BERKELEY – No. 2 California (17-2) and No. 6 Central Washington (7-3) meet Saturday, April 23, at 1 p.m. on Witter Rugby Field in the Penn Mutual Varsity Cup national semifinals, preceded at 11 a.m. by a curtain raiser featuring the Golden Bears against the NorCal Small College All-Stars.
Gates open at 10 a.m. Saturday for the final home date of the year on Witter Rugby Field, always a cherished and bittersweet occasion for everyone associated with Cal rugby who will see some of their favorite student-athletes play their final collegiate contest in Strawberry Canyon.
Admission to Saturday's special doubleheader is free for all Cal students and children under 12. Tickets – $5 each for youth ages 12-17, seniors and military with ID; $10 for adults and $3 for groups of 10 or more – can be purchased in advance online at calbea.rs/1RIZvXJ or with cash at the venue.
To the winner of this Saturday's semifinal goes a spot in the Varsity Cup national championship final to be played Saturday, May 7, at 2 p.m. MT in Provo, Utah.
“Central Washington is a good team, as well they should be,” said head coach Jack Clark. “They are bigger and more experienced than any other team in the competition except BYU. We can't wait.”
Central has been among the most talented sides in American collegiate rugby all year, most recently earning its way emphatically into the semis with a 58-5 quarterfinal road win over Utah. The Wildcats touched down nine tries on the Utes, including three by All-America flyhalf Scott Dean.
Much of CWU's talent can be attributed to foreigners who have taken advantage of the Wildcats' rugby scholarship program.
The Central Washington front row features university transfer Clint Lemkus from Capetown, South Africa, where he attended nearby University of Stellenbosch after previously playing as a professional for Crociati (Crusaders) RFC in Parma, Italy. The second row should be manned by English lock Fabian Lumsden and Darren Cooper, a 6-4, 275-pound South African who debuted on the American college scene April 9, after enrolling at CWU for the academic quarter, in Round 1 of the Varsity Cup. Previously, Cooper was a member of the Natal Sharks Academy in Durban, South Africa, for two years, later playing in the United Kingdom prior to accepting his CWU offer.
The CWU back row includes Hawaiian Vili Toluta'u and graduate student Aladdin Schirmer, who made his debuts on both the U.S. National 7s and 15s teams this spring at the Dubai 7s and Americas Rugby Championship respectively. The backline, in addition to Dean, features South African center Reuben Ludick, also a threat as a placekicker, and winger Seth Halliman, another Wildcat with national team experience after debuting for the U.S. National 7s team at the Vancouver 7s
The Wildcats beat Utah in the quarterfinals despite having three front-row players yellow-carded, about which coach Clark offered, “How they choose to play is between them and the referee. My responsibility is to our team and how we conduct ourselves. Our focus needs to be on keeping our discipline and not getting drawn into foul play.”
Central Washington comes into the semis averaging 59.6 points per game on offense and 16.3 ppg on defense, and their three losses, all on the road, have come against elite competition: a four-point January defeat at the hands of the senior side Olympic Club, a five-point loss to the University of Victoria and a 58-27 decision to BYU's on a day when the Wildcats were missing several starting players.
The 2016 semifinals will be the second such showdown in the past three years between Cal, which brings a season average of 57.1 ppg on offense and 16.3 ppg on defense into the semifinals, and CWU. In 2014, the Bears advanced to the championship game by beating Central Washington, 58-14, on Witter Rugby Field. Then a sophomore, Harry Adolphus scored two tries in that contest, but the senior won't be available after sustaining an injury during the Bears' 41-29 win over Army in the quarterfinals.
Cal will look to make five changes from the squad that faced the Black Knight: in the backs, Patrick Barrientes and Jake Goena have returned from injury and should find a place in the lineup; and forwards Connor Sweet, Drew Gaffney and Nick Salaber are projected to start over freshman Nic Mirhashem, sophomore Alexander de Gentile-Williams and a player to be named.
The other semifinal on Saturday features Brigham Young, who advanced past Dartmouth, 75-15, in their quarterfinal, and Arkansas State, a 31-24 winner over Navy. The Cougars host the Red Wolves in Provo for the other slot in the national championship.
The young Bears side expected to face the NorCal Small College All-Stars will aim to close out its 15s season on Witter Rugby Field Saturday with similar intensity to the First XV who take on Central Washington for a spot in the Varsity Cup final.
After the 15s season is complete, Cal will transition back to the Olympic style of the game at the Penn Mutual Collegiate Rugby Championship June 4-5, when the Bears will play for their fourth straight national title in 7s ahead of the return of rugby to the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio.
