By Tony Brown
Head Coach

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (October 28, 2007) -- The Vassar men's rugby team had two goals at the start of the day. One, to qualify for the Northeast playoffs and two, to win the division title and thus secure a home game on November 3rd, 2007. They fell short of securing the title but are headed to the playoffs after a huge effort.

Vassar College Men 23 v Seton Hall University Men 20
Tries: Omar Fayyaz (1), Dan Kalmus (1), Nick Mason (1), James Cantres (1).
Cons:
Pens: Garrett Montgomery (1).

This was a thriller from start to finish. Seton Hall laid out their stall in the opening minutes with some excellent runs from their bulky centers. They made some hard yards as Vassar made their tackles but were often knocked back. The physicality of this match was there for all to see and both teams put in their share of big hits. Rupert Johnson was bowled over but hung on and it was this that exemplified the Vassar commitment early on.

Seton Hall didn't do themselves any favors as they did a lot of their moves a long way behind the gain line and that allowed Vassar to keep up the pressure. Following a scrum in the Seton hall 22 Garrett Kind fed scrumhalf Chris Magnani who then linked with Omar Fayyaz and Vassar led 5-0. Seton Hall kicked deep and managed to gain good field position after a wild flyhack from Vassar's fullback Stefan Schwartz. Quite why he decided to kick the ball on his own goal line is aa mystery and the Hall got back in to the game when they kicked a penalty goal to make it 5-3. From the restart the ball rolled out and Vassar lost a lineout on their 22 that Seton Hall duly moved to the right. After one ruck they came back to the left wing and he bulldozed over Omar Fayyaz to give the visitors the lead 8-5.

Magnani made a lovely break from the Vassar 22 and went probably about 60 yards before being brought down. Unfortunately, the ball spilled forward and it was Seton Hall put-in at the scrum. Vassar won a lineout and drove up the field going through a couple of phases before Hall conceded a penalty. Freshman Garrett Montgomery split the uprights and on the stroke of halftime it 8-8.

The next 30 minutes were to prove that it's never over until it's over. The Seton Hall fullback scored a simple try as he came in to the line and Vassar failed to make a tackle so it was 13-5. Then the lack of tackling continued and after a long kick found Schwartz on his line Vassar gave away a penalty. Seton Hall ran it and after a couple of rucks they slipped past the tackle of Conor Boylan. The conversion of that try made it 20-8.

Vassar looked done and dusted with the score at 20-8 but Seton Hall failed to maintain their grip on the game. Vassar's Garrett King ran well to catch the re-start and as he rose high and collected the ball it seemed to energize the whole team. They went through a couple of phases and produced a vital score. The forwards drove a lineout and it looked as if Dan Kalmus scored. Vassar now trailed 20-13. With the season on the line Vassar was desperate to score again and lock Nick Mason delivered, again from a lineout. Just 10 or so minutes remained at it was 20-18 in Seton Hall's favor.

Vassar got the ball and went though the phases and some good strong running from Boylan and Szymanski kept them on the front foot. The desire was there and so too as has often been the case was James Cantres. He took a short pass and crashed over for the winning try. Vassar wins 23-20. It was heart stopping stuff and Vassar had booked their place in the title game.

Team: 15 Stefan Schwartz 14 Omar Fayyaz 13 Tom Szymanski 12 James Cantres 11 Garrett Montgomery 10 Conor Boylan 9 Chris Magnani 1 Winston Clement 2 Jeff Rubesin 3 Dan Kalmus 4 Nick Mason 5 Rupert Johnson 6 Luke Parker 7 Iain Gordon 8 Garret King.

Vassar College Men 0 v Rutgers University Men 12

A couple of knock-ons, a missed kicked to touch, an accidental offside all punctuated the first few minutes and even despite these errors Vassar was constantly in the Rutgers half. They secured a lineout just 10 yards out but did not drive it over. For the next 15 minutes Vassar attacked. Even when Rutgers kicked to clear their line it was returned hastily. Conor Boylan went over only to have the ball held up. A second close lineout was disrupted. Then from broken play Rutgers moved the ball left and from 80 yards away they made a break that was finished and they led 7-0. It was a killer blow for Vassar had not been in their own 22 all half. From the restart Vassar camped in the Rutgers 22 and apart from a couple of line breaks Rutgers was forced to defend. In the last few minutes of the half Rutgers forced their way in to Vassar's end with a couple of long kicks but at the half it was still 7-0.

