Wheeling, W. Va. - This past Saturday, Men's Rugby 7's action came to Bishop Schmitt Field for the first time since the 2022 7's season. The Wheeling University Men's Rugby team hosted the Nail City 7's inviting the top teams from the area inside Bishop Schmitt Field. The Cardinals would cap off the day with a gold medal, going a perfect 5-0 on the day to cap off their second 7's tournament win of the season, moving to 10-0 through their first 10 7's games of the season.
Game 1: Wheeling 55, Indiana Tech 5
The Cardinals started off the day against Indiana Tech, and got things going just 28 seconds into the game. Panashe Mugorogodi got things started with his first try and Shadreck Mandaza kicked through the conversion kick to make it a 7-0 Wheeling lead. Mugorogodi would make it two tries in a row at the 2:23 mark and, after converting the conversion kick, Mandaza would register his first try of the day to make it a 19-0 Wheeling lead. The Cardinals would score two more tries before the half, with Tadiwa Kainga and Alex Nyamunda each getting on the board before halftime. Mandaza would nail both his conversion kicks, and Wheeling led 33-0 after the first half.
It would take Wheeling just seven seconds into the new half to get on the board, as Nyamunda made it two in a row and Mandaza sailed through the conversion kick to make it 40-0 in favor of the Cardinals. Indiana Tech would get their first and only try of the game a minute later, but Kainga would add his second try of the day to make it a 45-5 Wheeling lead. The Cardinals scored twice more before the game was over with Nyamunda adding his third try of the day, while Mason Ziegler scored his first career 7's time to round out the scoring. Both conversion kicks would be missed, but the Cardinals would go on to win by the final score of 55-5.
The Cardinals were led by Alex Nyamunda and Shadreck Mandaza, who each finished with 15 points on the day. For Nyamunda, the scoring all came via tries with the sophomore scoring three on the day, while Mandaza added a try while going 5-7 on conversion kicks. Panashe Mugorogodi and Tadiwa Kainga each scored two tries on the day totaling 10 points. Mason Ziegler would account for the final five Cardinal points, rounding out the big start.
Game 2: Wheeling 34, Marian 7
The Cardinals would follow up the win against a familiar foe in Big River's Rugby Conference (BRRC) opponent Marian University. It took the Cardinals just 42 seconds to get on the board as Joe Iye would cross the try line to get the scoring started. A missed conversion kick by Shadreck Mandaza would make it a 5-0 Cardinal lead early. Marian would have their first response two minutes later, and they would take a 7-5 lead after sailing the kick through the uprights. The Cardinals would get on the board twice more before the break, with Tadiwa Kainga and Alex Nyamunda each scoring tries. Mandaza would go 1-2 on the conversion kicks and the Cardinals went into halftime leading 17-7.
As the second half began, Mandaza would use his speed to get around the edge of the defense and crossed the try line for the first time. He would hit his third conversion kick of the day and the Cardinals jumped ahead 24-7. It was the first of back-to-back tries for the sophomore, who crossed the line again just over two minutes later and a missed conversion kick brought the score to 29-7. The final try of the day came courtesy of Michael Muleya, who got across the line with a minute and a half left to play, and a missed conversion kick by Jalli would bring the game to its final score of 34-7.
The Cardinals were led by Mandaza, who scored two tries while going 2-5 on conversion kicks to total 14 points. Joseph Iye, Tadiwa Kainga, and Alex Nyamunda would each add a try to finish with five points to round out the Cardinal scoring.
Game 3: Wheeling 21, St. Bonaventure 17
The second game of the day would be the toughest test for the Cardinals as they battled a St. Bonaventure team that kicked them out of the 15's playoffs two seasons ago. It would be the Cardinals that got the scoring started, with Alex Nyamunda crossing the try line and Shadreck Mandaza kicking it through to make it a 7-0 Wheeling lead. At the 2:44 mark of the half, St. Bonaventure would score their first try, but a bad conversion kick kept it a 7-5 Wheeling lead. That would remain the score going into halftime, but 21 seconds into the new half, the Bonnies would take their first lead of the day with a successful try, followed by a missed kick that made it 10-7.
