Forced to relocate due to weather NOVA Rugby hosted Rocky Gorge in Alexandria this past Saturday. NOVA and Gorge met last fall in a highly-contested match but NOVA was determined to put the pedal to the metal. NOVA is in a fight for home field advantage throughout the MAC playoffs so a bonus-point win is necessary to remain at the top of the table.
NOVA’s play started out a bit shaky, which led to Gorge scoring a converted try 8 minutes in. However, NOVA settled down and began to play the game on their terms, allowing the backline to spin the ball out to wing, Dwaine Wintz, who offloaded to NOVA’s Captain, Will Hagan. Hagan shed two would-be tacklers, centering the ball for an easy conversion to tie the game.
The Man of the Match, Joe Scholle, led NOVA’s set pieces all day from his second row position. NOVA secured their own scrums and lineouts while stealing a few away from Gorge. Set piece dominance and a stingy defense propelled NOVA to eleven tries on the day. Many NOVA players got in on the try frenzy, but only wing Anthony “Fish” Everson scored multiple tries on the day. Fish’s three tries this week adds on to his growing point total on the year, making him easily NOVA’s highest point scorer. This weekend he will go for three games in a row with three tries.
Final Score NOVA 75 – Rocky Gorge 10
NOVA Tries: Hagan, Everson (x3), Hartley, Lengyel, Mulloy, Hagerty, Katz, Wintz, Martinez
Conversions: Everson (x8), Audino, Lengyel
NOVA prepares for a true winner-take-all match this Saturday. NOVA will travel across the Potomac to face Washington Irish in a game that will decide home field advantage in the MAC Playoffs.
NOVA B Side
Despite having the weekend off NOVA’s B Side continues to put in the work! They have had success on and off the pitch and look to continue that at the Cherry Blossom Tournament this upcoming weekend.
With all the success by both sides, NOVA is excited for next year as they plan to convert the NOVA B side into a D3 team with their own matrix schedule. The NOVA B side may not be done yet this season as there still may be a chance for another match before the end of the month.