Ohio

They’ve done it again. St. Ignatius defeated St. Xavier 48-12 in the final on Sunday and took home the Fall Sevens trophy.

St. Xavier had battled through a tough bracket that included an overtime victory over West Pitt in the semi final.

The Bombers put up a fight against St. Ignatius, and even held a brief 5-0 lead in the opening minutes in the final, but the Wildcats ran away with it in the second half with tremendous athleticism and clever footwork.

On their way to the championship match, Ignatius had to get through St. Ed’s — and that was no easy task. St. Edward held a 14-12 lead, when the Wildcats chipped it over the top and attempted to run down the kick. But during the chase, a St. Ed’s player was penalized for playing the man instead of the ball, and St. Ignatius was awarded a penalty try — ultimately winning the game 17-14 and sending the Wilcats to the Final. Brutal for St. Ed’s.

Euphoria for St. Ignatius — who continue a wild 89-1 run over the past five sevens seasons. Trophy clinched, yet again.

Colorado

Monarch is 19-0 this fall and the favorites heading into championship weekend. Buuuut, East High is right behind them at 18-1, and likely wants to bring them down a notch.

I had to go all the way back to September 26th to find East High’s lone loss — a 7-28 result. The winner was Monarch.

Hoo boy, I love rematches. Here’s to hoping these two meet tomorrow in Boulder with a 7s title on the line.

Tennessee

Knoxville triumphant. The Knoxville Hounds won the state title, defeating the TN Raptors in the final.

Admittedly, Knoxville has slipped our radar a bit — but I’m excited to see if they continue rocking and rolling when 15s begins. Congrats, lads!

The White Station Spartans meanwhile snagged the Tier 2 trophy in Tennessee.

It was a commanding performance, including back-to-back shutouts in the semi final and final.

Hell yeah, boys 👊

North Carolina

South Charlotte takes the trophy in the Elite division.

They were a force all season, regularly churning out highlight reel stuff each week. And you’d be forgiven for accidentally calling them the Tigers — this group is loaded with Charlotte Tigers players who won a tier 2 national championship this spring.

Winning looks good on you guys.

Pennsylvania Sevens

Just championship weekend left on the schedule: next weekend in Malvern, PA.

Doylestown is the juggernaut squad this year — holding a 16-0 record and the #1 seed for next week’s state championship weekend. They had five tries scored by five different players last week against Berks, showing just how imposing their roster is.

Championship weekend is typically live-streamed, so we’ll follow up next week with the link if it’s available.

15s already?

Well, yes, in Florida.

Okapi and Key Biscayne held a friendly last week. It was a rolling-subs affair, and plenty of playing time for both sides. Okapi won 36-12, but we don’t look into October games too closely.

Honestly, I’m just happy to see 15s happening out there this time of year!

🎥 Here are some highlights.

🏟️Dennis Storer Classic — REGISTRATION almost closed

The deets:

🗓️ January 16-17
📍 UCLA, Westwood, California
👥 Divisions: U16 | U18 | College

This tournament has become a mainstay on the rugby calendar each year. California weather and UCLA’s beautiful campus are serious draws for a wonderful event.

Registration closes tomorrow, October 31. Last call!

👉Register here

Sal Vitale | Xavier (NY)

Just dropping this here because the level of detail in this pre-game meal is impressive. Also, what is a gutted out roll?

???

You’ll need to click to see who Mr. Pickle Juice Shots is 🤓

Ywain Moritz | Tampa Krewe (FL)

Did you know you can add photos and highlights for every game you play in? Ywain Moritz figured it out 🤙

Daniel Bennett | Strake Jesuit (TX)

This guy has one of the best background photos for his profile 👌

👉Make your own profile on Rugby Riot. It’s free and awesome.

I present to you:

A very late hit 😳

Not celebrating this. Just happened to get a good angle. Don’t worry, he got right back up.

Oddball musings, thanks to the cold tub.

🏉 The New York Times ran a rugby story the other day — about a pro player who got a bit handsy in a ruck. Can’t they ever find something positive to write about our sport? Low hanging fruit all around.

🏉 Dick’s Sporting Goods does not have a rugby section in their stores. A travesty. I’m going to formally lobby for a quaint 10×10 spot for short-shorts and scrum caps.

🏉 I’m dragging my feet on Rugby Riot merch. Hats or shirts? Just tell me and I’ll do it.