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Caity Healy<\/strong> | Editor-in-Chief<\/span><\/p>\n The final two days of Spring Break were greeted with sunshine, warm weather and four teams coming together to go head to head for a bid to the big stage: the National Small College Rugby Organization National Championship Tournament. On March 30-31, Western was home to the Pacific Coast Regional Challenge Cup, which saw the Wolves, Azusa Pacific University, Humboldt State University and Central Oregon Community College battle each other out in a single-elimination tournament. <\/span><\/p>\n In order for Western to have the opportunity to act as host, they had to apply and fall under a number of specific qualifications.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt was a comprehensive application process,\u201d said Assistant Director of Campus Recreation Andy Main. \u201cWe had to outline everything from the size of your bleacher seating \u2026 the capability to do live stream \u2026 manage parking \u2026 manage the staff.\u201d This information was outlined as clearly as possible for NSCRO, which is what Main believes won the Wolves the bid, along with their high level of organization which differentiated us from other schools. <\/span><\/p>\n When the bid was awarded to Western, excitement was felt for a couple of reasons.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cNot only were we excited for all the good things it could do for Western,\u201d said Main, \u201cbut it meant that our team would be able to play in this tournament. If we hadn\u2019t gotten the bid, we would not have been eligible for this tournament.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n The first semifinal of the tournament on March 30 saw the Central Oregon Bobcats take on the Humboldt State Lumberjacks. After 80 minutes of action, the Lumberjacks came out on top with a final score of 27-17, setting themselves up for the championship match 24 hours later.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n With game one of the tournament over, the Wolves made their way onto the rugby pitch to face the Azusa Pacific Cougars for the second semifinal, ready to see who would take the final seat in the championship match the following day. <\/span><\/p>\n From the opening kick, Western was met with a relentless offensive attack from Azusa Pacific. After four tries, three conversions and a 3-point play by the Cougars, the first half came to a close, posting a harsh score of 0-29.<\/span><\/p>\n As the second half began, Western was ready to turn things around. Nine minutes in, they scored their first try and conversion of the game, bringing the score to 7-29. <\/span><\/p>\n The Cougars were unyielding, but the Wolves weren\u2019t ready to give up the fight. For the remainder of the game, Western put up a noble defensive blockade, holding Azusa Pacific from scoring at all in the second half. The game ended with a final score of 21-29, with the Cougars on top, earning their seat in the championship match. <\/span><\/p>\n The sun was shining brightly on March 31 as the four teams made their way to the pitch for day two. This seemed to stir up a sense of optimism in Western, who exhibited a clear hunger for victory as they got ready to take on Central Oregon.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe came into the game with some energy,\u201d said exercise science major Riley Bardes. \u201cWe knew we didn\u2019t come into the game yesterday with energy, so we wanted to do the opposite of that.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n Right from the beginning, the Wolves came out firing. Within the first five minutes, Western scored two tries. The men continued a ruthless, offensive assault throughout the game, holding the Bobcats from scoring until the home-side had 17 points posted on the scoreboard.<\/span><\/p>\n The attack only got more brutal from there. The cheers from the audience continuously got louder as the ball seemed to live in the hands of the Western Oregon Rugby Men. Any attempts by the Bobcats to inch towards the goal-line were halted immediately by the Wolves until the game came to a close, 49-7.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe finished (the season) well here today,\u201d said Bardes, \u201cthat\u2019s what we wanted to do\u2026 I\u2019m really proud of today.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/files\/2019\/04\/Rugby-693x1024.png\")
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