Below is a recap of important club and college rugby games that occurred last weekend, January 16-17, followed by a preview of upcoming matches worth a follow.
CLUB RUGBY
One suspects that Northern California is going to be an exciting year. The reigning champion, Sacramento Amazons, had a bye during the opening weekend and sat back as two very different games evolve.
Life West is back for its sophomore year in the league and put up an intimidating 81 unanswered points against San Jose Saturday. All Americans Catie Benson, who serves as captain, and Megan Foster are new to the 15s lineup, and if the CIPP roster is current, then also expect Megan Pinson, Cheryl McAfee, and Jenn Sever to propel Life West this season.
There was much more tension between San Francisco Golden Gate and Berkeley. The All Blues sent two pick-and-drives over for a 10-point lead in the first quarter. SFGG used some strategic kicking in the second quarter to put Arianna Willet and Molly Manning in for tries, and a conversion and penalty from Lindsay Kinsler put Gate up 15-10 into the break.
There the scoreline held until the final five minutes of play, when Berkeley made gains through a big Sonia Globerson-Lamb breakaway. The All Blues capitalized on the territory and sent Allie Byrne across for the tying points, 15-15.
UPCOMING: Life West vs. Berkeley
DI COLLEGE RUGBY
The Pacific Mountain South saw newcomer CSU Northridge head east for its first double-header, and the trip began with a heart-breaker. Arizona defeated the Californian side 15-14 on a last-minute penalty (read more). Arizona State was more dominant and the Sun Devils won 49-19 to improve to 2-0 on the season.
UC San Diego improved to 2-0, defeating UC Santa Barbara 80-12. The reigning conference champion has outscored league opponents 149-17.
UPCOMING: The Arizona teams return the favor this weekend, and hit up UCLA and UC Santa Barbara on consecutive days. UC San Diego plays CSU Northridge.
DII COLLEGE RUGBY
UC Riverside is the team to beat in the Gold Coast and started its campaign back to nationals with a 38-12 win over UC Irvine. Michelle Hong and Tishani Finnikin continued their roles as difference-makers in the victory.
The West Coast has severed into DII and DIII this year. DII consists of Humboldt, UN Reno, Sacramento State, UC Santa Cruz and Santa Clara. One hopes that the league-opener – a 22-22 tie between UCSC and Santa Clara – is indicative of the competition to come.
DIII is comprised of St. Mary’s, Fresno State, CSU Monterey Bay, and Univ. San Francisco. St. Mary’s defeated FSU 19-12 on Saturday. Details for the DIII post-season are unclear. USA Rugby’s calendar indicates DIII regional championships, but there is little word on which leagues are actually contesting spring 15s seasons.
GAMES TO WATCH
The entire Pacific Mountain Conference opens up this weekend. In the North, Oregon vs. Oregon State is the highlight. During the fall, the in-state rivals battled to a one-point decision – 39-38 to the Beavers. Even without that result in recent memory, this game is always a heated one. /// In the West, both games are worth following, as two new coaches – Josh Sutcliffe for Stanford, Mari Wallace for Cal – debut in the 15s league. The Cardinal hosts Chico State, while the Bears travel to UC Davis. /// The South is the busiest, as four teams – Arizona, Arizona State, UCLA, UC Santa Barbara – play doubleheaders this weekend.
Another big game occurs in DI Florida. Central Florida has set the standard of play in the state, but Florida International is the upstart looking to share the spotlight. Both have dominated early-season opponents, and this game pits the top two in Florida against each other.
Stay tuned for results.