The conference final it was an all-Iowa affair between Iowa State and Iowa. The Hawkeyes came into the match as the favorites after senior flyhalf Rem Heimer slotted a penalty goal at the death in Ames earlier in the year to see Iowa win 24-22.
Both the players and the coaching staffs are very familiar with each other, and in fact the coaches collaborate in fielding the Heart of American all-star team (which is expected to return to the CRAA Fall Classic this December).
Both teams threatened, but were rebuffed. Finally No. 8 John Braun, a crossover athlete who had transferred to Iowa State this year, powered over from short range.
The theme from the earlier game between these two—the Hawkeyes dominating the Cyclones scrum to the tune of six scrum penalties—didn't really return as Iowa State was able to scrum a lot better.
A yellow card to Hawkeye No. 8 Hudson Vreogh for a dangerous tackle put Iowa under more pressure, but the Hawkeyes handled that fairly well. Junior flanker George Corden, stepping in as forwards captain for Zach English (who was injured in the semifinals) tried to skip the ball to the wing and Iowa wing Austin Stanley, stepped in to intercept. He took it to paydirt, and with Ren Heimer adding the extras Iowa led 7-5.
The Cyclones went back to work, with their new-found confidence in their scrum. From a scrum near midfield captain Justin Johnson spun it wide to sophomore wing Beau Wadle, who raced in to score under the posts. Johnson added the extras to give the Cyclones the lead 12-7.
Iowa responded. A clearance kick that was meant to find grass found Heimer instead, who smartly reversed field, finding Austin Stanley down the sideline. After a few phases at the goalline, Heimer chipped to himself, taking advantage of the big in-goal areas at Westwick. He chased it down and tied the ballgame at 12-12.
With halftime approaching, the Cyclones took to the lineout and went to their maul. Iowa was penalized but the Cyclones kept rolling down the field. They got another penalty, and kicked to the corner. That led to another penalty, Johnson tapped quickly and was taken down just short. Corden picked and lunged over to give the Cyclones the lead 17-12.
Moments into the second half, the Cyclones were shown a yellow card to Liam Cleary, which was upgraded to a red with input from the AR. While the Cyclone sideline was upset at the result, Johnson and Corden rallied the troops. Playing without English and now Cleary was a tall task but Iowa State had dealt with injuries all season.
Johnson made two big plays, running in two tries to extend the lead 27-12. Between the first Johnson try and the second try, Iowa came very close to scoring, but ISU held them out. Their scrum, a weakness earlier in the season, was a big part of that.
Finally Iowa was able to close the score. Wing AJ Douglas charged through some Cyclone defenders and powered over into the corner. Heimer converted and now it was 27-19 with 10 minutes to go.
Crucially, Iowa State had a two-score lead. But when ISU got a kickable penalty a quick consultation between Johnson and his Head Coach Anthony Frein led to the decision not to go for posts. A successful kick would have taken little time off the clock and would have made it a lead of 11 points—yes it would require two tries from Iowa, but only one conversion. The payoff didn't seem enough.
So they kicked to the corner. Even if Iowa State failed to score a try, the whole lineout process would take more time and would keep Iowa pinned in their end.
It all paid off as prop Ryan Snider who barreled close to the line and the 5 meter mark before Corden picked up and fought his way over. Johnson converted and it was 34-19.
Iowa just simply didn't have enough time. Iowa State got the ball back and worked their way through the phases. That allowed the remaining minutes to fritter away and Iowa State had their conference championship.
“Hats off to Coach Dailey and his squad for two fantastic showcases of college rugby this year," said Frein. "I want to give a special shout-out to our staff of Anis Hamsbasic, Matt Brotherton, Brandon Karnes, and Owen McGuffin, who have worked tirelessly all season to turn what was a weakness in our scrum to a weapon on the biggest stage.”
The key, said Frein, was handling the difficulties through the season. They rarely had a fully healthy squad of 23, even for the final, but they learned from it. Losing that early game to Iowa meant they knew they had to run the table to make the semifinals.
“We preached all year to focus on process over outcomes," said Frein. "We also talked about how we put ourselves in a situation to essentially have to play six straight playoff games, with five on the road, and that the easy road was gone now. I think the red card was just the latest obstacle that this group had to overcome together. This group is incredibly close and that’s allowed for real growth player to player, player to coach and coach to coach all season. They trusted the process and were vindicated in the end,”
