunch of players play with that club—smart move to get more players more 1st-side minutes. Next up for the Wolverines is Gridley. Brother Martin got a good win over St. Paul in Louisiana and we're coming into a crossover Texas-Louisiana playoff soon (although that's more relevant for NOLA Jesuit). Anyway, it's an excuse to give a nod to Brother Martin and their 41-5 win over St. Paul. Brandson Perez did well to drive the pace of the attack, set up scorers (such as Jonathan Lewis, who scored three, and Maverick Trimble). Perez also converted all five Brother Martin tries (Cameron Coughlin getting the other) and added two penalty goals for 16 points. Looking Ahead Back from tour are Gonzaga (Argentina), St. Ignatius (Argentina), SFGG (37-24 over Bective Rangers in Dublin, and 21-19 over Cork Constitution), Xavier (British Columbia), and Danville (17-5 over Elgin and 26-10 over Shawnigan Lake in BC). These tours all seem to have been successful with close, competitive games (wins or losses in some sense aren't as important as getting the right level of competitive).  Danville plays Jesuit this weekend. Gonzaga plays local rivals Georgetown Prep. Ignatius plays in-state rivals Moeller and also sends a side to McQuaid Jesuit in Rochester, NY. Gonzaga sends their Gonzaga Black team to face St. John's. Other games is special note:  Bixby vs F5 in Oklahoma Charlotte Cardinals vs Raleigh Redhawks East HS at East HS (Colorado at Utah) Greenwich at BC High St. Thomas Aquinas vs KC Jr. Blues Penn at Pendleton is a really important game for Penn. St. Joe's vs Malvern (St. Joe's is on a roll) Xavier at Pelham