DURHAM, N.H. - The Norwich University men's rugby team continued its strong spring 7s campaign on Saturday, turning in an impressive runner-up finish at the Lt. Scott F. Milley Memorial 7s Tournament, hosted by the University of New Hampshire.
Competing against a competitive regional field, the Cadets opened the day with a pair of dominant shutout victories in pool play before battling through a sudden-death semifinal and advancing to the Cup Final.
Norwich wasted no time setting the tone in its opening match, rolling to a 47-0 victory over Bates College. The Cadets struck early and often, with freshman
James Fagley (Vernon, Vt.) scoring twice in the first half, alongside a try from sophomore
Tyreeque Green (Shirley, N.Y.).
Dumisani Janda (Harare, Zimbabwe) and
Joe Whiteside (Killingworth, Conn.) handled the conversion duties, with Whiteside adding two successful kicks.
The Cadets continued their offensive surge in the second half, as sophomore
Owen Boullion (Bow, N.H.), sophomore
Brandon Smith (Charlotte, N.C.), junior
Gabe Holtkamp, and freshman
Max Ansell each crossed for tries. Conversions were added by Janda, Smith, and
Eegan Karmya (Livingston, N.J.) to cap a complete team performance.
Norwich followed with another commanding effort in a 50-0 victory over the University of Vermont B Side. Boullion led the way with two first-half tries, while Whiteside and
Sebastian Yates each added one. Whiteside converted three of the four scores to give the Cadets a comfortable halftime cushion.
The second half featured continued depth scoring, as
Jake Peterson (Trumbull, Conn.),
Eric Forcier (Colchester, Vt.),
John Shaffer (Tyngsboro, Mass.), and
Matt Kuchar (Chester, N.Y.) each recorded tries. Janda added a conversion, while Karmya converted twice to finish off Norwich's second shutout of the day.
Advancing to the Cup Semifinal, Norwich met host New Hampshire in a tightly contested battle that required extra time to decide. UNH opened the scoring with a converted try, but Norwich answered to level the match at 7-7, as Boullion finished the try and Whiteside added the conversion.
The Cadets took a 12-5 lead behind another try from Fagley, but the Wildcats responded late in regulation to even the score at 12-12 and force sudden-death overtime.
On the opening kickoff of overtime, Norwich executed a pivotal defensive stand, forcing a scrum opportunity. Off the ensuing possession, the Cadets worked the ball into space, setting up Peterson for the decisive try to secure a 17-12 victory and a place in the Cup Final.
In the championship match, Norwich faced a seasoned Providence College squad, which capitalized early to build a 19-0 advantage behind a pair of Cadet errors.
Norwich responded just before halftime, as Peterson broke through for a try in the closing moments, with Whiteside converting to cut the deficit to 19-7 at the break.
Providence extended its lead in the second half, again taking advantage of miscues to push ahead, but the Cadets continued to compete. Fagley added a try, followed by another from Peterson, with Whiteside converting both scores to account for Norwich's 21 points in the 31-21 final.
"I was so proud how the boys battled today," said Head Coach
Bob Weggler. "We had a highly contested overtime win in the semis, and in the Cup Final we got beat by the better 7s team on the day. Hats off to Providence College.
"We were battling for hardware at the end of three long days of 7s competitions. We won one Plate Final placing third, and lost back-to-back Cup Finals, one in overtime. We went 10-3 in the last three 7s tournaments on U.S. soil, and all three losses were to the Cup Champion. What more can you ask for from such a young squad? I think Norwich is in a good position to gain an at-large bid to the upcoming National CRC 7s."
The Cadets will shift formats for their next outing, as the Norwich Development 15s team travels to Dartmouth College on Wednesday, Apr. 15 for a 5:00 p.m. matchup.
