Tag: men’s rugby

Men’s rugby tournament hopes come to an end

By: Emily Rupp, Transcript Correspondent

The OWU rugby logo for both the men's and women's teams. Photo courtesy of Facebook.
The OWU rugby logo for both the men’s and women’s teams. Photo courtesy of Facebook.

The road to nationals for the Ohio Wesleyan men’s rugby team came to an early end in the final four, semifinal showdown.

The team lost their first game of the season on Nov. 7 against Calvin College at the Great Lakes Conference (GLC). Despite their early tournament, they ended the season with a record of 7-­1.

“Unfortunately, the loss on Saturday knocked us out of the contention for nationals,” coach Cody Albright said.

Rugby player Carlos Jackson, a sophomore, said, “Being knocked out of the competition was really tough. We had high expectations for ourselves going into the playoffs because of our perfect regular season so it was really hard to see it all slip away.”

Coach John English said that although they did not qualify this year for nationals, it is their “ultimate goal in the future.”

With a past season record 3­3, the team improved dramatically over the one year period. They hope to continue this trend and finish with a perfect season this spring.

Jackson said, “I’ve been with the club since the first practice two years ago so it’s been amazing for me to watch how far this club has come.”

Albright said that the biggest difference in the team is the level of experience some players have.

“The vast majority of our players had never seen a rugby ball until they stepped onto campus,” Albright said. “Our players are focused and committed to getting better and growing every single day.”

That commitment involves lifting weights Monday and Wednesday and practicing Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. The team also watches film as often as possible to help improve their techniques, English said.

The team will continue to work out on their own to advance their strength, speed and fitness until the spring season of rugby starts.

Jackson said, “I know we have a very talented team and if we put in a lot of work this winter we can definitely make it to nationals this spring.”

Rugby teams hosted tournaments and took home trophies

The OWU rugby logo for both the men's and women's teams. Photo courtesy of Facebook.
The OWU rugby logo for both the men’s and women’s teams. Photo courtesy of Facebook.

You don’t have to wait for the Rugby World Cup this fall to get your fix of the majestically violent sport. The Ohio Wesleyan Rugby program is hosting tournaments, winning them and taking no mercy.

The inaugural Middleton Hopps Bishop Cup 7s Tournament took place Saturday, April 25. Both the men’s and women’s team participated, and both hoisted the trophy.

OWU hosted teams from Ohio Northern University and Denison University. The tournament style was 7s, which is played with only 7-a-side and for a shorter period of time. As opposed to the typical fifteen per side.

Because of the smaller squads, the OWU men’s team was able to divide into two separate teams.

Captain Carlos Jackson, a sophomore, had high hopes for both teams entering tournament play.

“I expected both OWU teams to be in the finals, we’ve been working hard in practice and it ended up being just like one in the end. I felt bad for the other teams because at the end it was just us playing each other,” Jackson said.

The event went very smoothly overall, despite the 40 degree and rainy weather. Some could say it was perfect rugby weather, others like the captain of the women’s team, sophomore JT Knoble, would disagree.

“Despite the rain and the horrible weather, the tournament was a huge success. All of the teams involved had a good time. It was really awesome for both teams to bring home their own trophy.”

There’s more rugby to come and they used this tournament to help prepare for upcoming events, like the National Finals.

“Our goal was to play together as a team as we prepare for the National Finals at West Academy in NY this weekend.”

The hope is to have The Middleton Hopps Bishop 7s Tournament become a yearly event, increasing in size and participation each year.

Middleton Hopps helped out with setting up the women’s rugby program at Ohio Wesleyan.