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NCR 15s Playoffs: Women’s DI & DII

  • 26 Oct 2022
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NCR rugby

National Collegiate Rugby (NCR) Division I and Division II women’s teams will get into playoffs this weekend, naming conference champions and representatives to the regional playoffs that await. The Small College division has already started narrowing the field and will also continue knockouts this weekend (read more).

Remember that NCR holds national 15s championships, not seasonal (i.e., fall and spring) championships. The distinction means the entire membership follows a fall 15s / spring 7s format, in terms of championship seasons.

RELATED: Women’s College Rugby Explained

DIVISION I PLAYOFFS

The Division I playoffs begin at the quarterfinal stage, and eight teams will be split into East (Reading, Pa.) and West (St. Louis, Mo.) brackets. Quarterfinals are Friday, Nov. 18, and semifinals are Sunday, Nov. 20. The two finalists report to Houston for a Sunday, Dec. 4 final.

ALLEGHENY

Standings name champion. No. 1-ranked Notre Dame College is the heavy favorite to win the three-team competition but hasn’t yet played Kent State or Pitt. Those games happen in the next two weekends. Stay tuned for Jack Nece interview this week. ARU #2 will have post-season life and face the South Atlantic champion during the Nov. 12 play-in round. That game will happen at Culpepper, Va., while the DII and Small College regionals unfold. Winner advances to Nov. 18 quarterfinals.

BIG 10

Standings name champion. Michigan is 4-0 with Indiana (2-2) and Michigan State (2-2) to come the next two weekends. Iowa (4-1) is a solid No. 2 seed. The Hawkeyes played Michigan to a 34-22 loss in Ann Arbor, and beat Indiana last weekend 60-22. Iowa ends the regular season with a Nov. 5 home game against Notre Dame (2-2).

LONE STAR

Southern Nazarene and Texas A&M were undefeated heading into last weekend’s regular-season match, and a fabulous game went 41-40 in the Oklahoma team’s favor. The duo do it again this Saturday, Oct. 29 in Waco, Texas, for the conference title, with the winner heading St. Louis for DI Round of 8/4 on Nov. 18-20.

MIDWEST

Standings name champion. Univ. Northern Iowa is undefeated thus far and has Univ. Minnesota (1-2) this Saturday to wrap up the regular season. The Panthers have also challenged themselves outside of the conference, playing Notre Dame College in pre-season and last week traveling to NCAA D3 program Queens Univ. of Charlotte for a repeat friendly. Iowa State would make an excellent at-large competitor, having lost its regular season game to UNI by three points.

SOUTH ATLANTIC

The conference has been running a hybrid league so active teams can play active teams. The conference championships are this Saturday, Oct. 29, and will feature DII and Small College finals. DI Clemson is playing an exhibition game against host Lander Univ., an NCAA D2 program. The Tigers are 5-0 and beat fellow DI USC twice, most recently 57-10 on Sunday. Clemson will report to Culpepper, Va., on Nov. 12 for a play-in match against Allegheny’s runner-up. The victor advances to Nov. 18 quarterfinals in Reading, Pa.

UPSTATE NEW YORK

Standings name the conference champion: Colgate, which swept the DI regular season. Colgate heads directly to the DI quarterfinals on Nov. 12. Team has a tune-up against Allegheny’s DI Pitt this Saturday.

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DIVISION II PLAYOFFS

The Division II playoffs begin at the quarterfinal stage, which is a one-game weekend. On Nov. 12, eight teams will report to one of three locations (Wayne, Neb.; Elkhart, Ind.; Culpepper, Va.), which are also hosting Small College playoffs that same weekend. The four winners will then book travel to Houston for Dec. 3 semifinals and Dec. 4 finals.

GREAT LAKES

Standings name champion and it’s Bowling Green State Univ. The Ohio team bulked up its fall schedule, playing the three DI Allegheny teams in addition to the conference schedule. The key game in Great Lakes was a 46-26 win against Grand Valley State, a result that decided the conference title.

GREAT WATERS

The conference holds proper playoffs for its DII and small college divisions. This weekend, both competitions converge on Oshkosh, Wisc. DII will hold quarterfinals on Saturday, Oct. 29, and semifinals on Sunday, Oct. 30. Note that top-ranked Marquette receives a bye in the first round. [UWEC head coach Derek Wagner talked about the league this fall.] The final is Nov. 5. Read more for small college updates.

SAT OCT 29: Quarterfinals
#1 Marquette – Bye
10 a.m. #2 UW Eau Claire v #7 DePaul (field 1)
12 p.m. #3 Illinois v #6 Loyola (field 1)
12 p.m. #4 Univ. Illinois Chicago v #5 UW La Crosse (field 2)

SUN OCT 30: Semifinals
11 a.m. Fields 1 & 2

LONE STAR

A new addition to the fall 15s space, Lone Star will contribute teams to the DI and DII playoffs. In Division II, Univ. Texas San Antonio and Texas Tech were meant to contest the conference final this Saturday, but Tech forfeited and thus UTSA will advance directly to the DII quarterfinals in Wayne, Neb., on Nov. 12.

MID-AMERICA

Wayne State College bumped up to DII after years of domination in Small College and will be playing in and hosting the West quarterfinal on Nov. 12. The Wildcats will face Lone Star champ UT San Antonio.

NORTHERN LIGHTS

This Saturday, Oct. 29, in Clearwater, Minn., the conference will first contest its Small College Division final between Moorhead and St. Scholastica, and then at noon, the Univ. North Dakota plays Univ. Minn. Duluth for the DII title. The conference will not be sending a team to the play-in round and thus will not be represented at regional playoffs.

OHIO VALLEY

Standings named conference champion. Lots of forfeits, and only Cincinnati and IUPUI were consistent and competitive. The teams faced each other twice and Bearcats won both convincingly. Last Saturday’s match went 41-0 to Cincinnati for the berth to the Elkhart, Ind., quarterfinals.

RUGBY NORTHEAST

Roger Williams is the only NCR DII team in this conference, and it actually qualifies as a Small College but opts to play up. And good thing, because it’s cruised through the Small College field this fall, allowing one try in four games and scoring 308 points. The Rhode Island team has Colonial Coast’s Salve Regina this Friday, and a good test will be RNE Small College leader Colby College on Nov. 5.

SOUTH ATLANTIC

NIRA’s Lander Univ. is hosting the conference championships this Saturday, Oct. 29. The DII title match is between Coastal Carolina and Georgia Tech. The teams played each other last weekend to close out the regular season, and Coastal won 41-22.

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