Photo: Carlos J Morales
DENVER – There will be at least two new champions at the 2015 USA Rugby College 7s National Championships this weekend, with the Thunder Chickens of Principia College the only returning title holders from the 2013 tournament.
In all, 52 men’s and women’s teams will grace the three fields at University of Denver to play a combined 141 matches of the Olympic-formatted Rugby Sevens. Action will kick off on Ciber Field, Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium, and Diane Wendt Fields simultaneously at 8:40 a.m. MT Saturday, May 23. The event will culminate with the Men’s Division I Cup Final at 5:25 p.m. MT Sunday, May 24.
Matches played on Ciber Field and Peter Barton Lacrosse Stadium will be streamed live on
USA Rugby TV, while
ESPN3 will provide coverage of the three Cup Finals on Ciber Field from 4-6 p.m. MT.
Women’s Division Pool Previews
Pool A
Montana State, Pennsylvania State, Rutgers, UC-Davis
Without Norwich, Penn State should be the heavy favorite at College 7s. With capped Eagles Meya Bizer and Hope Rogers, as well as captain Kate Daley at the helm as coach, the Nittany Lions are ready to finish the season they started in the fall with their
second championship in three weeks.
Rutgers defeated fellow College 7s qualifier Vassar in the Tri-State 7s Cup Semifinal before dispatching Stony Brook in the Final to help pad its sevens credentials and earn an at-large bid to this weekend’s tournament.
If there is a way to prepare for Penn State, the Aggies found the closest thing in trying to qualify for College 7s against Cal. The two faced each other in pool play at the qualifier in Stanford, and Cal emerged victorious from the Cup Final with Davis failing to find the try zone in a shutout defeat.
Pool B
Air Force, Stanford, Texas Tech, Virginia
Air Force is the only “local” team, or team hailing from Colorado, in the Women’s Division. If it comes with any advantage, it is the acclimation to Denver’s mile-high altitude and fewer miles to travel ahead of the six-match weekend.
Of course, the advantage may go to Stanford, with a program that has found success in both codes of rugby union in recent years. In 2013, Stanford was knocked out of College 7s in the Cup Quarterfinals by eventual runner-up James Madison. An early exit from its home qualifier tournament could not be avoided with Cal dominating the field, but the extent of the team’s sevens schedule – and 13-2 overall sevens record this spring – was more than enough for an at-large bid.
Virginia more than earned its automatic qualification at NOVA Collegiate 7s in April with a defeat of a strong James Madison side in the tournament’s Cup Final.
Pool C
Central Washington, Humboldt, North Carolina, Princeton
Princeton is the only team in Pool C returning to College 7s from the 2013 incarnation, and the only side in the pool to have earned automatic qualification. Princeton beat fellow Ivy League school Brown in the Rickerson Cup – Ivy 7s tournament.
Central Washington’s first-year varsity program has already earned accolades on the 15s side of the game, beating Stanford, Life, and Brigham Young on the way to a Spring Championship title before falling to Penn State in the Women’s Division I National Championship match. Even during the fall, coaches Mel Denham and Katie Dowty, capped Eagles, made sure to focus on sevens.
Central Washington suffered two losses to Cal in the OSU 7s qualifier in October, practicing only twice in the build-up week. Several players, like Ashley Rolsma, Asinate Serevi, and Fina Toetu’u, played in the Las Vegas Invitational tournament in February alongside the World Rugby HSBC Sevens World Series event.
Pool D
California, James Madison, Lindenwood, Texas
The Golden Bears should be viewed as favorites in their pool, with qualifier wins at Stanford 7s and OSU 7s, as well as the coaching expertise of current Eagle Irene Gardner. Gardner will be away from the team at College 7s as the Women’s Eagles Sevens seek Olympic qualification, but recent scrimmages against Stanford and participation in Santa Clara 7s has the team ready to improve on its 2013 fourth-place finish.
James Madison will feel hard-done-by to draw Cal in its pool, but the 2013 runner-up failed to secure an automatic bid to the tournament. The Dukes lost out to Virginia at NOVA Collegiate 7s but secured an at-large bid.
Lindenwood sent two teams to Nebraska 7s and came away from the tournament with zero losses, while the Lions beat Penn State to finish pool play at Penn State 7s undefeated. The final two matches were both against Penn State, however, and the Nittany Lions’ class shone through with a home tournament victory.
