Spring wrap-up: the CRCs, and the women are national champions
The men won their CRC opener and pushed champions Kutztown close; the women won the D1 sevens title unbeaten.
The spring season ended as it started: cold and rainy. It began in Los Angeles in some of the worst weather LA had seen in decades, and the Dogs soldiered on to qualify for the College Rugby Championships, this year in Washington, DC.
The CRCs started strong with a 17–12 win over South Carolina in the round of 32. The boys came very close to beating reigning national champions Kutztown in the round of 16, losing 19–12, and a loss to Notre Dame by the same score kept us from a top-10 finish. Rain shut down everything but the finals on Sunday, so our last match, against Brown for final seeding, was cancelled. Mount St. Mary’s were the eventual champions, upsetting favorites Indiana 19–5 in the final.
The women are national champions
The women sloshed their way through their sevens season too, and earned a trip to the USA Rugby D1 tournament in Texas, where they crushed it. The Lady Dogs came home from Dallas undefeated national champions, beating Wyoming, UConn twice and Virginia Tech before blasting Air Force 19–5 in a torrential downpour in the final. Huge congratulations to the team and their coaches!
The coaches, staff and players thank all our alumni, family and friends for another incredible year of Maddog rugby. Without our village, NU rugby would not be where it is today.