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 [ Tuesday, April 5, 2005 ] Ruggers qualify for round of 16
Men's Rugby
By Jamie Romm
Collegian Staff Writer
Rugby is a sport in which the players are forced to get dirty and roughed up on a regular basis. When it is raining and the field is muddy, the sport can be even tougher to play. But try winning a regional championship in that weather -- for three games in a row. For the first time since 1999, the Penn State men's rugby team won the Mid-Atlantic Rugby Football Union's (MARFU) championship, sealing the title with a victory Sunday against No. 3 ranked Navy, 29-18. |
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With the win, the Ruggers enter the round of 16 for the national championship as a No. 3 seed. The team came into Saturday needing a win against the University of Pennsylvania to advance to the regional final and guarantee a spot in the round of 16. The game, which was played in a strong wind, was dominated by the Ruggers, who grabbed a 24-3 win. After last week's game, Penn State was used to playing in bad weather. "The muddy conditions in that game were horrible," Ryland said after the Virginia game. "It should prepare us well." The Ruggers, who use a wide-open attack, had to adjust their play for the bad field conditions. The team played conservatively in the first half, but in the second half, with the wind at their backs, the Ruggers opened up the scoring for the win. In the regional final, the Ruggers faced Navy, one of the top teams in the country. The Ruggers came into the game ranked No. 7 in the country and had a month off since their win against Army in early March. Playing Army earlier in the season seemed to help the team against the top-conditioned Navy club. In preparation for the two games in two days, Penn State increased its conditioning workouts to stay in the right physical condition for the games. "These teams that we're playing are going to physical," junior Mike Petri said before the weekend. "We need to be physical as well." But after a game in the horrible field conditions on Saturday, most teams would need a rest. The Ruggers' rest lasted less than 24 hours. After a close first half, the Ruggers came away with the win in a 29-18 game. When the Ruggers beat Army a month ago, Ryland said that the team should not be surprised when beating nationally ranked teams. "We should be seen as the top dog on the East Coast now," Ryland said after the Army game. The only team standing in their way on the East Coast of being the "top dog" was Navy. Dogs are known for playing in the mud much like the Ruggers did this weekend. Now that the Ruggers won the MARFU championships against that Navy team, they proved that "top dog" fits them well. | ||||
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