Vail Rugby kicks off season with dominant set of scrimmages in Denver
Grace Hovde/Courtesy photo
Vail Rugby started its season Saturday with a strong showing across a set of scrimmages at Cook Park in Denver.
In the first scrimmage against hosts Queen City, captain and tighthead prop Trent Draper (a recent graduate of Wayne State) opened the scoring with a pair of early tries. Vice captain Charles Luhanga (recent graduate of Principia College) added a pair as well. Late scores were dotted down by Ntando Sibanda (recent graduate of Principia College) and Vail local Zach Guida. Dammy Odunuga was 5-for-6 on conversions. Queen City scored a try late in the match with an unsuccessful conversion, bringing the final score to 40-5.
In the second scrimmage against the Western Slope Misfits — based out of Grand Junction — Nick Devoti (University of Missouri) opened the scoring for Vail. Subsequent tries were scored by Andy Naringo (recent Principia College graduate), Zach Guida, Dammy Odunuga, Cal Schmitz (recent graduate of University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire), Dexter Mbwinja (Principia College) and Charles Luhanga. Dammy Odunuga was 4-for-4 on conversions and Vail local Reece Smith went 2-for-4. The Misfits scored two tries, both unconverted. The final score was 52-10.
Charles Luhanga was voted Man of the Match by his teammates.
“I was pleased with the cohesion we showed on attack today, as well as our scrums,” said coach Joe Lippert. “We have a deep front row this summer and they set the platform for much of what we did. I was pleased with how guys responded to playing different positions and have begun developing chemistry with new teammates. There was some very slick handling and excellent final passes to finish a number of our tries today. We are far from a finished product and have plenty to work on, but that was a good start to the season. I really thought our captains, Trent and Charles, led from the front and did their jobs particularly well. Jay Gaines (University of Montana) also set the physical tone for us, both defensively and with some big carries.”
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Vail travels to Grand Junction for another match against the Misfits next Saturday, before opening Mountain League play at home on June 13 vs. Steamboat Springs.
