Eight National 7s Bids Earned, 16 More This Week

Eight teams punched their ticket to the Collegiate Rugby Championship over the weekend by winning automatic qualifiers. And double that will earn bids this weekend, with all eight CRC divisions gaining new entrants. 

Iowa Central and Belmont Abbey are the latest teams to qualify in Men’s Premier, winning City 7s and Ruck the Rock, respectively. The Tritons went a perfect 4-0 in Kansas City, avenging a loss to Principia in the final of the same tournament last year, 28-0, to clinch the title.

The Crusaders’ path to the CRC proved more competitive in South Carolina, as Belmont dropped a pool game to Queens before squeaking past Kutztown by a single point in the semifinals, 15-14. The Crusaders were just one score better than Walsh in the final, 19-14.

Two more Men’s Premier teams will qualify Saturday, with the Fighting Irish Invitational at Notre Dame and the Old Blue 7s in Mt. Vernon, NY.  

Brown won the second of three Women’s Premier Cup qualifiers over the weekend, their own in Providence, RI. The Bears piled up 139 points, conceding zero, in their first three outings. AIC was a tougher foe in the final, but Brown prevailed, 28-19. 

The third and final Women’s Premier AQ is Sunday at St. Bonaventure, as the host Bonnies look to punch their ticket to the CRC, alongside fellow contenders Wheeling and Walsh. 

Nebraska became just the second Men’s Division I Club team to qualify Saturday, winning its division at City 7s. The Huskers dropped the tournament opener against Iowa, reeling off three-straight against Kansas State, Wyoming and Missouri to earn a second-straight CRC berth. 

Two more Men’s Division I Club teams will qualify this weekend at the Sandman 7s at Virginia Tech and at the Fighting Irish Invitational at Notre Dame. And Women’s Division I Club will earn a new team in the champ of Lonestar 7s Saturday at SaberCats Stadium in Houston, TX.

Women’ Division II will see two teams qualify this weekend – one at the Lonestar 7s, and one at Stony Brook 7s. Three DII men’s teams will earn bids Saturday at on-campus AQs at Elon, Bucknell and Memphis. 

Cal Poly Humboldt and the Virginia Military institute won Men’s Division III qualifiers last weekend in Monmouth, OR and RIchmond, VA, respectively. The Lumberjacks were dominant in their 4-0 run in Oregon, with a 26-point win over Mira Costa in the final being the closest contest. 

VMI had a tougher road in Virginia, but still pitched a perfect record, 6-0, in the two-day qualifier. The Keydets won big in pool play, but beat Christendom by just a try in the semifinals before downing Slippery Rock in the final, 21-10. 

Three more teams will qualify in Men’s DIII this weekend by winning at Elon, Northern Colorado and Notre Dame. Two will qualify in Women’s DIII, from Niagara’s tournament in Lewiston, NY and the Free Jacks qualifier in Quincy, MA. 

Western Oregon is the latest Women’s DIII team to earn a bid, winning its host tournament Saturday. The Wolves outscored opponents 109-10 en route to the title.

Keep track of the qualifiers this weekend in the NCR App.

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