Tennessee
High School Rugby
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TENNESSEE HIGH SCHOOL RUGBY (May 9-10) 2009 STATE CHAMPIONSHIP Location: MTSU Rugby Facility, Murfreesboro, TN Event Summary and results from: Mark Williams, THSR State Commissioner THSR National Guard Cup Competition : National Guard MVP Award : Saturday Brighton 12 Brighton despite losing the majority of last year’s 2008 Championship team to graduation returned as WEST Conference Champions. Father Ryan came out strong and maintained constant pressure on Brighton which resulted the semi-final victory. Maryville 22 The Maryville back row dominated loose play and lead their team to victory. Houston played hard till the end and narrowly missed opportunities to score. Sunday Father Ryan 29 Father Ryan set the tone early with physical and organized defensive play. The Irish support play and hard running made them difficult to stop. Maryville countered with some tough play and were rewarded with a converted try in the second-half, but Father Ryan was dominant throughout the weekend. They were clearly the best team and earned the CUP CHAMPIONSHIP for the second time in three years. THSR National Guard Cup Competition – GIRLS Champion MARYVILLE National Guard MVP Award : Saturday Maryville 31 The Maryville Girls team set the tone in the first few minutes of the tournament and never looked back. Brighton girls played hard but it was difficult to stop the Maryville Machine. Even in the sloppy conditions Maryville moved the ball with ease and demonstrated a higher level of play. Ravenwood 19 Ravenwood support play and some dynamic running allowed them to find space and score points. Karns was physical and applied heavy pressure but the Ravenwood defense held firm. Sunday Maryville 32 Maryville demonstrated why they are one of the best girls teams in the country as they easily outpaced the Ravenwood girls. Maryville dominated all phases of play and it was an overall team victory. Not only were their star players performing at their usual high level but the entire team was hitting on all cylinders. They could run in four-wheel drive in muddy conditions and like a race car when the ball went wide. MARYVILLE shall travel to Pittsburg were they will represent the South in the USA National Championships. Everyone in Tennessee wishes them all the best. This is a special team and they have the talent, coaching and desire to win it all! Go for it GIRLS!!!!! THSR Bowl Competition – Champion Ravenwood MVP Award – Ravenwood #10 – Adam Tetzlaff Saturday Ravenwood 14 Ravenwood support play and overall speed allowed them to find the try zone. Arlington making their first appearance at the state played tough throughout but could not convert opportunities into points. Karns 12 This was one probably the best match of the day on Saturday as these two teams slugged it out. The lead changed hands several times and Oakland held the lead late into the game. Karns mounted a drive that lead to the game winning try on the last play of the game. Sunday Ravenwood 12 Double Overtime sudden-death This was the most exciting game of the entire tournament as these two teams slugged it out in the “Mud-Bowl”. There were multiple goal line stands and several would-be tries for both teams. Late into the second-half Karns applied heavy pressure for several minutes and finally scored the game’s first try. Minutes later Ravenwood found the try zone and leveled the score. The game remained tied until the end and remained tied into the second sudden-death overtime. The final score came when a Ravenwood player kicked a loose-ball forward and was taken down as he pursued it into the try zone. It was hard to see either team loose as both teams played hard throughout the entire game. THSR Plate Competition : MVP Award – Springbok #10 – Justin Cox Saturday Brentwood 22 In the first game of the day on Saturday Brentwood took on their usual form finding space to run and providing support play to score points. Germantown making their first appearance in the state played hard but could not match the Brentwood size and speed. Farragut 10 This was one of the best games on Saturday as the newly formed South Cheatham Springboks took on Farragut a veteran program that is always well-coached. This game went back and forth but in the end the enthusiastic Springboks a hard-fought victory. Sunday Brentwood 0 It was an all Middle Tennessee Plate Final as the new kid on the block took on the old powerhouse program. The Springboks are an enthusiastic bunch from beginning to end. While Brentwood put together some organized sustained play they could not penetrate the physical size and hard-nosed play of South Cheatham to score. The Springboks remained patient and when opportunities came they were able to convert opportunities into points.
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