Quad Rugby/Story - Heat Rave a Success

UNITED STATES QUAD RUGBY ASSOCIATION

March, 2006

Heat Fans Rave Over Success

The 2006 Heat Rave hosted by Mesa Adaptive Sports for the Disabled (MASD) held Feb. 17-19, saw a talented six-team field delight the biggest rugby crowds Arizona has ever seen.

The round-robin schedule provided one of the best match-ups early in the action as the second-seeded Canadian national team faced the third-ranked Texas Stampede. In three previous meetings this season the Canadians held a 2-1 victory margin that Texas hoped to even out. The close game required overtime before Canada sneaked out a 33-32 win.

Day one ended with the first “upset” as the sixth-seeded Quake from San Jose downed Denver 37-33. The win seemed to be a statement that the Quake would be a force, but it proved to be there only win of the weekend.

Day two went as expected without any close games-that is until the last one-as the top-seeded and host Phoenix Heat struggled with the Stampede. The spectators filling the bleachers were treated to one of the best games of the year as Texas led nearly the entire game. Tied at 32 with only a minute remaining, the absurd wave of turnovers crashed as Texas called a timeout it didn’t have. Seconds later, Phoenix gave the ball back when a Heat player was called for ten seconds in the key even though his chair was stuck to a Texas player so badly that the equipment guys had to come on the court and separate them after the whistle. The ensuing inbound bounced off a Texas player’s hand right to Brent Poppen of Phoenix who eventually made a remarkable pass to tournament MVP Shinichi Shimakawa with only a second remaining for the win. Neither team substituted the entire game and left both the players and crowd exhausted.

The Portland Pounders got their first win on the final day shaking down the Quake 46-36. Texas took care of Colorado 39-27 for third place setting up the showdown for first. Canada was trying to stay undefeated throughout the weekend but Phoenix was trying to stay undefeated throughout the entire year.

Another capacity crowd saw Phoenix fall behind early, but the deficit quickly disappeared. The Heat soon took the lead and manufactured a methodical victory 35-33 to secure its first ever undefeated regular season.

Thanks so much to all the awesome sponsors-MASD, St. Joe’s Hospital and Leeden Wheelchair to name a few, but definitely not all-and all the volunteers who enable us players to enjoy this sport so much.

Hit Counter

How to Contact us | Quad Rugby Central Index