Men and women’s rugby go 2-1 at weekend competition

Both the men’s and women’s rugby teams went 2-1 in their weekend competition at Wayne State in Wayne, Neb., the biggest rugby competition in the country.

The weekend, where more than 80 teams from the U.S. and Canada competed, was a success for both teams, since neither won a game at last year’s competition.

“We played very well,” sophomore recruitment chair Skylar Hortop said.

The improvement, Hortop said, came from a mindset change during practices.

“We have girls who seriously want to be in it this year — seriously want to play, seriously want to help out,” she said. “Last  year we would only have three or four girls at our practice, and this year we’re getting 10-12.”

Senior Patrick Artz, who will move into a coaching position for the men’s team next year, said the publicity of the tournament encouraged players.

“You can go to any competition you want, but the big competitions with thousands of people attending are what make people want to play,” he said. “Sharing a common interest with that many people — seeing that this weekend motivated people to come out for practice.”

Hortop said the women are also practicing with the men’s team now to get 20-30 people together to run drills.

“It makes practicing a lot better. You really learn a lot more from each other,” she said.

First-year Taylor Middlebrooks said as a team the players are working on sevens rugby, which is different than traditional rugby because there are half the number of players on the field.

“It which makes the style of play different,” he said. “It’s new to everybody and a lot of guys have other commitments, which makes it hard to get to practice, but once we get on the field everyone has a good experience.”

Artz, who said he has been involved in rugby for a long time, has also seen the level of play improve.

“Rugby has been a big factor in my life and is something I plan on doing for the rest of my life,”  he said. “Club sports provide a way for students to build relationships, but also become healthy.”

Artz is hoping to establish consistency within the club and is hopeful the members can develop their skills even more.

“I’ve noticed there has been a big jump in the level of play this year,” he said. “I came from a background of pre-diabetic, and I lost all the weight and I became healthy, and rugby helped me sustain that lifestyle, and I’m at the point where I’m hoping I can instill that in others.”

Although it is difficult for the club sport to get a fan base and feel support, Hortop said, the team is closer because it is smaller.

“Playing this sport you have to be very close to each other,” she said. “We’re also really close with the guys’ team, and I really like that.”

Artz said the support from fans and the university is vital.

“Practicing is key to any sport, but you have to have the numbers to enact game-style plays,” he said. “Levels of support from a public and university level is one of my main goals — if I can’t recruit players, I can’t have a sustainable program.”

The teams are now preparing for competition in Brookings set for this weekend, and Middlebrooks said spreading out on defense and an offensive line will be the focus of practices leading up to the competition.

“Setting up an offensive line to keep the game continuous sounds obvious, but you really want to do that with sevens,” he said. “Usually at USD everyone hates the SDSU guys, but there’s a lot of fun with our teams we have a great time with them.”

Photo: Graduate student Erin Krause runs back the ball from a kickoff during rugby practice April 8. (Malachi Petersen/The Volante)