USA Rugby Fall 2019 College Championship Series

USA Rugby Release

Mecklenburg County Sportsplex @ Matthews in Charlotte, NC to host 2019 Championship Weekend; December 7-8.
Vassar College (NY), Scott Boulevard Fields (MO) & Furman College (SC) are set to host opening rounds of the fall regional playoffs; November 23-24

The Fall 2019 Men’s and Women’s Championship Series, along with the Men’s D2 National Championship, will commence December 7th-8th at The Mecklenburg County Sportsplex @ Matthews in Charlotte, NC. Not only is it a first-class facility and continuing to establish itself as the home of rugby in North Carolina, but has hosted the High School State Football Championships in previous years.

The Sports complex Athletic Coordinator, Preston Buckman, has stated his enthusiasm when it comes to hosting the collegiate championships. “Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation and the Mecklenburg County Sportsplex at Matthews are excited to host the 2019 Fall Championships. Over the last year, we have had the opportunity to work with USA Rugby and Visit Charlotte to host the 2018 Fall Championships as well as the 2019 Spring Championships. The partnership has produced two great events, and we look forward to being part of another one this December. We hope to showcase the Sportsplex as a great Rugby venue and Charlotte as a great Rugby city.”

The following colleges and venues have been confirmed as the 2019 Regional College Playoff Locations, on the weekend of November 23rd -24th:

Vassar College – Poughkeepsie, NY
Furman College – Greenville, SC
Gans Creek Recreation Area – Columbia, MO
East Carolina University – Greenville, NC

Three of the four locations; Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, NY, Furman College in Greenville, SC, and East Carolina University in Greenville NC return as perennial hosts of the Collegiate Regional Playoff Series. The continuous opportunity to host these tournaments would not be possible if it weren’t for the stellar efforts of both host clubs and their local referee societies. A new venue host this year will be Gans Creek Recreation Area in Columbia, MO. Whichever teams will vie for a playoff contender spot this upcoming November, will have to run through a gauntlet of national powerhouses and dark-horse clubs who are hungry with the taste of a championship on their mind.

USA Rugby’s Senior Event Manager, James Wilbur, is excited about the growing collaborative efforts with the Championship venue and city of Charlotte. He states, “Partnering with Visit Charlotte and the Mecklenburg County Sportsplex @ Matthews allows USA Rugby to provide the exceptional championship environment hardworking teams deserve, and we appreciate their continued support of college rugby. We expect the playoff competition to be fierce and recognize the contributions of the host clubs and match officials that make this postseason possible.”

Lest we forget, some well-deserved shoutouts to last year’s Fall Championship Series Winners for their tremendous efforts of achieving the top spot of their respective divisions;

Men’s D1AA – Bowling Green
Women’s D1 – Air Force Academy
Men’s D2 National Champions – North Carolina State
Women’s D2 – Vassar College

For those wishing to return to the “promised land” of championships, their expectations will surely be matched in the upcoming months, with the increased amount of quality teams within each division. We cannot wait for this Fall’s exciting tournaments and regionals and will be following along the clubs’ progressions closely throughout the season.

FloRugby will be once again, proud to provide end to end coverage of all matches of the Championship series, to all nationwide fans and supporters. Tune-in for all the games, come time of the championships in December.