Here are some updates on HS Boys rugby around the nation.

Massachusetts

The MIAA keeps on rolling and Belmont High is still on top. Belmont beat Lincoln-Sudbury and Xaverian Brothers to remain undefeated in the Massachusetts varsity league. 

 

Nebraska

Glenwood took the state title, defeating Gretna 51-19 in the semis and Millard 44-19 in the final.

Cup Semis:
Glenwood 51 - Gretna 19
Millard 26 - Westside 24

5th-Place Semis:
Northwest 69 - Siouxfalls 0
Siouxland 28 - Papio/Council Bluffs 0

7th place: Papio/Council Bluffs 28 - Sioux Falls 0
5th place: Siouxland 35 - Northwest 10
3rd place: Westside 27 - Gretna 17
1st place: Glenwood 44 - Millard 19

 

Colorado

East HS upset Monarch and then Regis Jesuit to take the Colorado state title.

See the final here.

The opening minutes of the final were back and forth with both teams testing each other but no sustained periods of attack. Charlie Bennet got East on the board in the 6th minute with a well read intercept try, a repeat of his try the previous weekend in the semi finals. Luke Neureiter converted to make the score 7-0. Neureiter scored in the 10th minute from a scrum play and 40 meter run to make the score 12-0. 

Regis responded in the 17th minute with a try under the posts after a sustained period of pressure. The conversion was made to bring the score to 12-7. Windy and cold conditions dominated the rest of the half with boy teams struggling with knock-ons and in the lineout. 

The second half began similarly with neither team able to mount a sustained attack. A mental mistake by East gifted Regis an attacking 5m scrum which was quickly turned into a try. Regis slotted the touchline conversion to take the lead 14-12 with 20 minutes remaining. Despite the game being slowed by numerous injury stoppages, East was able to build pressure and were awarded their own 5m attacking scrum following a charged down clearance kick. Davon Demmer scored in the corner on the ensuing set piece move to reclaim the lead for East at 17-14 with only minutes remaining. 

East controlled the kickoff but were unable to maintain possession, knocking the ball on in the final minute. Regis capitalized and were awarded a penalty in extra time when an East player was yellow carded for a dangerous tackle. From 40 meters out Regis kicked for touch but knocked on in the lineout, bringing another nail biting state championship to a close.

 

Illinois

Neuqua defeated South Suburban 58-5 and Morton defeated Notre Dame de la Salette 17-15 to make the Illinois final on Monday.

In their game, Neuqua opened the scoring early with two tries in the first ten mins from HSAA center Will Chevalier and it was all Neuqua from there with five different players scoring Neuqua's 8 tries.  Cobras played good fundamental rugby but were just unable to breach the Neuqua defense until midway through the 2nd half with a man advantage and couldn't answer the Neuqua attack that kept them off balance throughout with a good mix of straight up forward running and support play, crisp backline movement, and effective counter attacking.

 

Washington

As reported in more detail in a previous article, Tacoma upset Liberty to take the Boys title in Washington.

 

Oregon

Upsets marked the finals of the Oregon leagues, with the club and single-school finals both seeing the league-leaders lose.

Eastside Tsunamis went into the club final undefeated, having won all seven league games plus the semifinal. Beaverton came in 6-1-1, but defeated Eastside 28-7 to take the title.

Championship: Beaverton 28 Eastside 7
3rd: Valley Rams 37 Clark County 24
5th: Salem 29 Ben 17
7th: NC/Three Rivers 91 Linn Benton 32

 

In the single-school bracket, Newberg had the best record going in, but Reynolds took the final 26-12.

Championship: Reynolds 26 Newberg 12
3rd: Battle Ground 34 Prairie 25
5th: Oregon City 22 Union 19
7th: No score reported

 

New Jersey

Union Co. takes on Jersey Shore for the club final, and St. Augustine plays Delbarton for the single-school title.

 

New York

The playoffs occur this weekend.

 

Pennsylvania

After a difficult early part of the season, Doylestown slammed Downingtown 63-17 to win Rugby PA's Boys DI club title. Cardinal O'Hara beat Father Judge to win D2 single-school, while West Shore United took the D2 club title over Kiski Valley. In the single-school final, Cumberland Valley, which has been consistent all season long, beat Malvern Prep 34-24.

 

 

Connecticut

Greenwich defeated Simsbury 33-14 to make the state final. Staples defeated Aspetuck in the other semi.