Summit wins CIRA Girls 7s
Played in near perfect conditions and on the excellent pitches of the United States Air Force Academy, the 2021 CIRA State Championships saw Summit High School (Frisco, Colo.) take the Colorado Cup with 33-0 win over Monarch High School (Superior, Colo.), while Denver's East High School topped Regis Jesuit (Aurora, Colo.) 24-7 for 3rd place.
Earlier in the day East and Monarch played an intense opening semi final that saw both sides cross the chalk three times but in the end an extra conversion saw Monarch through to the final 19-17 in what was a great battle to the final whistle.
In the second semifinal match the Summit Tiger dotted down seven times to one for Regis and cruised to a 47-5 win.
Summit Tops in CIRA 7s So Far
After two weeks of competition in the Colorado Interscholastic Rugby Association Girls Fall 7s, Summit leads with a 4-0 record.
Summit HS is led by senior hooker Olyvia Snyder, who has shown an astounding work rate and because of that is also second on the team in tries. She covers the field well, and so does halfback/sweeper Paola Arredondo, who is the top try-scorer and has been near perfect on tackles.
With center Jocelyn Roque playing excellent defense and flyhalf Elizabeth Darst, wing Isabella Comai, and Roque keeping the attack going, Summit is unbeaten in both league and non-league tournaments. In non-league events they got by United in the final of the first tournament. United had visited from Utah to get some game time in. And they got by Monarch in the second tournament.
Big Rivalry Win For Palmer in Their CIRA Opener
Palmer HS upended Monarch 22-5 Saturday in Colorado Interscholastic Rugby Association (CIRA) action Saturday, in a result that wasn't necessarily a surprise, but wasn't exactly expected, either.
Monarch was coming off a win over Valor Christian, while Palmer's opener had been canceled, so there wasn't much to go on.
“Monarch and Palmer both started their programs in 2014 and have gone at it well in season, playoffs, and state championships, and it’s been a game we circle on the calendar every year since," said Palmer Head Coach Scott Mears. "We always prepare for a disciplined and well-drilled team and Saturday’s game was no different.”
Mears said that it's been challenging for the Palmer kids. Their opener against Regis was postponed due to COVID issues, and so the long-awaited return to play had to be delayed a week.
Monarch Opens CIRA Boys League with Win Over Debutant Valor Christian
Monarch HS started the Colorado Interscholastic Rugby Association season with a 27-5 victory over debutant program Valor Christian.
The game was a first for the league, which launched this past weekend. It was the only game of the weekend as the Regis vs Palmer game had to be canceled. This was also the first-ever rugby game for Valor Christian in any league. The highly-regarded private school with a number of state sporting championships to its name turned many heads when it decided to start a rugby program in the new CIRA.
Monarch got a strong game from the interior backs, namely flyhalf Logan Lair and centers Andrew Thexton and Josh Ponder. They managed the flow and rhythm of the game well. Hooker Karten Hanson was very good also.
Summit Wins Girls CIRA League
On the final weekend of CIRA action in the Girls league, Summit HS won their three-game 7s series with Monarch in dramatic fashion to take the league championship.
Summit was up against Monarch, a team with exactly the same record as Summit going into the weekend.
Summit, Monarch Lead CIRA Girls
Summit won the opening game 26-0 and that was a key result. But Monarch replied to tie the next one 12-12. So it all came down to the final game. If Monarch was able to win by a good amount they could take the series. However, in an intense final match, Summit held on 10-7 to win the series 2-0-1 and finish the season 5-0 in 7s series. Monarch ended up 4-1.
Summit, Monarch Meet to See Who Rules in Colorado
The first season of CIRA Girls Rugby season enters a crucial weekend as the top two teams in the competition will meet for a series of three 7s games.
The Colorado Interscholastic Rugby Association is a new league for both boys teams and girls teams, with a competition set around following state interscholastic athletics standards. This year, of course, the league has had to work around COVID delays and smaller competition windows. Regardless, the cream has risen to the top, with Summit and Monarch high schools sporting identical records.
Both teams have won all four of the series they've played, winning 11 games and losing just one. Both losses came in the team's first series of the season.
