It's crunch time for the Penn State men's rugby team.

Much like the women's rugby team last week, the Ruggers head down to Annapolis this Saturday for a match with the Navy Midshipmen with the No. 1 seed in the spring Mid Atlantic Rugby Football Union (MARFU) tournament most likely at stake. The team hopes the similarities won't stop there.

"We're looking to continue the winning trend started by the Lady Ruggers last week, and to make it a clean sweep on their own turf," assistant coach Don Ferrell said.

A win this weekend all but guarantees the Ruggers of the top seed in the spring MARFU tournament, and puts the team in better position to clinch a possible national championship.

In preparation for the critical showdown between the two rivals, the Ruggers held an extra practice this week on Wednesday night to work on their physicality and mental toughness.

"We've used the extra time to fine tune our game," said team captain Kirk Neubaurer. "We put extra focus on the game ahead of us, and have had more intense contact drills in preparation."

On Saturday, the team is counting on their extra practice to pay dividends against the more physical Midshipmen. To win, both Ferrell and Neubaurer singled out the need to match them in their roughness while still maintaining the Ruggers' element of finesse.

"We play with a wide open style, to be all over the field offensively and defensively," Ferrell said. "We need to step and play them physically, yet still play wide open."

Neubaurer added, "We have more finesse than them, but I also think we can be just as physical while still playing our game."

While balancing their physicality with their style of play, the Ruggers need to look to shut down Navy's forwards while on defense. On offense, they need to guard their every possession and be patient. Everything indicates a close defensive struggle, and any score by either team could be the last one.

Mental preparedness is, as always, a major determinant in the brand of ball the Ruggers will play. They must be able to concentrate on their roles and look for the open man when they have the ball, and be able to set themselves up defensively to keep Navy from scoring.

One intangible that may work in the Ruggers' favor is their relative inexperience, Neubaurer said. Because the team is young, only a few Ruggers have played Navy, they can feel more confident about their chances to succeed.

"No one on the team really knows what to expect," he said. "It's a big test for us, but if we play our game we're going to win."

With their extra practice and youthful ambitiousness, the Ruggers are heading south with a slightly cocky attitude.

"We've beaten them before, and we can beat them again," Neubaurer said.

Ferrell echoed, "We're willing to go to war against Navy. We're ready to meet their challenge."