Vienna Rugby Claims Its First High School National Championship

VIENNA, VA — Vienna's high school level rugby team scored its first Boys High School National Rugby Championship.

Vienna Rugby's high school boys team, made up of ninth- to 12th-graders at DC area schools, won the Tier II national title through a 41-34 win over the South Orange County Raptors of California in the final on May 27.

The final was part of a tournament from May 25 to 27 in Elkhart, Indiana. Vienna also had a 26-15 win over Thomas Aquinas of Kansas in the national quarterfinal and 57-14 win over Aspetuck of Connecticut in the semifinal.

Kendall Erickson, the team's head coach, said the championship was "particularly sweet" after they had a close loss to the championship-winning San Diego Mustangs at Vienna Rugby's first national tournament appearance in 2021 and lost on the last play of the game to the two-time champion Carlsbad Thunder in 2022.

"Many of our players have been playing together since Elementary school, many others joined in
Middle School or High School, but every single young man has sacrificed, overcome adversity,
learned resilience and dedication, and stretched themselves to accomplish a truly exceptional
goal," said Erickson.

The team includes players from James Madison High School, Oakton High School, Marshall High School, W.T. Woodson High School, Robinson Secondary School, Langley High School and Walt Whitman High School. Several of the players on this year’s team won the middle school level national title together in 2018.

The Boys High School National Rugby Championship tournament chooses participating teams based on their season's performance and national ranking. Vienna Rugby's high school level team had 17 wins, two losses and one tie this season.

Now as Vienna Rugby's seniors move on from the team, a new generation of players is being sought. Vienna Rugby is a Vienna Youth Inc. organization offering rubgy for boys and girls between ages 4 and 18.

"A dozen players from our team last year now play high level college rugby, and another dozen from this team will do likewise," said Erickson. "I will miss this fine group of 2023 Vienna Rugby Seniors, but we are excited about those who are ready to step up and take their place, and we always are looking for new players, no rugby experience required."

Interested athletes can reach out to the team through the Vienna Rugby website.