Carolina Claims Southeastern Rugby Championship Title; Advances to Nationals
Knoxville, TN - This past weekend, the South Carolina Men's Rugby Team sent 25
players to the Southeastern Rugby Championship held in beautiful Knoxville,
TN. The first game was against a much-improved, Auburn side that came into the
playoffs with momentum. However, the Gamecocks used their speed to attack the
outside quickly and frequently, resulting in a final score of 41-5 at the end
of the day. Men of the match were sophomore flyhalf Luke Bolembach in the backs and
sophomore 2nd row Zach Mullineaux in the forwards. (Auburn Match Film)
The victory placed the Gamecocks in the finals to play against Louisiana State, who beat Florida in a challenging match that they eventually ran away with after continuous back-and-forth action all game. Scoring the first points within the first minute, Carolina proved they were ready for a challenging battle, however, penalties continued to hurt the over-aggressive Carolina side. By halftime, LSU had taken advantage of the mistakes, though with calm and level-headed attitudes, Carolina scored 5 second half tries to LSU's 1 second half score, giving your Gamecocks the benefit of the result in a 41-26 victory over the Tigers. (LSU Match Film) With this victory, Carolina improves its spring record to 8-0 after winning (and officially receiving, this weekend) the regular season SCRC East with an undefeated 6-0 record as well as the SCRC Championship. This marks the first time in Gamecock Rugby history that the team has won the SCRC outright. With these wins, the team clinches an automatic berth in the USA Rugby Division I National Sweet 16 Playoffs that are to be held in Knoxville, TN at the Tennessee Rugby Park on the weekend of April 26th & 27th.
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