A New Look in Texas Varsity Cup as Celina and Las Colinas Face Off

03.05.2026HS Boys

Celina's Boaz Schappaugh charges ahead.

Author: Alex Goff

Led by three tries from Boaz Schappaugh Celina HS shut out Lake Travis 66-0 over the weekend.
That win has the Texas team solidly among the top teams in the Texas Boys Varsity Cup North Division.
As we mapped out a few days ago, the Celina team has managed to take a step forward despite having to replace almost their entire pack.

It’s a classic case of players rising to the challenge.

Look Who Is Shaking Up Texas

Hot on Celina’s trail is Las Colinas. Playing in the school league but actually a club team.

Still a young program, Las Colinas has begun to put it together.

“For us, probably the key component of our club's success is the synergy we have created between our youth, high school, and men's teams,” said Director of Rugby John Bascom. “We have a men's D4 team, a lot of fathers and even a few grandfathers who play for the men's team, and have kids or coach in the youth program. “

Bascom oversees the coaching of coaches which has helped the program grow.

“At the youth level, we have one of the biggest programs in Texas I believe,” said Bascom. With strong numbers from U6 on up into high school that have about 115 players in the younger groups. All are getting coached up.

“I believe that quality coaching is the single most important ingredient in having a successful program and I want that to be my main focus as the Director of Rugby,” said Bascom. “We are blessed to have a lot of invested youth coaches who are great and super willing to get feedback from me. The high school program is finally coming together due to years of work building that age band, but also due to the fact that, for the past several years, we have been getting three to eight freshmen who have played more than two years of rugby and have been well coached.”

Las Colinas gets the vast majority of their players from the same area and most from Great Hearts Irving, and that’s why they are in the Varsity Cup competition.

“I believe we are building something special here and we are better able to accomplish what we do as a club,” said Bascom. “We do have a special relationship with Great Hearts—my brother and I both teach there—we respect the school and are still generally considered a 'school team' by the school culture although we aren't technically a school sport any more. We are proud and happy to be a club team now, since it allows us more fully and faithfully to serve our broader community which includes Great Hearts but isn't limited to it.”

As for on the field, captain Gael Montes de Oca leads the team and while he isn’t super-big, he’s powerful, aggressive, fast, and had great footwork. His skill set is impressive and he understand the tactical side.

With Montes de Oca at flyhalf Las Colinas they’re shown well, including a well-taken win over Allen.

This week Las Colinas will need to front up against Celina, and with the expansion of the Texas league, this is an indication of how that expansion is working. It’s not just the same old names anymore.

“We believe that we are part of a special community here in Irving, Texas,” added Bascom. “There are a ton of multigenerational Christian families here, lots of young people starting families who want their kids to have a good life. At the end of the day, we want our boys to become good men who fulfill their duty to family, community, and God. That is our priority as a program, not state titles or college scholarships or whatever else.”