Wheeling would need a bounce back, and got it less than a minute later as Mandaza scored his third try of the day, and first of game two, at the 8:15 mark. He would sail through his own conversion kick and the Cardinals were back out in front 14-10. The defenses would hold strong for the next three minutes, but Michael Muleya would break the scoreless drought with his first try of the game at the 11:25 mark. Ayoub Jalli would convert a huge conversion kick for the Cardinals, and they pushed their lead to 21-10. In the wanning minutes of the game, St. Bonaventure would get on the board for their final try, and kicked through the conversion kick. However, the success would come too little too late as the Cardinals were able to hold on for the 21-17 victory.
The Cardinal's three tries were scored by three different players, with Shadreck Mandaza leading the way with nine points in the effort. The sophomore scored one try and was 2-2 on conversion kicks to bring his total for the day to four tries and a 9-14 mark on kicks. The other two tries came courtesy of Alex Nyamunda and Michael Muleya, while Ayoub Jalli finished with two points going 1-1 on conversion kicks.
Game 4: Wheeling 58, Indiana Tech 0
The Cardinals highest scoring total of the day came against Indiana Tech in the first semifinal match of the premiere bracket. Panashe Mugorogodi needed just 25 seconds to get on the board and a missed conversion kick would give Wheeling a 5-0 lead. Mugorogodi would get across the try line three times in that first half, while Ayoub Jalli scored the other try during the run. The Cardinals would go 1-4 on conversion kicks during that span and led 22-0 at the 5:01 mark of the contest. Michael Chaniwa would score the final Cardinal try of the half, and he missed his own conversion kick to send the game into halftime with Wheeling leading 27-0.
Just as he ended the first half, Chaniwa would get the second half started with his second try of the game and Jalli sent the conversion kick through to make it 34-0 Wheeling. It would be a run from Mason Ziegler over the next three minutes as he scored three straight tries for the Cardinals. Jalli would make two of the conversion kicks, but a missed kick for Nyamunda would bring the Wheeling lead to 53-0 at the 13:04 mark. With the game well in hand, and the reserves performing well, the Cardinals would get one final try from Navin Couch and a missed conversion kick would bring the game to its final score of 58-0, moving Wheeling to the national title game.
Panashe Mugorogodi and Mason Ziegler would lead the Cardinals with 15 points each, with each scoring three tries on the day. Ayoub Jalli would finish right behind them with 11 points, as he went 4-8 on kicks and added a try of his own. Michael Chaniwa and Navin Couch would round out the scoring with five points each as the team advanced to the Championship match.
Game 5: Wheeling 34, Marian 17
It would be a BRRC matchup in the finals as the Cardinals and Knights squared off for the Nail City 7's Championship. It would be Alex Nyamunda that got the scoring started just 30 seconds in and a missed conversion kick would give the Cardinals a 5-0 lead. Just over a minute later, the Cardinals were back on the board, this time courtesy of Shadreck Mandaza, and a missed conversion kick gave Wheeling a 10-0 lead. At the 3:55 mark, Marian would creep to within three points of the Cardinals with their first try followed by a conversion kick that made it 10-7. Right before the half, the Cardinals would get on the board with Nyamunda's second try of the day and Wheeling went into halftime leading 15-7.
However, the Knights started the new half with another try, to bring the score to 15-12 and the Cardinals would respond thirty seconds later. Panashe Mugorogodi scored his first try of the finals, and the conversion kick from Joseph Iye sailed through the uprights to push Wheeling's lead to 22-12. The back and forth continued, with Marian responding with five points before Wheeling sealed the deal. Mandaza and Nyamunda would each get into the try zone, and a 1-2 mark from Mandaza at the try line would bring the score to 34-17. The Cardinals would win by that same mark, taking home their second tournament championship of the season.
It would be Alex Nyamunda that led the way for the Cardinals, scoring three tries and totaling 15 points. Shadreck Mandaza finished just behind him with 12 points, scoring two tries and going 1-3 on conversion kicks. Panashe Mugorogodi would score the final Cardinal try of the game to round out the effort with five points.
The Wheeling University Men's Rugby team returns to action on Saturday, March 29th, when they compete at the Irish 7's.
