Tennessee Appears in USA Rugby National Tournament

April 17, 2004- The University of Tennessee Men's Rugby Club made its first ever appearance in the USA Rugby National Tournament on April 17 and 18 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. UT earned the birth in the Sweet Sixteen Tournament by virtue of its second place finish in the South Territory. Tennessee finished behind The University of North Carolina following a 26-10 defeat to the Tarheels, and league wins over Georgia, Clemson, Florida and Middle Tennessee State. The club traveled as a group, flying out of Atlanta on Thursday, April 15. We began Friday with some light training and then went to the stadium to catch some action from the other pool also being played in Colorado Springs. This pool featured BYU so the matches were played on Friday / Saturday instead of the traditional Saturday / Sunday schedule. After the matches the boys took in some sightseeing at the Garden of the Gods Park which sits just at the base of Pikes Peak.

Tennessee 10, Air Force 71
UT, as the 16th Seed in the tournament, squared off with the overall #1 Seed and the West Territory #1 Seed- US Air Force Academy. (Match Summary)

Tennessee 43, Penn State 20
Sunday's consolation match pitted the Volunteers against Penn State, a regular attendee in the national tournament. UT looked for a bit of personal justification after the defeat at the hands of the Air Force, plus this game carried additional significance as the South gained the 2nd seed in the national tournament primarily at the expense of the Mid-Atlantic Territory who lost their third seed. Since PSU represented the #2 seed from the MARFU, Tennessee carried the burden of defending the South's position in the tournament. (Match Summary)