Monday, September 28, 2009

Weekend Update - Buffaloes Win Big!

The Buffaloes reined in another victory this weekend, dominating a newly formed league opponent, Portland IIIs. The Buffaloes have faced the DII Pigs in previous years for "friendly" matches, but never as league opposition in DIII. In the fast paced game, "man of the match" Taylor Briscoe continued his onslaught of hat tricks to add three more against Portland. Evan Gesche, Ryan Cole and Matt Beagle contributed one try apiece to land the Buffaloes 52-5 and improve the team's league record to 2-0.

The Buffaloes have a weekend off coming up, and they will use that to prepare for division rivals Vancouver RFC on Saturday, October 10th in Vancouver. Contact Paul Bornemann for details on the upcoming match.

The Bandits had their first double-header this weekend against league foes, the San Fransisco Fog and San Diego RFC. Despite the beautiful northwest weather and invigorated fans for the home matches, the Bandits were defeated by both California squads. While the matches ended in defeat, the Bandits improved their rucking, teamwork and intensity - and proving they can be dangerous in the red zone. During the 55-12 loss to San Diego, the Bandits fought hard in the first half to show they are capable of playing in the new DI structure, actually leading the match 12-5 for most of the half. Rookie Noelia Ragland and flyhalf Megan Sanders contributed tries for the Bandits against San Diego. Megan Sanders also scored the lone, unconverted try in the 43-5 loss to the San Fransisco Fog.

The Bandits play at home again next Sunday, October 4th, facing division leaders Belmont Shore from California at Rainier Vista Park in Lacey. Contact Casey Kilduff for match information.

Sunday, September 20, 2009

The Herd Stampedes ORSU 43-19

The Buffaloes opened league play this weekend, making it clear they want another shot at the title. Facing strong opposition from Portland's ORSU, the Buffaloes quick ball and faster feet secured the 43-19 win for a home crowd at Rainier Vista Park, in Lacey, WA.

The men set the tone early on, takling hard and rucking well. The scoring started early, with center Matt Beagle crossing the line to add 5 in the first five minutes. Play was back and forth in the first half, with the Buffaloes speed matched only by their intensity. At about 15 minutes, Beagle was sent off the pitch, but the Buffaloes earned the penalty at their own 40 meters. Center Ryan Cole stepped up to sail the ball 60 meters through the uprights for another 3 points. By the end of the half, the score was Buffaloes 15 - 5 ORSU, with Derek Riffe complimenting the score with another try converted by Cole.

The excitement didn't stop in the second half. Immediately after kickoff, 8-man Taylor Briscoe broke through the line and with blazing speed, scored Budd Bay's third try of the day. With strong support from the forwards, the team kept marching into ORSUs red zone. ORSU fought back and was rewarded with a try in the 65th minute, but not before Ryan Cole's dive across the line under the posts and another long run by Briscoe netted Budd Bay another 10 points. ORSU kept at it, forcing the Buffaloes back a few more times and threatening to score. Budd By broke through again, with Briscoe scoring another 5 on a 40m run down the sideline. Cole converted all 4 tries in the second half, adding 8 points for the Buffaloes.

Not giving up at any moment, ORSU kept challenging the men to the final buzzer. Some quick ball in the back to the outside brought ORSU to the Buffaloes line. After a few strong stands by the Buffalo defense, ORSU was able to sneak a final converted try at the 80 minute mark.

"The Buffaloes are building the road to the playoffs one brick at a time, and today they mortared that first brick. These guys are coming together well and their performance today sets the pace for the season" says head coach Jerry Quirke, earning his first league victory as coach of the Buffaloes.

Stay tuned for more Buffalo news after they take on Portland RFC next weekend in Portland.

Budd Bay 43
ORSU 19

Tries: Beagle, Riffe, Briscoe x 3, Cole
Penalty Kicks: Cole
Conversions: Cole x5

Sunday, September 13, 2009

Weekend Update - 9/12/09

The Buffaloes traveled south for the annual Cascade Classic 15s tournament in Bend, OR, ending the weekend 2-1, and third overall.

During the first match against ORSU A's, the Buffaloes worked out the cobwebs and improved considerably into the second half; however, it was not enough to overcome the point deficit, with the match ending in ORSUs favor, 40-3. "The score does not always indicate the game," Coach Jerry Quirke said, adding, "these guys played their hearts out against ORSU and pulled it together by the end."

This became evident. In the second match versus Butte RFC/OIT, the Buffaloes brought back their championship style, overtaking the men from Montana 33-17. In the final match on the day and a look toward the coming league season, the Buffaloes faced the Gentlemen from Eugene. The Buffaloes handed league opponents Eugene 15-7.

Tries: Briscoe x3, Radasa x2, Beagle, Conklin, West.
Conversions: Conklin x3, Cole

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The Bandits also played this weekend - traveling to Scottsdale Arizona to take on the Tempe All-Blues. In this first head-to-head ever, the women played under the lights against a solid southwestern squad. The Bandits fell 64-0.

Bandits Rattle the Mudhens in Season Opener (9/5/09)

In the club opener for the 2010 season, the Budd Bay Bandits came out fighting in their inaugural Division I Women's Rugby season. Despite the 20-17 loss, the Bandits maintained solid possession for most of the match, spending the majority of time in the Mudhen red zone, and exhibited strong defensive skills that will only get stronger as the . A very impressive start for the Bandits...

Thanks to Alex Goff for the great update (below). To read the full article, go to:
http://www.erugbynews.com/article.php?sec=131&a=5378

The Emerald City Mudhens survived a huge scare in the opening round of the women’s Competitive Region 1 DI league, scoring two second-half tries to edge DI debutants Budd Bay 20-17 Saturday in Lacey, Wash.

Budd Bay, which played a shadow DI competition in 2008-09, was playing their first ever DI game and shocked the Mudhens with their wide open style of play.

Good work from hooker Maggie McLaughlin set up center Ellie Linn for a try in the 15th minute, which put Budd Bay ahead. U23 All-StarMegan Sanders hit the conversion for a 7-0 lead.

The teams traded tries, with Angela Watkins crashing in from close range for the Bandits and the Mudhens getting tries from Sarah Falk and Katie Fuskarud before Budd Bay scrumhalf Marion Foor sniped in to make it 17-10 Budd Bay at the break.

In the second half the Mudhens had the better of tight play and used that to their advantage. With neither team able to throw in straight at the lineout, the game became more scrum-oriented, and that, along with some Budd Bay penalties, helps the Mudhens come back.

Scrumhalf and captain Kammi Lopez and center Janey Yoo scored to give the Mudhens the lead, and a sterling late goal line stand - punctuated by a try-saving tackle by fullback Liz Pallas-Jacobs - kept the Budd Bay women from crashing over the line and winning the match. "We spent the first half playing their game and their tempo,” said Lopez. “And we got in trouble.”

For Budd Bay, which is only a couple of years old and featured two starters just a year out of U19 rugby, it was a very creditable result.

“I’m proud of them,” said coach Chris Cousins. “I thought our backline played awesome. We tackled really well and overall our defense was very strong, and we were much fitter than we’ve been in the past. But we committed some crucial penalties and we had problems being strong in the rucks. That will come in time.”

The Mudhens move to 1-0 and Budd Bay starts their season 0-1. Next week Budd Bay travels to Arizona to play the Scottsdale Women.

Emerald City Mudhens 20
Tries: Falk, Fuskarud, Lopez, Yoo

Budd Bay 17
Tries: Linn, Watkins, Foor
Convs: Sanders