GRR: University of Buffalo
The Rugby East is almost done, and Penn State is completely done, having run the table 8-0.
The Nittany Lions had already clinched the conference before they faced Kutztown on Saturday, but the game had plenty of importance, anyway. Kutztown wanted revenge for last year’s 24-15 loss to Penn State, a game that failed to deny KU the conference title, but one that stung nonetheless.
Penn State sits alone at the top of the Rugby East Conference after the Nittany Lions defeated Army 29-13 Saturday in a battle of two undefeated teams.
Kutztown University opened their Rugby East account with a fairly straightforward 95-8 win over West Virginia.
The Mountaineers are somewhat down this year so Kutztown was favored to win, but it was important for the Golden Bears to get their young players started on a winning note. The scoreline shows that there’s talent all through the lineup.
Iona College put together two nice early victories in warmup games last week.
Iona had a fairly comfortable time of it against Fairfield, winning 48-0 in a fame where the Gaels ran in changes relatively early. Then Iona took on Fordham, which hung touch through the game and scored two late tries in a 36-20 Iona victory.
The Rugby East league season starts with weekend with just one match, as Buffalo travels to Kutztown.
Kutztown is considered, at the moment, possibly the strongest team in the ACRC and among the top six or seven teams in the country. Their sweep of two powerful Ontario colleges last weekend did nothing to dispel that idea.