Brown Takes Inaugural Ivy Rugby 7s

New York, NY, Brown University won the first annual Ivy League 7s Championship, defeating host Columbia 19-10 in the final.

The field consisted of eight teams, divided into two, four-team pools. Due to the fact that both Princeton and Harvard were no-shows, host Columbia and Dartmouth fielded both A and B teams.

The four teams in each pool played round robin matches. Then, based on their order of finish in pool play, the teams from Pools A&B faced off (1v1), (2v2), (3v3) and (4v4) to establish the Ivy Champion and final standings.

Paths to the Final

Brown University was undefeated in Pool A, with wins over Penn (19-5), Columbia B (43-0) and pre-tournament favorite Dartmouth A (28-26), in what was the day’s best match.

Host Columbia A was undefeated in Pool B, with wins over Dartmouth B (10-5), Cornell (40-0) and Yale (26-0).

Final

Host and Pool B winner Columbia came out of the blocks fast in the final, taking an early 5-0 lead on a try by Bob McMahon. Pool A winner Brown responded with a try by Tournament MVP Daniel Levine-Spound that Sam Raab converted, giving the Providence, RI side a 7-5 halftime lead.

A break by Brown’s Dow Travers resulted in both a try and conversion by Sam Raab, 14-5. Levine Spound’s second try then gave Brown a bit of a cushion (19-5).

Columbia’s Kudzanay (Special K) Dzvairo would score a consolation try but both the final and the first Ivy League 7s Championship belonged to Brown University, 19-10.

In the other playoff matches, Dartmouth A defeated Yale (19-7) for 3rd place, Dartmouth B over Penn (26-7) for 5th, and Cornell over Columbia B (12-5) for 7th.

Pool A

Brown 19, Penn 5
Brown 43, Columbia B 0
Brown 28, Dartmouth A 26
Dartmouth A 47, Columbia B 0
Dartmouth A 47, Penn 0
Penn 24, Columbia B 7

Pool B

Columbia A 10, Dartmouth B 5
Columbia A 40, Cornell 0
Columbia A 26, Yale 0
Yale 36, Cornell 0
Yale 20, Dartmouth B 14
Dartmouth B 17, Cornell 5

Playoffs

1st - Brown 19, Columbia 10
3rd – Dartmouth A 19, Yale 7
5th – Dartmouth B 26, Penn 7
7th – Cornell 12, Columbia B 5

Order of Finish

1) Brown
2) Columbia A
3) Dartmouth A
4) Yale
5) Dartmouth B
6) Pennsylvania
7) Cornell
8) Columbia B

Postscript

The first Ivy Rugby 7s Championship was a great event, well hosted by the Columbia RFC at their first class, Baker Field facility. The event was officiated by a highly competent crew from the Met NY RFU Referees’ Society.

Following the championship match, Columbia hosted all teams and supporters to a hearty post-match cookout adjacent to the fields.

The only element detracting from the first edition of what will surely become a great Ivy 7s tradition, was the absence of teams from Princeton and Harvard. Princeton notified that they would not attend weeks beforehand due to earlier commitments, while Harvard pulled out just days prior to the event.

Commenting on the event, Brown’s Jay Fluck noted: “Columbia’s Baker Field was a terrific venue, the weather was perfect, the referees did a fine job and all but two teams made the effort to get this inaugural effort off the ground. With all of the rugby played this spring, it would have been easy to pull out; especially Dartmouth, which has such a rigorous schedule and travelled so much this season.

The Ivy 7s is a great way to bring tournament rugby back to the eight Ivy schools. Hopefully the enjoyment and success of this Spring’s event will encourage all eight schools to participate in the next Ivy 7s.

story & photo by Ed Hagerty