Boyds, MD. - After two days of action, the Wheeling University Rugby team (30-3-1) would bring home the ultimate prize, being named Collegiate Rugby Championship (CRC) National 7's National Champions. They went 2-0 on day two of the event, wrapping up the run with a 29-12 win against Kutztown to claim the national title. It was the first National Championship in Wheeling Rugby's history, and just the second Wheeling University Athletic Team to earn a National Championship, joining the 2015 Wheeling Volleyball team as the only two teams to earn the accomplishment.
Game One: Wheeling 24, Babson 0
Before they got to the National Championship game, the Cardinals would take on Babson University in the CRC National 7's Semifinal round. The Cardinal defense was the leader throughout game one, picking up their second shutout of the CRC National 7's Tournament. On the first Cardinal possession of the day, Aaron Juma continued his success, plowing across the try line and the conversion kick went through to give the Cardinals a 7-0 lead. Following Juma was Shadreck Mandaza, who once again used his speed to glide up the sideline and into the try line to put the Cardinals up 12-0. The Cardinals would get on the board one more time as Mandaza connected with Juma for his second try of the day to give the Cardinals a 17-0 halftime lead.
Defense would rule the second half, as the two teams combined for just one try over the final seven minutes. The Beavers threatened on two different possessions, getting within 10 meters of the try line, but both times the Cardinal defense came through with big stops to keep Babson off the board. The Cardinals would seal the deal with their final try of the day as Mandaza made a man miss and streaked more than 50 meters before diving across the try line. When all was said and done, the Cardinals were able to pick up the second shutout of the tournament as they picked up a 24-0 win to advance to the National Title game for the first time in program history.
It was a big day for freshman Shadreck Mandaza, who finished with two tries and one assist to lead the Cardinals. He pushed across the second try of the game and the final try as he moved his total for the tournament to seven tries over four games. The final two tries would come from Aaron Juma, who pushed across two tries of his own and brought his tournament total to seven as well. The Cardinals headed into the National Championship game looking to ride the backs of their strong offense.
Game Two: Wheeling 29, Kutztown 12
After two days of hard work, the time had finally come for the 2024 CRC National 7's National Title game. They would battle the #1 seed from the other side of the bracket in Kutztown, who had a strong run through their side of the bracket. The Cardinals entered with a lot of energy and used that to get the early lead. Aaron Juma was at it again as he made moves around the defense and found the middle of the try zone to give the Cardinals an early 7-0 lead. After Kutztown made a couple of attempts at the try zone, the Cardinal defense came through with a big hit from Chief Chipfumbu that knocked the ball out. Shadreck Mandaza would pick up the lose ball and ran past the Kutztown defense to give Wheeling a 14-0 lead. It would be the final score before the half, and the Cardinals would go into the second half looking to add on.
Shadreck Mandaza would be the one to give the Cardinals that spark, getting past the Kutztown defense with a few nice moves and he glided into the try zone to give Wheeling a 19-0 lead. After Kutztown broke across the try line for the first time on the day, the Cardinals would add one more to seal the deal with three minutes left on the clock. Michael Muleya would force a turnover and flipped the ball to Mandaza, who took care of the rest scoring his third try of the day. Kutztown would add one more score as the final second ticked away, but Wheeling would get the win as they were crowned National Champions for the first time in program history with a 29-12 win. When the final buzzer blew, the team stormed the field in celebration, joining alumni, friends, and family in the celebration.
"[The Championship] is huge for us," said Head Rugby Coach Mike Geibel. "It is something we have been working towards every single day. Credit really goes to the guys who come out to practice every single day and they're in the gym putting in the work that is necessary. We always talk about doing the same thing every time and setting that standard for ourselves, and today it came out in our favor."
"This win erased all of the bad memories that happened over the first three years because we got it done when it mattered," added Wheeling Rugby captain Josh Blankenship. "I wanted to get it with my boys, the last one before we leave undefeated, and we started our year off good and ended it pretty good."
The team then met at midfield for the presentation of the Championship trophy, where freshman Shadreck Mandaza brought home another honor. The freshman was named the 2024 CRC National 7's MVP for his work during the tournament. He would total 10 tries across the five games and made several conversion kicks throughout the day. Aaron Juma finished behind him with eight tries across the five games played as the Cardinals wrapped up their championship season.
The Wheeling University Rugby team ended a strong Spring 7's Season and are ready to celebrate the National Championship during the off-season.
