Around The USA in Men's D2 College Rugby
Around The USA in Men's D2 College Rugby
A little look at key D2 games around the nation.
Grand Valley State remains in solid form after their 57-5 defeat of one of their perennial rivals, Central Michigan.
The Great Lakes looks to be GVSU's to lose.
With scrumhalf Cal Schwandt and No. 8 Aiden Reilly playing some impressive rugby (in different ways), the Lakers look ahead now to Saginaw Valley State and Ferris State.
In the Great Midwest, we've got a report here: Comeback Wins for Loyola, UNI in GMW We can add to that another big win for Northwestern, riding a strong second half to a win over UIC. And Chicago rebounded from their one-point loss to Loyola to beat Benedictine two days later to the tune of 45-10.
| GMW North | W | L | T | PA | PA | PD | BT | BL | Pts |
| Northern Iowa | 3 | 0 | 0 | 211 | 43 | 168 | 3 | 0 | 15 |
| Marquette | 2 | 1 | 0 | 79 | 55 | 24 | 2 | 0 | 10 |
| UW-Whitewater | 1 | 1 | 0 | 53 | 106 | -53 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Illinois State | 0 | 2 | 0 | 35 | 63 | -28 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| UW-Milwaukee | 0 | 2 | 0 | 24 | 135 | -111 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| GMW South | W | L | T | PA | PA | PD | BT | BL | Pts |
| Northwestern | 3 | 0 | 0 | 133 | 15 | 118 | 3 | 0 | 15 |
| Loyola | 3 | 0 | 0 | 72 | 43 | 29 | 2 | 0 | 14 |
| Univ. Chicago | 2 | 1 | 0 | 127 | 43 | 84 | 2 | 1 | 11 |
| DePaul | 1 | 2 | 0 | 30 | 90 | -60 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| UIC | 0 | 3 | 0 | 21 | 112 | -91 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Benedictine | 0 | 3 | 0 | 28 | 108 | -80 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
In the MARC, Scranton beat Villanova 54-47.
Flanker Luke Flanagan was a start for Scranton, putting in a series of big carries and testing the Villanova defense throughout. He scored four tries. Centers Pat George and Anthony Vitiello were busy with and without the ball and made it difficult for the Villanova backline to break through.
No. 8 and captain Sean Comiskey led well and was 7-for-8 on conversions.
Scranton was up 33-12 at halftime.
"We wanted to come out and keep the pressure on but three very fixable and preventable errors were made and Villanova turned them into 21 points," said Scranton Head Coach Quinn Conaboy. "These top-tier teams will make you pay every time for a handling mistake. While we have some things to work on the fellas looked on point and we are excited to start playoff rugby."
Scranton punished Villanova mistakes, too, and scored on a key interception which sealed the game.
New Hampshire won well over UMass Lowell—New Hampshire Logs Key Win over UMass Lowell in NACR D2—while Norwich won a back-and-forth game with Coast Guard, taking the game 27-16 thanks to a defense that held firm in the second half, and to tries from Marius Edwards, Alex Huffman, Sebastian Yates, and two from Logan Perry. UVM continued their torrid form with a big win over Maine.
Vermont leads the NACR with a 4-0 record, while Norwich is 3-1and UNH 3-2.
And in the Southern Conference UNC-Wilmington edged NC State 23-22. Marshall Wiseman, Ryan Swan, and Zay Arrington scored tries for Wilmington in a game where neither team could find any cushion. Flyhalf Daniel Marsh kicked well on the day and slotted a crucial penalty goal late to secure the victory. It was a huge win for UNCW.
In the Liberty Marist and RPI won fairly handily and it seems like those two teams are on a collision course October 26. RPI Head Coach Dave Gardell said he needs to see his side tidy up the little things—poor body position while poaching ball, more accuracy in passes.
"It was a little sloppier than I hoped," he said.