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Rugby rules at All-Saints
Fighting Carp drop first home tournament games in four years; women take runner-up for second consecutive season
 Media Credit: Michael Martin/Managing Editor Black Widow flanker Sabrina Schwarzbauer attempts to break away from the pack during the women�s championship game of the 17th Annual All-Saints Tournament Sunday at Selke Field. The Widows lost to UW-La Crosse, 21-7.
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 Media Credit: Michael Martin/Managing Editor First-year forward Liza Christensen fights through tacklers during Sunday�s action at the All-Saints Tournament at Selke Field.
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Mother nature's utter contempt for Minnesota reared its ugly head for the second time in the month of April, as the first day of the 17th Annual All-Saints Rugby Tournament was marred by slushy snow.
The tourney was populated with over 40 teams of club ruggers, including men's and women's Division I and II squads, as well as a six-team senior division, featuring local tournament mainstays, the Bottom Feeders. Teams came from the five-state region and as far away as Manitoba, Canada to compete in one of the longest-running rugby tournaments in the Midwest.
The weather, which got progressively worse throughout the day, was a factor in some of the later games. By noon, the day's constant rain had begun to resemble snow. A short time later, a full-on winter storm was in progress.
"When we (the women's team, the Black Widows) were running into the snow, you couldn't see anything," said flanker Jessica Campeau. "Nobody could keep their hands on the ball because it was so slippery."
The snow wasn't a factor in the first game featuring the men's Division I team, the Fighting Carp. Having not suffered a loss in the last four years of the All-Saints Tournament and being the last champion crowned (no championships were awarded in '01 because rain caused Sunday's games to be cancelled), the Carp had to be considered highly among a handful of tourney favorites.
Neither history nor fate was on the Carp's side, as they dropped their opening match to Winona State. Winona, however, lost their second game to South Dakota State, who was the Carp's victim in their second match. The three-way tie was broken on points scored, and the Pool A victory went to the Carp, who once again advanced to the championship round.
On the women's side, the Black Widows also advanced through their pool, fighting through a 0-0 stalemate with Iowa State. The Widows' second game, against UW-Madison was cut short by the inclement weather.
The Widows advanced by forfeit after one of the Madison players was sent to the hospital with hypothermic shock.
"There were a couple of players who went later for hypothermia," said team trainer Jessica Sadoff. "I also had a lot of split heads. I probably sent six to the hospital for cuts above the eyebrow."
To say that rugby is fantastically violent is to approach a proper description of the game. The violence was only compounded by the poor pitch (rugby speak for field) conditions which were greatly improved for Sunday's action. The players weren't exactly dressed for the weather- rugby attire is nothing more than shoes, shorts and a polo shirt. As soon as Saturday's games ended, historic Selke was a ghost town. Players beelined for cover under the driving snow. Rugby club president Terry Helmer put it best.
"I just want to get some pants on," he said.
Upon returning to Selke for Sunday's games, players and spectators found the snow disappearing rapidly. By 1 p.m., nary a trace of the white stuff was seen on the pitch.
What was on the pitch, however, were the black and red jerseys of the SCSU rugby squads. Both teams had semifinal matchups and the women were up first, against the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. UWEC put in a solid effort against the Black Widows, holding the lead for much of the game. The Widows gave up two tries and subsequent successful conversions and missed all three of their conversions, but their three tries added up to a 15-14 victory against Eau Claire.
After dropping their first match on Saturday, the Fighting Carp were looking to start a new All-Saints winning streak against a tough Iowa State team, who had advanced through Northern State and the University of Minnesota to the championship round.
Iowa State scored first, as they got a player behind the Carp defense and streaked into the scoring zone and downed it in the heart of the uprights, which led to an easy conversion and a 7-0 lead. The Carp responded quickly, getting on the board with a hard-fought try, but the difficult conversion attempt failed and the Carp trailed 7-5 at the half.
The second half was even more tightly contested than the first. Always a back-and-forth game of pitch position, this rugby match was true to form. Neither team yielded an inch toward the scoring zone.
Unfortunately for the Carp, time ran out before they could gain any ground and it was Iowa State who went to play for the All-Saints championship.
"They just beat us," Helmer said. "We were slowed down by the referee. We could have been better, but the refs slowed us down."
"When it comes to sirs (rugby for the ref), they all have their own game," said Carp junior wing BeauDrey Vreeland. "We didn't play his game, and we lost by two."
After the Carp's loss, the Black Widows retook the pitch. On the line was the Widows' first All-Saints championship, against a tenacious UW-La Crosse team.
As the match got underway, the Widows looked to be on their heels. Much of the opening part of the match was played near their zone, and it was only a matter of time before La Crosse downed it in the zone for an early lead.
The Widows were not to be done in so easily. Down 7-0, they battled back and got a try in good position. The conversion was successful and the Widows were stuck in a 7-7 tie at the half.
The second half had a few promising moments. La Crosse missed a penalty kick that would have made it 10-7, but the Widows were unable to capitalize. They had another scoring chance down near the La Crosse zone, but could not punch it in. La Crosse made it 14-0 with another try and conversion and sealed the deal with a try in the closing minutes of the match for the 21-7 victory and the All-Saints women's championship.
"We had a lot of bad penalties," said senior eight-man Stef Morseth. "In the second half, we lacked intensity. We also only had two props (linemen) and no substitutes. That really affects us."
Though it was her and the other seniors' last chance to capture an All-Saints championship, Morseth was happy to be in the championship game for the second consecutive season.
"Second is the best we've ever done," she said. "We've just gotta keep our heads up. We've got a good bunch of women coming up the next couple of years."
In the men's D-I championship game, Iowa State met Northern State, a rematch from Saturday's Pool B action. In that match, Northern State got the 17-12 nod. History repeated itself, as Northern downed Iowa to take home the 2002 All-Saints first place trophy.
As disappointing as Sunday was for the SCSU rugby clubs, most of them were just happy they were able to get the tournament together and done.
"Sunday turned out to be a pretty good day for rugby," Helmer said. "We want to thank Campus Rec and SCSU for letting us use the field."
After taking a week off to recover, the SCSU ruggers will head to the Battle of the Borders Tournament next weekend in Eau Claire, Wis.
Matthew Janda can be reached at: [email protected]
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