WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - The Lander Men's Rugby team finished with a 3-2 record and as plate runners-up on Saturday afternoon as they competed in the second leg of the SRC 7s Series on a rainy morning on the campus of Wake Forest. This matched their finish from earlier this spring in the first leg. The Bearcats took down Western Carolina, Duke, and Wake Forest while dropping a narrow contest to North Carolina and falling to Belmont Abbey to close the day.
Lander started the day at Wake Forest against Western Carolina and the rain wasn't a factor in Lander getting in the try zone quickly with a
Laureano Petris try and a
Tomas Mussi conversion. Shortly thereafter,
Carey Cortes was able to score an unconverted try in the corner and Lander was up 12-0. The next score was an
Ethan Syswerda try and Mussi conversion, this would end the half with Lander up 19-0. The rain started to pick up and the second half proved to be a much messier half of rugby, with the only score for either team being a Mussi try and conversion to end the match 26-0 in favor of Lander.
The second match would have Lander playing Duke. This match had the hardest rain of the day and the first half had a score that reflected the rainy conditions as both teams would be held scoreless. The second half turned around quickly for the Bearcats with
Ethan Richardson scoring a Mussi converted try and the Bearcats were up 7-0. Shortly thereafter, Richardson would score again and Mussi would convert. The match ended with a Petris try and Mussi conversion giving the Bearcats a 21-0 victory over the Blue Devils.
The third match was against the a North Carolina squad that has given Lander troubles all season. By this time the rain had subsided and the sun was shining. The defense for both teams was stopping both teams attack until a lapse by the Bearcats allowed UNC to score an easily converted try under the post. Despite a couple of near tries by Lander the score would stay 7-0 in favor of the Tar Heels at the half. In the second half, Mussi had a linebreak he was able to finish in the try zone and he was able to convert to knot the score with three minutes left in the match. Unfortunately, a couple untimely penalties allowed UNC to get another unconverted try to take the lead with one minute forty seconds. The Bearcats would have another possession and opportunity to win, unfortunately a knock-on ended the match with a 12-7 loss.
In the plate semifinals, Lander would face the tournament hosts in Wake Forest. This match was controlled by Lander in the first half and had Richardson getting a first half hat trick with three tries and Mussi converting two of the kicks to make it 19-0 at the halfway mark. The second half had some different scorers with Cortes scoring an unconverted corner try and the next possession had Zac Banks scoring a corner try and this time Mussi converted into a strong wind. The Demon Deacons did mount a late comeback which resulted in an unconverted try, but the Bearcats answered with a Cortes try and Mussi conversion to make the score a 38-5 Lander victory.
The plate championship would have Lander face their rivals in Belmont Abbey. A couple of mild injuries and fatigue were going to be obstacles for the Bearcats in this match. Despite a few linebreaks and strong possession by the Bearcats, the Crusaders were able to string together four unanswered tries and two conversions in the first half, making the score 24-0. The second had much better defense and more consistent attack by Lander, but it did not result in points for the Bearcats. Belmont Abbey did score an unconverted try to end the match and win the plate with a 29-0 score.
Coach Billings had this to say after the match, "I was really proud of our men today, we played some good rugby today and showed a lot of improvement. We were consistently winning the breakdown and forcing penalties and knock-ons on our opponents. We didn't let the weather get the best of us when it was pouring. We just play in one of the toughest 7s conferences in the country and we have six teams that could win the tournament on any given day, we are one of those six teams. In both series tournament stops, our only pool losses were by an average of six points. We'll play in our conference championship in two weeks and if we play the rugby we are capable of playing we can have a chance to win it all. Sevens is a finicky sport, it can literally come down to one or two plays for a win or loss."
The Bearcat of the day was
Ethan Richardson with five tries.
Lander will play next in the Southern Rugby Conference 7s Championship at Eastern Carolina University on April 15. The Blue and Gold will be looking for their second straight conference title.
