UNITED STATES QUAD RUGBY ASSOCIATION

February 2006

The weekend of January 27-29 was a busy one in the USQRA. While most of the established rugby stars were in Lakeshore, Portland hosted a tournament that showcased players and teams with great potential.

An improving Northridge team kicked things off Friday evening by dispatching Team Seattle 44-26. Then U of A handled an undermanned BC team 39-19. Portland closed the evening by giving #10, Mike Gilliland a rough welcome back to the game as they defeated the Arizona Predators 49-33.

The Predators rebounded the next morning behind Gilliland and Scott Foster to notch their first tournament win by defeating Seattle 36-35. Newcomers James Laubham and Ashley Turner also turned in strong games. Portland showcased some of their young players as Seth McBride, Barrett Dull and Mike Summerson led the way against BC, 53-30.

In a matchup of D II contenders, the Northridge Knights tipped off against the U of A Wildchairs. Northridge features young talent, with Mike DeYoung and Lee Mercado, mixed with veterans Mike Wyatt, Terry Luxemburger and Terry Nelson. U of A countered with a seasoned class 3, Bryan Barten, a pair of strong young 2.0’s, Travis Murao and Derrick Helton, as well as an improving class 1.0, Chad Cohn. Northridge jumped out to a 2-0 lead early before U of A went on a three goal run to take the lead 3-2. After trading goals, U of A manufactured a 7-2 stretch to go up by six, 12-6. Northridge scored the last two goals of the quarter that ended 12-8. The Knights closed the gap to two early in the second but U of A put together a four goal run in the middle of the quarter and closed the half up 22-17. Northridge tried in vain to close the gap in the second half but U of A’s balanced attack was able to close out the 43-39 win.

U of A opened the post lunch festivities by taking down in state rival Arizona by a score of 40-30. Portland overwhelmed their Northwest counterparts, Seattle, 47-29 and Northridge took out their frustrations on BC, 55-34. The hometown fans came out 200 strong to watch Portland take on U of A. U of A forced an early turnover to take a 3-2 lead. Unfortunately, that seemed to wake up the Pounders as they went on a 5-1 run behind Will Groulx and Seth McBride. Lynn Nelson scored the last goal of the quarter to give Portland a 12-8 lead. Portland’s high-low lineup played a strong second quarter and opened 23-14 advantage at the half to the delight of the crowd. U of A was unable to recover and Portland closed the game with a 47-29 victory.

Next up was a matchup of border rivals as BC and Seattle squared off. BC featured speedy class 3.0 Rod Bitz and 2.0 Chris Kirby as well as rugby legend Duncan Campbell. Seattle countered with their 7.0 point lineup of 3.0 Neil Sperry, 2.0 Curt Chapmam and class ones John Balbin and Mike Wagner. The game was a nip and tuck affair as Seattle was led by the scoring of Chapman and the heady play of Wagner while Bitz and Kirby handled the scoring for BC. One goal separated the teams at the half with Seattle ahead 17-16. Ted Kuoppamaki helped key a 6-2 Seattle run to open the second half. BC briefly closed the lead to one in the fourth but Seattle reasserted itself and finished with the 33-29 win. On the other court, Northridge tamed the Predators, 52-31.

Sunday morning opened with BC trying for its first win against the Arizona Predators. The game was tied at nine after one quarter and Arizona held a scant one-goal lead, 18-17, at the half. But there was too much Scott Foster in the 3rd, as he tallied eight goals to break open the game. Foster and Gilliland controlled the pace in the 4th and wrapped up Arizona’s second victory. Arizona player/coach Jason Curran should be pleased with the effort and improvement of his young team throughout the tournament. In the second game of the day, U of A’s young talent proved too much for Seattle as they put the game out of reach early and cruised to a 39-23 win.

The fans were back for the final game of the tournament as the hometown Pounders looked to close out the tournament with an unblemished record. The Northridge Knights were looking for redemption after the previous day’s loss to U of A. The Californians brought their “A” game but ran into a buzzsaw as Portland came out flying. The starting lineup of Nelson, Groulx, McBride and ever improving 0.5 Kip Johnson jumped out to a 10-4 lead and finished the quarter up 13-7. Portland’s high-low lineup started the second quarter with Tony Williams and Dave Kammeyer giving Nelson and Groulx plenty of support as the Pounders stretched the lead to 17-8. Max Woodbury and Jeff Zerba subbed in and helped close the half with Portland leading by ten, 26-16. Northridge tried in vain to close the gap in the second half but could not get closer than ten despite the efforts of Mercado and new addition Ryan Nichols. The final score was a crowd pleasing 52-42 win for the home team.

The weekend was a success in many ways. There were some very competitive games, it was great to see some of the young talent on display and good to see some veteran players back on the court but the most exciting thing was to see the number of spectators that turned out in the wake of “Murderball”.

We would like to thank everyone who supported the tournament and we look forward to seeing you next year.

 Final Standings
 Portland Pounders
 U of A
 Northridge Knights
 Arizona Predators
 Seattle
 BC Bandits

 All Tournament
 0.5           Mike DeYoung    Northridge
 1.0           Chad Cohn        U of A
 1.5           Jason Curran     Predators
 2.0           Lee Mercado     Northridge
 2.5           Scott Foster     Predators
 3-3.5        Lynn Nelson      Portland
 MVP          Will Groulx        Portland
 Sportsman  Chad Cohn       U of A

How to Contact us | Quad Rugby Central Index

Home Page | Rugby Calendar | Sports Page | Score Board | USQRA Zone | Files