Rugby ends undefeated season with championship

The Middlebury College Rugby Club captured their fourth-ever Northeast Rugby Union championship on Sunday, defeating 21st-ranked William Patterson 43-5 at Bowdoin College. The second-ranked Panthers automatically qualify for the national tournament in the spring, where they will most likely be one of the higher-seeded teams.
The MCRC opened the championship weekend with a 44-17 semifinal victory over Bentley. Utilizing their new backline lineup, featuring backs captain Brian Sirkia ’12.5 at scrum-half and Dusty Atwood-Dupont ’13.5 at fly-half, the MCRC was consistently able to exploit holes in the Bentley defensive line. The excellent backline play combined with the usual dominance from Middlebury’s forwards allowed the Panthers to cruise to the easy 27-point victory.
“I thought Dusty did a great job at fly-half,” said Michael Pappa ’11. “He played really well and is really starting to emerge as a leader on the field.”
The championship game on Sunday was another dominating performance from the MCRC, an outcome that the boys in blue have come to expect when they step on the pitch. Only one of Middlebury’s 11 victories this fall was decided by less than two possessions. The MCRC set the tone early, as Danny Powers ’11.5 put the first try of the day in for Middlebury 10 minutes into the match after a nice series of pick and goes from the forwards. Zach Bills ’11 put in another outstanding game for the MCRC, especially in the rucks.
“The forwards were outstanding in both games this weekend,” said Pappa. “They’ve really been a huge strength for our team all season long, and they were incredible this weekend, whether it was in the scrum, the rucks, or the pick and goes.”
Five minutes later the MCRC would add another try, this one from eight-man Chris Marshall ’11. Marshall was recognized as the NRU final man of the match for his role in the game. The try from Marshall sparked an incredible flurry of Middlebury scoring, and the MCRC took a 33-0 lead into halftime.
Middlebury did not let up in the second half, and while they did not score as prolifically they still added 10 more points for a final tally of 43. Determination from the William Patterson side in the closing minutes of the match kept the MCRC from pitching a shutout, but the outcome in this game was never actually in doubt.
“We’re focused on winning the National championship again,” said Pappa, referring to the titles the MCRC has won in 2007 and 2009. “That’s been the goal since day one.”
The MCRC now goes in to off-season mode before returning to action in the spring, when they will travel to the NCAA tournament in search of their third title in the last five years.