For the fourth straight year St. Joe’s rugby finished the regular season sitting atop their conference, capturing the D1AA Mid-Atlantic Rugby Conference Championship.
They finished the regular season with a record of 8-0. Their campaign was dominant, scoring nearly triple the amount of points as they allowed, outscoring opponents 364-117. By winning their conference, the Hawks secured a spot in the National Championship, held in North Carolina. The quarterfinals and semifinals take place on Nov. 23 and 24, with the National Championship taking place two weeks following on Dec. 8.
Although Head Coach Daniel Yarusso called the Hawks’ run the past four years, “a little dynasty,” both he and senior captain Noah Niumataiwalu admitted that their most important objective now is to capture that elusive national title.
“It’s always good to get a conference championship,” Niumataiwalu said. “But the real goal is this national championship we’ve been eyeing up for years. We’ve missed twice and I couldn’t imagine us missing a third time. We’re really eager. We want to take it one game at a time, but that’s the end game.”
The team’s consistent regular season success has created a sort of culture that expects to win, something that Niumataiwalu said he saw shift during his four years.
“The sophomore grade, now with Jonathan Ahern and Matthew Riotto, I think they did a great job of just coming in and adapting to that culture right away,” Niumataiwalu said. “That was one of the first times I saw where there wasn’t a year of transition for them to get to that point. It was that first year they started to see, this is the culture and we’re just going to take it and run with it.”
Ahern, a sophomore, was third in the conference in points and led the team in the same category. However, he credited the senior class with laying a foundation for all of the younger players.
Sophmore Joey Hawach and senior James Kinzer embrace after the team clinched their conference champions status with a win over the University of Delaware on Nov. 2.
“The level of excellence that the older players have shown me both on and off the field has taught me about the success this team strives for,” Ahern said. “It is now my job to continue the success long after these seniors have graduated and teach the incoming players the same winning traditions that the senior class has taught me.”
Despite the string of conference titles, the team didn’t come into the year with the same sense of certainty as in the past. However, Niumataiwalu said Yarusso preaches a“next man up” mentality that has paid off throughout the year.
“We’ve had a lot of different challenges this season,” Yarusso said. “There were some question marks coming into the year having graduated 19 seniors last year. We’ve answered those questions and have continued on the success that we’ve had in previous years.”
Yarusso, Niumataiwalu and Ahern said winning the National Championship would mean much more to the program and the university than just a trophy.
“For this team, a national championship would mean everything,” Ahern said. “The past two years, we have fallen short. This year is different. This team, especially these seniors, have a distinct drive. They know how it feels to lose. They know that their class can change the outcome and with the other classes to back them up, we have full confidence that we can make it. It’s all about our execution from here on out.”
While Ahern wants to win for the seniors, Niumataiwalu also wants the victory for those who have worn the Hawks uniform before him.
“It would mean so much to us as a senior class, but the guys that graduated before us, they would be so thankful,” Niumataiwalu said. “They would be ecstatic. They talk to us every day still, asking, ‘Are we going to be able to get it done this year?’ We’re looking to bring something for everyone to be proud of.”
For Yarusso, the conference title and the regular season were preparation for the ultimate goal of winning the National Championship.
“That expectation of when we get to North Carolina and that opening whistle blows and the opening kickoff happens, it’s what we do now in preparation of that that matters,” Yarusso said.
