GRR: Small Colleges
A last minute try from Charlie Price pulled victory from the jaws of defeat to secure Babson the 2023 National Collegiate Rugby Small-College championship over a determined Wayne State.
A sunny and very windy day welcomed the finalists and Babson played with the wind and quite the wind it was.
In fact the breeze gave and it took away. More on that in a moment.
Wayne State College mounted a stirring, wind-aided comeback to overhaul a 15-0 deficit and defeat defending small-college champs Cal Poly Humboldt Friday in the NCR Men’s Small College semis.
Despite what the experts said, Babson vs Catholic in NCR’s Men’s Small-College semifinals was not a close game.
Catholic had experience in the national final four and were also a little older, but their composure left them early and Babson, which has blown a 26-point lead in the quarterfinals before eking out a victory, ran out to an early lead and never let up.
Going into the NCR Small-College season, many felt that Cal Poly Humboldt and Babson had a serious shot to make it to the final.
Even the (mostly) trained monkeys working in the offices of GRR World Headquarters thought so. CPH had, of course, won it all last year, while Babson had emerged as Small-College 7s champs, so it seemed logical.
St. Bonaventure has only been pushed once all season, but SUNY Cortland (see about them below). Other than that 36-22 result, Bonnies averaged a 72-5 scoreline in their other eight victories. This included four shutouts. Their attention to detail on defense is backed up by a team approach on attack and a forgiving attitude, which you need.