Summit, Monarch Lead CIRA Girls
The Colorado Interscholastic Rugby Association's first season has produced few surprises, at least at the top.
Summit HS, which entered the season favored in the Girls 7s league that kicked off this month, has indeed made it to the top. Perhaps the most interesting thing is that Monarch HS is right there with them.
East HS, which is the one team so far to beat Summit, has been locked into a 6-6 season so far, with Summit's 2nd side also there.
It's a start, and it seems like Summit and Monarch may be on a collision course.
Here are the standings so far:
East Defeats Monarch In Colorado
Colorado's East High School defeated Monarch HS 28-15 in the Infinity Park Stadium this past weekend in Rugby Colorado action.
The match was part of a doubleheader with the Glendale Raptors and San Diego Legion MLR match. It was also a rematch of Monarch's victory in the 2017 State Championship.
The first minutes of the match saw strong defense from Monarch forcing mistakes and penalties from East. However, Monarch struggled at the lineout and were unable to maintain possession. Ten minutes in Monarch began a sustained period of attack. After East missed touch on a penalty, then gave up a penalty on the 5-meter line, Monarch's scrum half Landon Coleman scored under the posts. The conversion kick was charged down—quite the rarity—and Monarch led 5-0 with 18 minutes played.
Monarch Looks Strong In Colorado
Defending Colorado DI HS champion Monarch HS has has picked up where it left off last season in Colorado's Boys HS league, logging a recent 47-23 defeat of East HS, and defeating Dakota Ridge this weekend.
Monarch has been led by a superb second row in Mason Kreiter and Max Laychak, while the halfback hinge of Lucas Agasse and Landon Coleman has run the offense nicely.
"What’s interesting to note is that we graduated 14 last year with nearly all the graduates being starters," said Monarch Head Coach Chris Hanson. "I am very proud of these kids for the time and effort they put in to be the best rugby players they can be."
On Saturday's win, Hanson said the team picked it up after a slow first half (halftime score 7-7) and ran out 33-7 winners.
Monarch Wins Colorado Title
Monarch HS defeated East HS in a thrilling game Saturday to win the Colorado DI state championship.
All Bunched at Top of Colorado HS League
It's all bottled up at the top of Rugby Colorado's league after this weekend's highest-profile games.
Undefeated East HS is undefeated no more, thanks to a torrid second half from the Palmer HS Terrors. Monarch HS also won, and so there are three teams at the top of the league with a 6-1 or 5-1 record - East, Palmer, and Monarch.
Against East, Palmer fell behind 13-0 and it looked as if East would cruise to victory, just as they had over Monarch, Regis Jesuit, and PAC in recent weeks. But Palmer coaches Scott Mears and Amy Rusert had a long talk with their players at halftime.
"We talked about getting back to the skills we had been working on," said Mears. "Pass, tackle, ruck - the basics. We needed to make sure we were first to the breakdown and that we were competitive at the breakdown."
Tour Sparks Monarch April Surge
Monarch High School moved to 5-1 in Rugby Colorado this week with a 28-12 defeat of previously unbeaten Palmer HS.
Palmer, East, Regis Make Moves in Colorado
Regis Jesuit squeaked out a close one 17-14 over the Colorado Springs Grizzlies.
For Colorado Springs, it was a tough loss to take. Shifts in the lineup from last season have led to a lack of consistency, said Head Coach Otis McGregor. "We've march down the field in good phase play and then knock on at the five-meter line. That happen four times."
For Regis Jesuit, new Head Coach Anthony Mattachione, who moved to Regis from Jesuit-Dallas, this was a key result.
"We only have three seniors this year so with so many juniors and sophomores playing for us it's nice," said Mattachione.
Monarch Shakes Up Colorado
The Rugby Colorado season has barely started and already there’s been a shakeup, as previous DII team Monarch HS defeated defending DI champs Regis Jesuit 19-15.
It is most certainly early days, but the result has made people take notice.
Monarch was one of the top DII teams in 2016, making the final before losing to Palmer HS, but Colorado’s DII is actually very competitive, and moving up was not a worrying prospect for the team.
