Program Spotlight: Towson Pulls Off the Upset
Program Spotlight: Towson Pulls Off the Upset
Well you don't often see a #8 seed beat a #1 seed in a conference playoff, but we did this past weekend.
Towson beat Scranton in a 37-26 on Saturday to move on to the Mid-Atlantic Rugby Conference semifinals, and this year Towson's #8 seeding is perhaps a little harsh. First of all, they were actually the #7 seed in the conference, but Virginia was brought in as the #4 seed from the Cardinals Conference, bumping everyone else down a spot. Second of all, Towson was 2-2 with 11 standings points but ranked below Drexel because Drexel finished 2nd in their division and Towson was 3rd thank to two close losses to Salisbury and Georgetown. Third of all, they also were ranked below Bucknell for the same reason as with Drexel, and also because of their points difference. But the points difference situation is because the MARC DII South has Georgetown, Salisbury, Towson, and Maryland, which is close to a DIAA league in terms of quality.
Men D2 College Rankings 2024 Week 9
Men's D2 College Scores Oct 25-27
So one could argue that really they should have been a #5 seed, which would have put them against Salisbury, who also beat a team seeded higher (Virginia).
"We had some very close losses to Salisbury and Georgetown," said club president Sean Cornell. "We knew coming into the game that Scranton is a great team, but we also weren’t afraid of them. And also, they took us out of the 7s last year and we wanted some revenge. All season we'd been looking for that statement game and we felt like this could be it."
And it was. The attitude of, in one sense, throwing caution to the wind and not caring who they play helped Towson get to the MARC semis, as well. The team, said Cornell, knew they were in a tough division.
"We came into the season saying to ourselves that whatever happens, happens," Cornell told GRR. "We've got nothing to lose. And now, we're still in it."
Towson lost by a try to Salisbury, 22-15, on October 12 and that was an important lessons for the Tigers.
"After that game, which is a massive rivalry game for us, we came to the conclusion in the forwards that we had to work a bit harder."
|
|
They needed to be more aggressive in contact, faster to the breakdown and more focused on creating quick ball.
"We had a bye week after that game and we just worked on getting to the ruck faster and getting the ball out faster."
Leading that effort was captain Henry Soeken, and his effort level, said Cornell, inspired the rest of the team.
"All that effort we put in, we did it for him," he said.
With Zack Uhler and UMBC transfer Aidan Parson bringing a little extra, Towson is now in the NCR D2 national playoffs. Where they fit into that bracket will be figured out next week, and they get to play Salisbury again.
"We all know the history behind the rivalry and the heritage of both teams," added Cornell. "We want to beat them. They won bt a try last time and we want to get some revenge on them."
But for now what we do know is that Towson will not back down.
"We've dealt with injuries and guys stepping up into roles," said Cornell. "And I am proud of every single one of them."
