Denver, CO - This weekend the Principia College rugby team traveled to the Mile High City to play in the Division II National Rugby Tournament. One of 12 teams who qualified, the Thunder Chickens were returning to nationals for the 2nd straight year, having won the tournament last season to be named the 2013-2014 national champions. Back to defend their title, the rugby team came into the weekend focused and prepared to take advantage of the rare opportunity for the repeat.
Saturday was pool play for all divisions, and the Thunder Chickens were joined in their pool by Providence, Coast Guard and Minnesota Duluth. Getting a bright and early start with the first-slotted game, Principia took on Providence in front of a swelling fan base full of family, friends and dedicated alumns. Due to the fast-paced nature of 7's rugby, the boys had to be crisp and focused, and against Providence, they did just that. Several Thunder Chickens scored tries in the 35-12 victory, with Larry Patterson, Trevor Marunde, Jordan Anderson, Nick Hathaway and Jamie Serna all putting points up on the board.
The second game of the day was against a strong Minnesota Duluth squad, who represented perhaps the toughest match-up for the Panthers in pool play. Having pulled out two regular season victories against Duluth prior to nationals, Minnesota came out looking for revenge, and a flat Thunder Chicken squad was unable to repeat their performance from earlier that morning. Falling to Duluth 0-38, Men's Rugby had to refocus on their season-long goals of united team defense and playing rugby has a team game in preparation for their final round of pool play.
As it turned out, they got more time to refocus than perhaps they bargained for, as unseasonal thunderstorms kept up a steady delay that pushed their 3:00 pm start time all the way back to 5:30 pm. Facing a hungry Coast Guard squad, Principia found themselves in a do or die game, with both squads coming into the final round 1-1 and needing a victory for an assured advancement into the quarterfinals. Led by seniors Trevor Marunde and Jordan Anderson, the Thunder Chickens burst into the first half with renewed fire, trading tries with Coast Guard as the minutes ticked away. A last second try from Coast Guard however gave them the 26-21 win, leaving Principia with the marginal hope that they could still advance to the quarterfinals off of combined point difference.
With the final scores reported, the Thunder Chickens found themselves in 9th place and unable to advance, having been edged out by East Carolina by a margin of one point. This sent Principia to the consolation bracket, leaving them with two games to try and secure a 9th place finish.
Sunday's first game in consolation was against Vassar, which the Thunder Chickens won by a commanding score of 24-7. Their second game pitted them against a solid SIU Carbondale squad, and neither team seemed willing to roll over in defeat. The final 17-19 loss for the Thunder Chickens was their narrowest margin in defeat on the weekend, and gave them a 10th place finish.
Although their goal was to secure the repeat, a 10th place finish in the nation is something that the Thunder Chickens can hold their heads high over. Three hundred and sixty nine teams in the 7s division were eligible to qualify for nationals, so 10th in the nation is excellent. Coach Patterson commented, "The goal is to win a national championship, but look around. Twelve teams. It's a privilege to be here playing rugby at our highest level and representing Principia College in this manner. We are so grateful for all of the support felt from our community."
This marks the end of another stellar season for Principia rugby. Congratulations to all of the Thunder Chickens, and thank you to the community at large for all of your faith and support!
