It was a weekend of which teams were ready for the fall and which teams need more time in the Chesapeake Rugby Conference.

University of Mary Washington shut out NC State 64-0 in a classic example of that. On a hot and humid day the Mothers were on fire. Flanker Tobey Barnfield-Lee scored and was involved throughout the game on defense, and his loose forward mate Lloyd Stephens was just as active. 

UMW enjoyed a good day in the open field with the backs moving the ball nicely. Freshmen Bill Tamani, Conn Foster and Sebastian Schefferman finished well and seniors Jose L. Reyes, Aidan Gallagher, Joseph Ritter, and Seamus Brennan were also solid as UMW dominated 64-0.

Queens University Charlotte hit Maryland hard 110-0. Alston Burton and Campbell Van Rooyen both scored four tries, while Chase Suznevich scored two tries. Hilton Oliver scored a try and kicked 15 conversions for a personal haul of 35 points.

Mount St. Mary's shut out Virginia Tech 35-0.

D1 College Rugby Scores

"Virginia Tech is incredibly physical side," said Mount Head Coach Jay Myles. "They have playmakers on the edges and physical forwards to create opportunities for 80 minutes. They will be a tough opponent in conference play.  We are a young side with 30 freshmen in this year's recruiting class and we are just starting to learn how to work together. Our future is bright and I am looking forward to gaining more continuity as the season progresses."

These results are all notable in part because the Chesapeake has been, over the past several years, easily the most competitive conference in DIAA and DIA rugby. No conference has had anywhere near as many close losses or ties. These blowouts are COVID blowouts without a doubt. COVID has made it very difficult for some teams to recruit, especially if they are recruiting from players available on campus.

The three winning teams here are all either full varsity (Queens), or school-supported over and above support normally reserved for a club sport (Mount St. Mary's), or supported by a combination of school and alumni (UMW) that essentially puts them in a separate class. Teams can overcome those differences in normal times, but when they haven't played in close to two years, it is very difficult to recruit to the level of the teams that are able to recruit players coming out of high school.

Hence the scores.