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Last weekend was a big one for USA Club Rugby teams, especially those vying for the Super Regional Championships (SRCs), the first of which occurs on April 24-26. Teams that win their respective SRCs then advance to nationals — except women’s DIII — on May 14-16 in Lemont, Ill. The following is an overview of where women’s Division I, Division II and Division III competitions stand as of Sunday. There is just one competition (Capital) remaining that will name champions and thus SRC reps this Saturday. [lead photo: Gulf Coast SRC-bound Life University / Beni Thiongo / Mianya’s Photography]
ATLANTIC
The Atlantic SRC hosts DI, DII and DIII competitions, although as previously mentioned, the DIII champs do not advance onto nationals. All of the SRC semifinals have been set, with the exception of those playoffs that involve Capital champions, which will contest their DII and DIII title matches this Saturday, April 18.
DIVISION I
The seven teams play each other once and then standings send the top-four teams to the post-season. Heading to Niagara, N.Y., the first weekend in May:
May 2 Semifinals
#2 NOVA v D.C. Furies #3
#1 Philadelphia v New York #4
May 3 Championship
DIVISION II
New Haven and Providence won the Empire and New England titles, respectively, in the fall and will be facing each other in Niagara, N.Y., at the SRC semifinals. Phoenixville White Horse beat Monmouth last Saturday to repeat as Eastern Pennsylvania (EPRU) champion and will face the Capital champ — the winner of Severn River vs. James River, which will be determined April 18 — in the SRC semis.
May 2 Semifinals
Phoenixville (EPRU) v Capital (4.18 Severn River v James River)
Providence (New England) v New Haven (Empire)
DIVISION III
Like DII, Union (Empire) and Portland (New England) won their local leagues in the fall. York & Lancaster won Eastern Pennsylvania last weekend with a 38-22 title win against North Bay. This Saturday, the DIII Capital title will be decided between Frederick and D.C. Revolution.
May 2 Semifinals
Portland (New England) v York & Lancaster (EPRU)
Union (Empire) v Capital (4.18 Frederick v DC Revolution)
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GULF COAST
The Gulf Coast SRC occurs in Austin on April 25-26, and the DI, DII and DIII playoff matchups have been set.
DIVISION I
The Red River championship is being contested at the Gulf Coast SRC. It comes down to first-year participant Life University, whose collegiate side just won the CRAA DI 15s championship in Sacramento Saturday. Houston (sHARC) finished runner-up in the standings and will feature in the April 25 final.
April 25 Final
Life v sHARC
DIVISION II
All four competitions named their respective champions last weekend. In Florida, Tampa Bay beat Orlando 35-21. Charlotte topped Atlanta 2.0 Selects 37-25 for the Carolinas title. Knoxville beat Chattanooga 51-19 in Saturday’s True South semifinals and then Birmingham 31-22 on Sunday for the title. The Minx will face Little Rock in the SRC semifinals, as the Arkansas side bested San Antonio 38-22 on Saturday for the Red River championship.
April 25 Semifinals
Tampa Krewe (Florida) v Charlotte (Carolinas)
Knoxville (True South) v Little Rock (Red River)
April 26 Finals
DIVISION III
It’s great to see the Gulf Coast push participation with a full DIII semifinal bracket. New to DIII representation is Florida, which will send the Southwest Florida Hammerheads to the SRC. In the Carolinas, Charleston beat the Carolina Villains 50-5 in the title match, but the latter is currently reflected in Xplorer as competing in the SRC semifinal against the Hammerheads. The Dallas Reds beat Bay Area for the Red River trophy, and Battleship topped New Orleans 43-24 in Sunday’s True South championship.
April 25 Semifinals
Dallas Reds (Red River) v Battleship (True South)
Carolina Villains (Carolinas) v SW Florida Hammerheads (Florida)
April 26 Finals
PACIFIC
DIVISION I
The Pacific SRC occurs Friday-Sunday, April 24-26 in Henderson, Nev. The interesting change here is that Southern California is afforded two teams to the semifinals and joined by the Pacific Northwest and Northern California champs. Where did the room come from? The Rocky Mountain champion is heading to the Northern SRC instead of the Pacific SRC for a national semifinal play-in match.
Undefeated Seattle locked up the Pacific Northwest berth a couple of weeks ago, and undefeated Berkeley locked up the NorCal DI spot. Both teams competed in a DI/DII hybrid league, and there was no final per se to name champions.
But perhaps the biggest news is Santa Monica’s DI championship win against long-time powerhouse San Diego — a 41-24 contest that unfolded in San Diego on Saturday.
April 24 Semifinals
San Diego (SoCal #2) v Seattle (Pacific Northwest)
Santa Monica (SoCal #1) v Berkeley (NorCal)
April 26 Finals
DIVISION II
The SRC occurs outside of Las Vegas, and the local team is happy to return to the nearby rugby complex in Henderson. Las Vegas won the Southwest after beating Phoenix on Saturday and will face SoCal champ Los Angeles — which topped Pasadena 54-17 in Saturday’s SoCal final — in the April 25 SRC semifinals.
Portland had its Pacific Northwest championship game canceled but has proven to be the dominant DII team in that corner of the country for years. The Pigs will face NorCal’s Life West, which competed in a DI/DII hybrid competition this spring. The victor of that league — Berkeley — is competing in the DI Pacific SRC, while runner-up Life West, which played the All Blues to 34-29 and 32-12 losses during the regular season — was afforded the DII slot.
April 25 Semifinals
Los Angeles (SoCal) v Las Vegas (Southwest)
Life West (NorCal) v Portland (Pacific Northwest)
April 26 Finals
NORTHERN
DIVISION I
This SRC occurs May 2-3 in Lemont, Ill., – site of the national championships as well. 2026 marks the first season in which there will be a DI match. In previous years, the Midwest champion has advanced directly to the DI national semifinals, but now Chicago North Shore, READ MORE which won the title in the fall, has an additional playoff round. And it’s a big one. Reigning DI national champion Utah Vipers has repeated as Rocky Mountain champion and will represent the Frontier against North Shore in what is essentially a semifinal play-in match.
May 2 SRC Final
Chicago North Shore (Midwest) v Utah Vipers (Frontier)
DIVISION II
The Midwest contested its championship in the fall and both champion Milwaukee Scylla and runner-up South Buffalo advance to Northern SRC semifinals. On Saturday, both the Mid-America and Rocky Mountain competitions named their champs. St. Louis posted back-to-back shutouts to win Mid-America, defeating KC Jazz 69-0 in the Saturday semis and Patriot 75-0 in the Sunday final. Salt City Slugs — the DII sister club to the Utah Vipers — beat Pike’s Peak 34-14 to claim the Rocky Mountain trophy.
The SRC semifinal matchups have not been published, but the Midwest teams will be on opposites sides of the bracket.
For more information, visit usaclub.rugby.