GREENVILLE, N.C. - The Lander Men's Rugby team went 2-2 on the day at East Carolina University in the Southern Rugby Conference 7s Championship Tournament, winning the shield after placing as shield runners-up in each of the first two rounds of the SRC 7s season. The Shield at this tournament represents a fifth-place finish by the Bearcats.
The Bearcats started the morning off with a match against the hosting Pirates, ECU had already received their invite to the National Championship by beating Wheeling Jesuit, the D-1A 7s powerhouse in the final at the Moosemen's 7s Tournament hosted by Middle Tennessee State. On the opening possession, the Bearcats committed a not-releasing penalty deep in their territory which allowed the Pirates to score early. The hosts were able to capitalize on the momentum and take a halftime lead of 17-0. The second half was a very different half with Lander either keeping possession or taking possession with ease, but not resulting in points. The Pirates scored to make the final 22-0.
The second match of the day had Lander against rival Belmont Abbey. Going into this season Lander was 5-0 against Belmont Abbey in 7s, but this season the Crusaders have a 2-0 record over the Bearcats. The winner of this match would compete for the Cup and the loser would compete for the Plate. Lander would get on the board first in the third minute with a
Tomas Mussi converted try by
Ethan Richardson. Belmont Abbey would maintain a possession after the hooter to finish the half with a score tying converted try to make it 7-7 at halftime. The second half wasn't too different from the first in both teams' defenses keeping each other out of the try zone. In the fourth minute the Crusaders were able to split the Bearcats' defense and score a converted try to break the tie. More back and forth possessions ended with BA scoring a converted try after full-time to win the match 21-7. Belmont Abbey would proceed to win their first SRC 7s Cup convincingly in the semi's and final.
In the Shield semi-finals Lander would play Appalachian State. Lander would score early and often in the first half of the match, with tries by
Carey Cortes, Richardson, and Mussi. At halftime, Lander would lead 19-0. The second half started as the other had ended with two unconverted Bearcat tries by Hayden Bullwinkle and Cortes, while the Mountaineers would get two tries in the closing minutes to close the margin. Lander would finish the match 29-12 and head into the Shield final to play UNC Wilmington.
The final was a rematch from earlier in the spring between Lander and UNC Wimington, in which Lander had a convincing victory. The match started with a quick score by Richardson and Mussi conversion. UNCW answered with a converted try of their own and the score at the halfway point would be Lander up 14-7. The Seahawks would score early an unconverted try to bring the score 14-12, but the Bearcats would respond with four unanswered tries by Blain Tomas, two by Richardson, and Cortes. The Bearcats would bring home the Shield with a convincing 38-12 victory.
Coach Billings had this to say after the tournament, "I'm proud of the men to finish the day with two dominant victories, but I'm disappointed we didn't bring home the cup. We had a good season but coming off of a conference championship and 2
nd place finish at the CRC's, wasn't what we had set out to accomplish. Having said that, we beat some really good teams this year and played some really good 7s rugby. We play in the most competitive 7s conference in the nation. I expect to see our conferences' teams back in the finals at the CRC's and possibly multiple SRC teams in the semis. I'm very proud of our progress this Spring and it was great to see seniors, Hayden Bullwinkle and
Eric Burkett, finish the day with victories and even better to see them grow over the years here at Lander."
The Bearcat of the Day was
Eric Burkett with several line breaks, multiple scoring assists, and consistent defense.
