Penn Rugby competing in first USA Sevens
The program has grown with the addition of Penn Park
THREE YEARS AGO, Penn Rugby held its practices at Hill Field, an area one-third the size of a regulation rugby field, while traveling 20 minutes to Fairmount Park for home matches.
The same team that coped with terrible field conditions and the inconvenience of traveling to home games is now competing in its first USA Sevens Collegiate Rugby Championship (CRC), set for tomorrow and Sunday at PPL Park in Chester. And the team has to give credit to their home turf, Penn Park.
"This is one of the best fields in the Ivy League and one of the best fields around; definitely the best field in Philadelphia," second-year coach Omar Foda said of Penn Park, which opened in 2011. "The field is huge, the surface is beautiful and it is just wonderful overall."
In 2007, Penn finalized a deal with the U.S. Postal Service to purchase a 14-acre parking lot for $50.6 million. After 4 years, the parking lot was transformed into Penn Park, along with the addition of 10 more acres of underdeveloped land owned by the university. What was once known as one of the city's "greatest eyesores," according to Penn president Amy Gutmann, is now home to numerous Penn athletic teams, including Penn Rugby.
"I think Penn Park gives us a little more legitimacy instead of running around in [Fairmount Park]," senior Sawyer Waugh said. "Now, we are playing on a turf field and I think that has kind of helped to build the program and allowed kids to stick around on the team longer."
Student-athletes on the team before the creation of Penn Park recall difficult practices dodging drain pipes and manholes and suffering injuries from the rocky Hill Field.
"Penn Park has been a big factor in the turnaround of this program," junior Billy Barron said. "When we were practicing at Hill Field, there were rocks coming out of the ground and it was dangerous. Penn Park definitely changed things for the better for us."
Penn Park also helped expand the Quakers' fan base. Supporters found it difficult to travel to Fairmount Park for a Penn home match, but now players such as junior Doug Swift are feeding off the program's newfound attention.
"We never had the opportunity to play in front of such a large crowd, exposure on TV and to play against big brand collegiate programs," Swift said. "It's really exciting for me and the rest of the team."
The importance of Penn Park is evident for Penn Rugby, which went 4-1-1 in the Ivy League South. Penn also won the City Six 7s tournament on April 28, defeating Drexel, Saint Joseph's, Villanova, Temple and La Salle.
"We are always the underdog when we play good teams," junior Andrew Weis said. "We won the City Six 7s tournament the other week so we know what we are capable of."
Twenty teams are competing for the CRC title, including seven local teams. Delaware, Kutztown, Penn State, Saint Joseph's Temple, Penn and two-time defending champion Dartmouth round out the locals participating in the 2-day tournament.
Beginning tomorrow, from noon to 6:30, the men's teams will kick off the first elimination round. The finals will be held Sunday beginning at 11 a.m. and a victor will be awarded in the final match at 6 p.m. Sunday evening.
"I honestly think we have a talented group of guys that can compete," Foda said. "If we advance out of our group, it is anybody's game. That is the beauty of this championship, as we have as good of a shot as anybody to win it."
AGENDA
What: The USA Sevens Collegiate Rugby Championship at PPL Park in Chester on Saturday, June 1, and Sunday, June 2.
When: There are 21 men's matches Saturday and 16 Sunday, culminating with the women's final at 12:40 p.m. and the men's final at 5:24 p.m. Matches generally take about 20-25 minutes to complete. Saturday's play starts at 11:10 a.m. when St. Joe's men play Navy. Sunday's first match is a quarterfinal matchup at 10 a.m.
Who: The 20 men's teams are divided into five pools of four. Temple's men's team is in Pool C, while the women's team is in Pool B. The eight women's teams are in two pools of four.
Men's format: Saturday is pool play where each team plays the other three in its pool. The top two in each pool advance to Championship bracket play Sunday. The remaining teams go into the Challenger's consolation bracket. From there, it is single elimination.
Women's format: Round-robin format similar to the men with pool play taking place today at Drexel (43rd and Powelton). Single elimination play Sunday at PPL Park.
About Temple: The Owls men's first match is Friday at 5 p.m. vs. Kutztown. The women's opening match on Friday at noon vs. Drexel.
Why is it called "sevens": Seven players on the field per side, eight fewer than in traditional rugby.
Tickets: Reserved tickets for single day are $60 with weekend passes costing $100. Those seats are midfield with in-seat food and beverage service. General admission seating is $40 for one day and $50 for both days ($20 and $25, respectively, for kids 14 and under).
Contacts: PPL Park box office or by calling 800-298-4200 or at ComcastTIX.com. Beware of online service fees. The Daily News priced two of those $15 youth general admission tickets for tomorrow and found the fees totaling $16.70.
Parking: Around the stadium — including boat slips — is $15. There is an off-site lot at 4th and Edwards charging $15. Trailers of any kind are not permitted in stadium lots.
Weather: Temps from the mid-70s to the hight 80s with chances of thunderstorms on Sunday.
Party on: The John McNutt Band & DJ Perry Angelozzi on Saturday; the Sofa Kings & DJ DJB on Sunday. Both days will feature an interactive Sports Zone.
TV schedule
Saturday
3 p.m., NBC
Sunday
4 p.m. NBC