University Park, PA – On Saturday Penn State Rugby hosted Army in Rugby East Conference play. The 2022 National Champions were too strong for the Lions on the day and recorded a 14-40 victory.
The match was a true tale of two halves. After Army got on the board in the first 2 minutes, the next 30 minutes was played all in favor of Penn State. The Lions managed to threaten the Knights finding space on attack and holding Army on Defense. However, with all the territory and possession Penn State just couldn't finish to put some points up and change the momentum in the match. Army would score a late try before half and head into the break ahead 0-12.
In the second half mistakes plagued the Lions and Army made the team pay. Two tries early saw the Knights jump out to a 0-26 lead. Penn State found some fortune midway through the 2nd half when Campbell Halloran busted through the defense and Dalton Musselman converted, 7-26 in favor of Army. Army responded with a try of their own to extend the lead again. Late in the match Penn State threatened and off a strong lineout to maul were awarded a penalty try for their 2nd score of the day. Army closed out the match with another score and a final score of 14-40.
While the match did not go the way that the team wanted, the weekend itself was about so much more than the 80 minutes played on the weekend as Penn State Rugby celebrated 60 Years of Championship Rugby on Campus.
The match was played in front of 500+ supporters of the program, spanning all 60 years including members of founding, 1962 team. Half-time of the match was used to honor the USA Eagles representatives who played their rugby at Penn State and went on to National Honors.
The evening after the match the 500 supporters and current Teams, Men and Women, joined each other in celebration at the Penn State Hotel and Conference Center. We were able to hear old stories from 1962 right through to 2022 and enjoyed celebrating just how far the program has come from those early days.
Head Coaches Justin Hundley and Kate Daley provided some anecdotes of where the program has come from, where we are and where we are heading. The future of Penn State Rugby is certainly bright, and as Former Eagle and Penn State Alum David Skidmore mentioned, our greatest accomplishment is yet to happen.
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