Team still hardest hitting club on campus
The North Idaho College Rugby club ended its fall season of slams on Nov. 12 with a final record of 3-4.
Their final three games wrapped-up the season with a loss to Eastern Washington University (EWU), a win at home over Whitman College of Walla Walla, and a loss to the Washington State University (WSU) Cougars.
The Oct. 23 game against the EWU Eagles ended in a 15-5 loss for NIC. The Division 1 team beat the Cardinals with a combination of more experience and a greater number of players.
Captain Steven Populus said he was proud of the team despite the game’s outcome and thought the whole team played “very hard” throughout the match.
“EWU’s coach was amazed at how well we played,” Populus said. “He wasn’t expecting us to play as well as we did since we are such a new team.”
Putting the loss behind them, the Cardinals looked forward to their next game on Nov. 5 against Whitman College of Walla Walla. NIC went into the game hoping for a repeat of last year and that was exactly what happened. The Cardinals swooped in for the win, 33-17.
“The first ten minutes of this game was kind of rough, but they came together [near the end],” said coach Joe Malloy
Three team members combined for all 33 points. Populus made one try and four kicks.
“They went 100 perccent today and we came out with a victory,” Populus said.
Coming off of a solid win, the Cardinals went into their final game with confidence, but once again more experience and greater numbers won the day as WSU beat NIC, 10-7. Malloy said he is looking forward to next year’s team.
“We have attracted some pretty good athletes and some smart people too,” Malloy said. “That’s what we are really looking for: those willing to learn, have fun, and work hard. If we can get another 10 or 12 guys by the spring we are going to be looking pretty good.”
To keep the current players in shape for next season, Populus plans to get many of the players together and do conditioning exercises throughout the winter to keep the team in “rugby mode.”
The rugby club’s spring season will start with practices at the end of February or beginning of early March depending on the weather and remaining snow pack.
