USA

Following a highly charged final, the Gentlemen of Aspen were crowned the 2009 Division I Champions when the USA Rugby Men’s Club finals wrapped up at Glendale’s Infinity Park on Sunday night.

In a physical final showdown versus the Las Vegas Blackjacks, both teams fiercely defended their trylines. In minute 14, Aspen’s Ryan Nichols touched down for the first score of the game the score still held firm at 5-0 when the first half came to a close.

Reminiscent of its semifinal meeting versus Pearl City, Las Vegas came out hungry in the second half and shortly after kickoff caught a quick break up the side. However, the Blackjacks were unable to finish it out. Instead, the team notched a penalty kick that pulled the score to 5-3.

Due to its fine-tuned defense, Aspen maintained possession for the bulk of the second half, and pinned the Blackjacks deep in their end for three more tries. Man of the Match, Aspen lock Hayden Mexted was the first to cross over at 46 minutes and wing Thomas Johnson went diving into the corner to pull Aspen ahead 15-3, with just less than 20 minutes remaining.

As the minutes ticked down, the game grew more aggressive and led to yellow cards that put Las Vegas two men down for part of the half – and the Gentlemen of Aspen took advantage. Mike Hurley all but sealed the deal for Aspen with the team’s final try with just over a minute left in regulation, but Las Vegas would have the last word, as Setareki put one down beneath the posts and the conversion ushered in the final whistle to leave the tally at 25-10.

“Our defense is what we’ve worked on the most all season. We’ve always said that a good defense is just as important as offense because of the opportunities it creates,” Aspen Coach Fred Waititi said following the win. “I’m proud of the team for what we’ve accomplished here – we don’t all live in the same city and some of these guys are driving two or three hours just to get to practice. But the more obstacles we’re given, the higher it seems we rise.”

In the Men’s Division II Final, the top-seeded East Palo Alto Razorbacks came out firing on all cylinders, with their backline darting in for three tries in the first half. Wing Onesi Havea had back-to-back tries to start off the day and scrumhalf Duke Vabai also touched down at minute 38, in the Razorbacks 22-3 first half showing. Albuquerque’s Diego Sotelo kicked for his team’s only points in the first 40.

East Palo Alto continued its dominance in the second half, through a true combined effort from the pack and the backline. The tough Razorback defense held Albuquerque from the try zone until the 67th minute when replacement Nick Scholz dotted down. The Aardvarks steadily chipped away at the steep deficit, but when time ran out it was 46-22 in EPA’s favor.

“It was a great overall team effort from the guys – they worked hard all season and really came together out on the field today,” East Palo Alto Coach Rob Holder said. “We also benefited from the great leadership of our captain, Viliami Tai.”

When competition got underway on Sunday morning, Northern State University was crowned the Men’s Division III champions. Before six minutes had gone, each team dotted down for a try, the South Dakota team turned in up a notch and defended ferociously for the remainder of the first half. Pinned deep into their own end for nearly 10 minutes in the first half, the team held strong until #11 Wade Ginsbach broke away and dove in for a spectacular try.

Before the end of the first half, Northern State had pulled ahead to a 43-10 lead, allowing just one more Beaumont try just before the break from fullback Grant Vorster.

A refreshed Beaumont side emerged from the locker room in the second half and flyhalf Bijaan Rajapboor chipped away at Northern Shore’s lead with an early try and conversion. However, Beaumont could not contain the speed of Northern State fullback Chris Campagna-Pinto, who was instrumental to his team’s offensive drive in the second half.

Pinto, who was later award Man of the Match honors, scored his second try of the day in the second and ran the distance before setting up another superb try for teammate Wade Ginsbach in Northern State’s eventual 67-22 victory over Beaumont.

“It was a great game – both teams play similar styles of rugby and it really came down to making our tackles and playing strong defense,” Northern State Coach Sam Mounga said after the match. “We’re really thankful to be here and especially want to thank the Aberdeen (S.D.) community and the university for their continued support of our team.”

In the consolation matches, after leading just 15-8 at the half, Pearl City pulled away from the Atlanta Renegades and out to a 57-8 final score in the Division I consolation. Indianapolis upset Roses Rugby (Lancaster) 43-38 in sudden death overtime in the DII consolation, while in DIII, Middlesex shut out Danbury 20-0 in the first half and rolled on to a 49-10 victory.

FINALS DAY RESULTS

Men’s Club Championships – May 31 – Stadium

Northern State 67, Beaumont 22
East Palo Alto 46, Albuquerque 22
Aspen 25, Las Vegas 10

Men’s Club Championships Consolation – May 31 – Park-South

Middlesex 49, Danbury 10
Indianapolis 43, Lancaster 38 (OT)
Pearl City 57, Atlanta 8

CHAMPIONSHIPS RESULTS – DAY 1

Men’s Club Championships – May 30 – Stadium

Division I Semi-Final Las Vegas 42, Pearl City 33
Division I Semi-Final Aspen 76, Atlanta Renegades 10

Men’s Club Championships – May 30 – Park-South

Division III Semi-Final Northern State 37, Danbury 12
Division III Semi-Final Beaumont 30, Middlesex 25
Division II Semi-Final  East Palo Alto 39, Indianapolis 11
Division II Semi-Final  Albuquerque 34, Lancaster 23