Detroit Central Catholic to Face Traverse City in Michigan Final
Detroit Central Catholic to Face Traverse City in Michigan Final
Detroit Central Catholic will face Traverse City in the Rugby Michigan boys final.
DCC defeated Rockford's B side in the first round of the playoffs over the weekend, taking that game 69-0 and then the second game 43-20 over West Ottawa.
"Overall it was a great weekend of rugby at probably the best-maintained field in Michiga, (thanks to West Ottawa," said DCC Head Coach Ian Ronayne. "All teams in the tournament showcased great effort and played to the very last minute. We had a great team match against Rockford and had some momentum rolling into the match against West Ottawa."
The enthusiasm kind of undercut DCC's discipline and they were shown four cards, including one red, during that game. The Shamrocks played 12-on-15 at one point, but they stood strong in defense. Leading the way for DCC were wing Gren Vartanian, scrumhalf Will Reed, and prop Rob Wierzbicki, who all scored three tries over the weekend. Vartanian also took on goalkicking duties, and he boasted a 90% success rate, including a long penalty goal that set the tone.
With No. 8 Aidan Quinn and center Jack Wilcvewski scoring two tries and causing defenses problems, and lock Zach Masset a lineout force, winning all of his own team's throws and stealing almost 90% off opposition throws, DCC had plenty of possession and go-forward.
Garen Vartanian (senior wing) had 3 tries, 90% on conversion kicks, and hit a long penalty kick
- Will Reed (junior scrumhalf) had 3 tries
- Rob Wierzbicki (senior prop) had 3 tries
- Jack Wilczewski (senior inside center) 2 tries
- Aidan Quinn (senior 8man) 2 tries
- Zach Massey (senior lock) won 100% of offensive lineouts and stole 88% of defensive lineouts
We let the energy of the match get to us and became a bit undisciplined against W Ottawa (4 cards total, including a red card early on), but despite playing 15 v 12 at one point, our team had relentless pursuit and stuck to our system to see the victory through. Traverse City looks very strong, has a good kick game, and is very well organized. They will make for a tough and well-matched opponent for us in the state final.
Round 1
DCC 69- Rockford B 0
West Ottawa 22 Brighton 12
Rockford A 18 Loyola 10
Traverse City 81 Howell 5
Round 2
DCC 43 West Ottawa 20
Traverse City 40 Rockford 17
Traverse City thumped Howell 81-5 and then took care of a solid Rockford side 40-17 to make the final.
"We have a great group of kids we are working with," said Traverse City Head Coach Cornel Olivier. "We are blessed to have boys that respond to the coaching style and who want to succeed."
Traverse City has not lost this season in Michigan play, scoring more than 200 points and allowing only 17.
Olivier called his team's defensive approach "relentless," and his team uses a smart kicking game to pin the opposition in their own half.
The semifinal win allowed Traverse City to garner some revenge against a Rockford team that had beaten them in each of the last two state finals.
"We started of strong and applied pressure from the beginning and never backed down," said Olivier, whose side led 28-7 at halftime. Like DCC, however, they got into card trouble, getting four yellows during the second half. So Rockford was able to inch a little closer.
Cousins Caleb Bott and Max Goethals were powerful ground-gainers for Traverse City, but perhaps their biggest contribution was on defense. Playing No. 8 and flanker, respectively, they lead the team in tackles.
The final is set for Thursday night at 7PM in Holland, Mich.