Vassar did not capitalized on their territorial domination or wealth of possession. A dropped pass here, a turnover there, slow ruck ball, or a poor pass meant that the Brewers had nothing to show for all their efforts. Rutgers also deserve credit for tackling well and maintaining their discipline but the single breakaway score they got came from out of the blue. The second half was a dogged affair. Rutgers picked and drove well in the forwards and there were few chances either way. As time ran down a poor pass from Magnani was well picked up by Boylan but the ball was knocked loose in the tackle and it sailed over to Rutgers. Two passes later they were around the corner and it was 12-0.

It was a tough loss for the Brewers and a hard earned win for Rutgers. Both advance to the playoffs but Vassar will travel to Middlebury next weekend whereas Rutger's have a home game.

Team: 15 Stefan Schwartz 14 Omar Fayyaz 13 Tom Szymanski 12 James Cantres 11 Garrett Montgomery 10 Conor Boylan 9 Chris Magnani 1 Winston Clement 2 Jeff Rubesin 3 Dan Kalmus 4 Nick Mason 5 Rupert Johnson 6 Luke Parker 7 Iain Gordon 8 Garret King. Subs: Nick Schmidt for Garrett Montgomery.

Overall record 2007-08: 8-2-0.

Next weekend: Northeast Rugby Union Championship Quarterfinal (Opponent, venue, date, and kick-off time to be announced.)

Metropolitan New York Collegiate Rugby Championships 2007
Results

Men's Division I @ Vassar
Met NY #1 Columbia University Men's Rugby
Columbia University Men 30 v USMMA, Kings Point 22.

Men's Division II @ Vassar
Met NY #1 Rutger's University Men's Rugby
Met NY #2 Vassar College Men's Rugby
Rutgers University 31 v Fairfield University 15
Vassar College 23 v Seton Hall University 20
Rutgers University 12 v Vassar College 0

Men's Division III @ NY Maritime
Met NY #1 William Paterson University Men's Rugby
William Paterson University 10 v NY Maritime 5
Montclair State 58 v Molloy College 0
William Paterson University 17 v Montclair State 7

Women's Division I
No Div. I teams.

Women's Division II
Met NY #1 Rutgers University Women's Rugby
Rutgers University 19 v New Paltz 0

Women's Division III @ Drew University
Met NY #1 Marist College Women's Rugby
Marist College 43 v Drew University 5
Stony Brook University 5 v Hofstra University 0
Marist College 54 v Stony Brook University 0

Northeast Rugby Union Championships 2007
Division I & II

Quarterfinals

Men's Division 1
#8 Boston College (NERFU #4) at #1 Army (NERFU #4)
#5 SUNY Brockport (NYS #2) at #4 Columbia (Met NY #1)
#6 Harvard (NERFU #3) at #3 U. Buffalo (NYS #1)
#7 Syracuse (NYS #3) at #2 Dartmouth (NRU #2)

Men's Division 2
#8 Vassar (Met NY #2) at #1 Middlebury (NERFU #1)
#5 U. Vermont (NERFU #3) at #4 St. Bonaventure (NYS #1)
#6 U. Maine - Orono (NERFU #4) at #3 Rutgers (Met NY #1)
#7 Colgate University (NYS #2) at #2 Coast Guard (NERFU #2)

Women's Division 1
Saturday November 3, 2008
(The higher seed is the home team)
#1 Brown University Women v # 8 Yale University Women
#4 Cornell University Women v # 5 UMass Women
#3 Vassar College Women v #6 Northeastern University Women
#2 Army Women v #7 Syracuse University Women

Details are on the NRU web site at http://www.northeastrugby.org/playoffs/college/2007/default.html