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The first girls’ high school trophy of the fall season has been awarded, and each weekend will name more champions. The following is a review of where state competitions stand, as well as some links to resources that are covering those leagues well. [lead photo: Carmel wins Indiana]
It’s a short and sweet season in INDIANA, with just three tournament weekends ahead of the finale. Last Sunday at the Moose Rugby Grounds in Elkhart, six teams played two pool games apiece, and then the top-four advanced to the semifinals. Carmel beat Westfield 27-10, and the Chargers topped Fort Wayne 17-10. Carmel then dominated the trophy match, beating the Chargers 31-14 for a second-straight title. Stay tuned for an interview with Carmel co-head coach Tayler Wiggs. The Chargers’ Mia Cortes was named MVP. The state will resume with club 15s in the spring.
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IDAHO runs three divisions for its girls’ high school 7s season, which is school-district sanctioned. The freshman and JV competitions held their district playoffs last Saturday and will name their district champions on Saturday, Oct. 17 (there is no state championships for JV and freshman leagues). The seven-team varsity competition will hold its final round of district playoffs on Wednesday, Oct. 14 and then regroup for the state championship on Oct. 17 at Meridian High School. In all three divisions, Eagle High School leads the standings.
Also, the week after states, Idaho will host the 4th annual single-school 7s championship on Oct. 22-24. Read more. The USA Pathways staff will be hosting a talent ID camp and then stay in town for the 16-team tournament.
MICHIGAN held its first round of 15s playoffs last weekend in Sparta. It’s a double-elimination format this year, meaning a loss routes teams into an “elimination” bracket, where there’s an opportunity to play back into the championship final.
There are four games remaining now. St. Joe and Warsaw play on Saturday, Oct. 18, and the victor will secure its spot in the Nov. 1 title match. The loser will re-route to that elimination bracket and play a final play-in match on Oct. 25. The opponent will be the winner of TC Alliance vs. Grandville — a game that is being played on Oct. 18.
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WISCONSIN just closed on its final week of regular season 15s play, and now the post-season begins this Saturday at Cottage Grove. The semifinals pit Divine Savior Holy Angels (DSHA) against South Central, and Catholic Memorial against Green Bay/Bruiser. State championship and final placing matches are Saturday, Oct. 25 at Hart Park in Wauwatosa.
DSHA is the title favorite overall but the field has enjoyed the continued growth of the South Central Sirens, which rebranded last year from the Madtown Furies. It played Catholic Memorial to a 19-17 loss last weekend.
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Wisconsin Rugby News provided an excellent primer to the season and this site has been good for weekly updates. And of course Badger Kings is all over the state.
The IOWA Youth Rugby Association will name its state 7s champion on Sunday, Oct. 18 at Cedar Falls H.S. Everything you could possibly want to know about the eight-team bracket, seeds, standings, team rosters, etc., is on the website. And the organization does such a good job with the extras — timely results, teams of the week, players of the week, etc. — on social media (@rugbyiowa). Just a standard setter for info sharing and promotion.
Waverly Shell-Rock (12-0) and Cedar Falls (11-1) are the #1- and #2-seeded teams heading into the Sunday quarterfinals, and they’re the favorites for a final’s appearance. They’ll also be heading to Idaho for the late-October 7s championship to represent the state.
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COLORADO is still working through its two separate seasons — CIRA and Rugby Colorado — both of which are 7s. CIRA, which is exclusively for single-school teams, is off this weekend and then rolls into championships on Oct. 24 at Palmer HS in Colorado Springs. Rugby Colorado contests its Week 5 game this Saturday in Arvada, and then Week 6 matches on Oct. 24 in Evergreen. Its 7s championship occurs on Saturday, Oct. 31 in Boulder. Check out the current standings.
Summit HS has multiple sides in CIRA and in Rugby Colorado, and is also sending a team to the HS 7s championships in Idaho on the same weekend as CIRA finals.
PENNSYLVANIA just closed on Week 3 of 5 of its fall 7s series and will host the state championship on Nov. 7-8 in Malvern. Doylestown is leading the pack again and still undefeated.
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OREGON has spent the previous four Saturdays playing 7s and will now hold its championship this Saturday, Oct. 17 in McMinnville, hosted by Valley Panthers. Summit High School is the reigning 7s champ, Portland is the reigning 15s champ, and both are heading to Idaho for 7s nationals alongside newcomer Bend HS.
OHIO supports a solid fall 7s season but asserts that it is not a Rugby Ohio championship, which makes sense, as out-of-state teams like West Virginia and West Pitt are eligible to win the title. Varsity includes 11 sides, and Highland and West Pitt lead thus far. JV has nine competitors. This Sunday is the final round with tournaments being held in Euclid and Columbus, and then the finale follows. See the current standings.
TENNESSEE has been working through its fall 7s season and reigning champion Father Ryan HS has been looking good again, winning the Heart of Dixie tournament on Oct. 3 It’ll all come down to the Sunday, Oct. 25 state championship in Hendersonville.
NORCAL is plugging through its regular season for single-school 7s. Four teams competed in the West Coast 7s last weekend, and now the full field is back for the final regular-season tournaments at St. Francis HS and St. Patrick’s Academy. There is a seeding tournament on Oct. 24 and then championships are Nov. 7. See results and standings from the 14 sides that have played games this fall.
MONTANA is new to the fall 7s scene and kicked off last Saturday in Helena. This Saturday is round two, also in Helena, before the championship on Oct. 31 in Bozeman.