West Virginia University Men
From the February 21, 2008 Edition of the Daily Athenaeum
Mountaineer rugby team confident after fall success
The West Virginia University men’s rugby club team enters the spring portion of its schedule with confidence and high expectations, following a terrific fall campaign which saw the Mountaineers go further than they ever have. Head coach Jon Niles believes that West Virginia can build off that in the spring season. “A lot of momentum can be carried over,” Niles said. “We have a bunch of new recruits, and we’re playing in lots of good tournaments.”
During the fall season, the Mountaineers went 4-1 in league play to finish second in the Allegheny Rugby Union. However, they came up short in the ARU Championships, after being eliminated by Slippery Rock. One week later, the Mountaineers earned a pair of monumental victories. As a No. 4 seed in the Midwest Territory Rugby Union, West Virginia was set to square off against the top seed, Grand Valley State. Despite getting off to a slow start and falling down 19-0, West Virginia was able to rebound and cut the deficit to 19-17 by halftime. The momentum carried over to the second half as the Mountaineers scored a 38-29 victory over the Lakers. Niles’ squad was able to earn some revenge the next day by crushing No. 24-ranked Slippery Rock, 44-15.These wins qualified the Mountaineers for the Midwest Final Four. They first took on the nation’s eighth-ranked team at the time, St. John’s University (Minn.), losing a 27-24 decision in overtime. A 32-26 loss to Wisconsin the next day left West Virginia in fourth place in the Midwest.
Niles’ team was still able to finish the season ranked No. 25 by eRugbyNews.com. Reaching new levels of success led to a major donation, as the Army National Guard contributed about $5,000 worth of gear to the program. The donation included jerseys, shorts, socks, balls, training equipment and field-lining equipment. It is seen as a prestigious sponsorship as only 300 of 1,800 rugby teams are awarded it. It can provide major assistance to a club sport such as rugby, which often needs help paying expenses. With the spring season nearing, West Virginia will try and take its game to the next level, as the Mountaineers will compete in several major tournaments. WVU has a game against nationally ranked Catholic University and will compete in a match at nationally ranked East Carolina.
Niles recognizes that perhaps his squad’s biggest games will come when it participates in the famous Cherry Blossom Tournament in the Washington, D.C., area. “The Cherry Blossom Tournament is very big for us,” he said. “We had a chance to get to the championship and finished third last year. “Our guys want to prove themselves, and we have a lot of alumni in that area. It’s good for us to prove to them that we still have a good team.”
dasports@mail.wvu.edu
