Wheeling, W. Va. – In 2023, the Wheeling University Men's Rugby team claimed the Big Rivers Rugby Conference (BRRC) championship in the final minute of play. One year later, the Cardinals are back in the same stage, looking to defend their conference championship. They head to Cincinnati, Ohio where they are set for a rematch against Thomas More for the title, with kick-off at 2 PM.
The Cardinals are coming off their BRRC semifinals match where they took on Iowa Central Community College. The Cardinal offense once again took center stage, as the Cardinals eclipsed the 50-point mark for the second time this season. 20 minutes into the game, things sat scoreless as both offenses were looking for the first punch. It would come from Iowa Central with a pair of Penalty kicks before the Cardinals got the first try of the game two minutes later. Another Penalty Kick would give the Titrons the lead, but it would be short lived as Wheeling tacked on 11 points before half and led 28-9 at the break. The Cardinal offense just kept going in the second half, adding 24 more points. Iowa Central continued to battle throughout the day, scoring 12 points of their own through the final 40 minutes of play, but it wouldn't be enough as the Cardinals held on for the 52-23 victory.
It was another big day for sophomore Alex Nyamunda, who picked up multiple tries in a game for the third straight match. This time, Nyamunda would score two tries on the night, totaling 10 points in the contest and bringing his season total to seven. He is the team's leading try scorer on the year with seven, while sitting second on the team with 35 points during the year. His season-best effort came in the homecoming match against the University of Rio Grande, when he scored three tries in the team's 62-point effort. Nyamunda has scored in all but one game for the Cardinals and when he does score, the team is 4-0 this season. He looks to continue his scoring success in the championship game as his team competes for the championship.
The Cardinals kicking game has been almost automatic this season, led by the efforts of Shadreck Mandaza. The sophomore has attempted 18 of the team's 24 conversion kicks this season and has nailed each kick he has attempted. He is also a perfect 3-3 in Penalty Kicks attempted this season and leads the Cardinals with 63 points on the season. The other multi-try scorer for the Cardinals was Simo Haddar, who equaled Nyamunda's effort with two tries and 10 points on the night. After a slow start, Haddar has come up big for the team down the stretch, scoring all three of his tries over the last two games. He was a big contributor during the 7's National Championship run and looks to do the same as he helps his team fight for their first-ever 15's National Championship.
In the second-ever BRRC Tournament, the Cardinals have been in the championship game in each of the first two seasons. Last season, they would take on Principia for the title and ended up winning the game in the final five minutes of play. With several of the stars from last year's team back this season, the Cardinals look to build on that experience to become back-to-back conference champions. Wheeling's lone loss this season came in out of conference play, and they have not lost a BRRC game since October 1st, 2022, when they fell to Marian in a 23-21 effort. They have won 11 straight BRRC games between the regular and postseason and look to keep that streak alive as they try to bring home the hardware.
The Matchup
The Cardinals and Saints are meeting for the sixth time in program history, with Wheeling leading the all-time series at 5-1. Of those six matches, three have come in 15's play, with the Cardinals going 2-1 in those three 15's games. Wheeling has averaged 23.17 points per game in the series and, since the two teams joined the BRRC in 2023, their games have been decided by a margin of 14 or less each time.
Saturday will make the second meeting between the two teams this season, with the first coming back on October 5th, 2024, when the Cardinals managed to hold on for a 26-20 win. Alex Nyamunda would lead the way for the Cardinals, scoring two tries on the night, while Simo Haddar and Panashe Mugorogodi would each score. The kicking game was led by James Holland, who finished 3-4 in the day to total six points for his team.
The Details
Kick-off for Saturday's game is scheduled for 2 PM inside the Brimelow Fields in Cincinnati, Ohio. Follow along with wucardinals.com throughout the day for updates and a complete game recap.
