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National Collegiate Rugby (NCR) has nearly wrapped on its 15s regular season, and the regional championships (aka, national Round of 16/8) are starting to populate with teams. The picture is not yet complete and readers should obviously wait for NCR to announce the brackets, but the following is some insight into how Division II is looking. Check out the DI and DI-AA recap, and stay tuned for the DIII post. [lead photo: Jackie Finlan/TRB]
RELATED: Rugby Scores – Oct. 30-Nov. 1
Based on NCR’s championship home, the following conferences have automatic berths to regionals, which occurs Friday-Sunday, Nov. 13-15 in four locations: Canton, Mass.; Springfield, Mo.; Indianapolis; and Rock Hill, S.C.
ALLEGHENY … Confusingly, this conference has not featured on the weekly NCR College Polls, and so Univ. Cincinnati has been quietly dominating the league with little recognition. The Bearcats beat Kent State 49-5, Ohio University 91-0, Pitt 62-12 and West Virginia 102-0. The Ohio side also challenged itself against higher-division teams like Indiana and Walsh University. Cincinnati confirmed that it has regionals aspirations.
GREAT LAKES … Bowling Green State University went undefeated in league play and bulked up its 15s schedule outside of the conference. Like Cincinnati, Bowling Green played Walsh (to a competitive loss) and beat Kent State 50-27.
GREAT WATERS … The bracket overview shows the conference with two berths to playoffs, meaning champion UW Eau Claire and runner-up Northwestern would be the reps to the Round of 16. With that said, the Blugolds dominated the competition during last weekend’s final four championship: 101-0 win against Marquette in Saturday’s semifinals, and 113-0 win against Northwestern in the Sunday championship. Marquette finished 3rd overall with a 33-28 win against Illinois.
HIGH PEAKS … Colorado Mesa University is the only DII team playing 15s in the Rocky Mountain conference. The Mavericks stay sharp by playing a mix of DI-AA, DIII and friendly opponents. Two important results: 19-14 win vs. Utah State, which featured in the DI-AA conference final against Colorado; and 46-17 win against Colorado School of Mines, which is also heading to DIII regionals.
LONE STAR … North Texas is the DII champion and will head to regionals. Second-place UT San Antonio, however, wished it could have played its final regular-season match against UNT last Saturday, as that might have swayed the final standings and thus champion status.
MID-AMERICA … The conference does not have an automatic berth to regionals, as Arkansas was the only DII team able to field a full 15s squad. Nonetheless, the Hogs have applied for an at-large berth and are eagerly awaiting NCR’s ruling.
MID-ATLANTIC … The conference runs north and south pools, and then playoffs see the top-performing squads cross over. Unfortunately Delaware forfeited its Oct. 24 semifinal to William & Mary, and Towson beat Mary Washington 35-21. The duo met last Saturday in the conference championship, and William & Mary triumphed 21-17 for the spot at regionals. Towson would make for a good at-large team at regionals.
NORTH ATLANTIC … Vermont and the U.S. Coast Guard Academy contest the conference championship on Saturday at General Foley Stadium (Worcester, Mass.). The winner moves onto regionals. The Bears are favored, having challenged itself outside of the league, including a 45-38 loss to DI-AA Quinnipiac, the former NCAA DI varsity program.
RUGBY NORTHEAST … Norwich closed out the season with a 55-19 win against Roger Williams, clinching the conference title and berth to regionals.
NORTHERN LIGHTS … The conference did not have an automatic berth to regionals, but Winona State won the league championship last weekend against North Dakota State 97-0 and has earned an at-large spot.
SOUTH ATLANTIC … The conference held a finals weekend in Conway, S.C., with three teams. Last Saturday, Kennesaw State beat Appalachian State 29-27 to advance to Sunday’s final against host Coastal Carolina University. The title match belonged to Coastal Carolina — a 55-19 win against the Owls — and trip to regionals.
TRI-STATE … There is still one more week left in regular-season play, but regardless of results, the top-three teams are decided: 1. Vassar, 2. Fairfield, 3. Marist. The top-two teams are guaranteed spots at regionals, and there is a decent chance that league could get a third spot.
UPSTATE NEW YORK … The conference held its championship last weekend, and Syracuse beat SUNY Binghamton 31-15 for the title and berth to regionals.