ALFRED – The Morning of Veterans Day Saturday Nov. 11, 2017 broke clear and cold on Jericho Hill in the Town of Alfred. On the anniversary of the WWI armistice signed November 11, 1918, the overnight temperature had been in the single digits.

There was snow on the ground and the air temp told everyone winter had arrived. Apparently, this cold anniversary of fighting U.S. veterans was just the right environment for the Alfred University Rugby club as they won their first play-off game on the road to the National Championship on their home turf, beating SUNY Maritime academy 47 – 17.

Alfred began the game as the reigning state championship club in the UpSCRC. Having beaten a very tough Paul Smith’s team in Syracuse on November 4, 2017, Alfred came into the game at 8-0, bruised but undefeated for the 1st time at this stage of play in its 65 season history. Only once before in 1996 had Alfred made it this far into the post-season; this was the first time as an undefeated club.

During its run to the New York State championship, the Alfred club suffered season-ending injuries to four of its starting players. The club depth came through all season as all the team members pulled together, played hard and kept the win streak together. That continued on Saturday against Maritime.

The game started with the temperature nearing the freezing mark at 32 degrees with the sun coming out and that was all the Alfred team needed. Just as they did against Paul Smith’s college the preceding week in the State championship game, Alfred’s team played their brand of ball control ball; running, rucking, passing and hitting. Hitting hard. Maritime had a much larger team and it looked in the beginning as if Maritime would come out looking to physically punish the Alfred squad.

Not so. The Alfred club bore down and time after time, met their opponent and dropped them in their tracks.

Alfred was ready. Once the team got some momentum, they couldn’t be stopped. The veterans of the Alfred club led the team into every contest on every play on the field and they challenged their worthy opponents every step of the way. Alfred had prepared for an athletic opponent and played the Alfred style of ball control and rock-solid defense on their home turf that has carried them through the season.

Early on, the knowledgeable Alfred alumni on the sideline detected some retreat of the SUNY-Maritime team and sure enough, Alfred came on and took advantage. Over and over again the Alfred club imposed its will on the opposing team, defended their home field advantage and pushed toward their 9th consecutive win, the 1st in Alfred rugby history.

As the game wore on, as they have in the past, the Alfred team simply wore down the opposition. Enough cannot be said about the toughness of this Alfred team. All 15 players charged together, they played together and stayed together in the face of a difficult opponent. Over and over, Alfred got the ball and challenged the Maritime team in every direction, testing the strength of their opponent on every portion of the playing surface, one of the few regulation sized rugby playing fields in Upstate New York.

This game was a once-in-a-lifetime cause for celebration for Alfred University, for the parents of the players, for the AU and ASC rugby alumni that returned to offer their vital support and for the players and coaches. Alfred University came through for the club in the days preceding and provided needed play-off level support and logistics with benches, bleachers, field mowing and championship regulation field lining and anything else the club needed. Special recognition and thanks is due to AU Student Affairs department and the AU Athletic Department for their coordinated support of this remarkable one-of-a-kind team.

The club has been building toward this moment since at least 2001. As with any organization, over the years the club has had “ups and downs”. Through it all it has retained 65 consecutive semesters of good standing on the Alfred University campus, something the club and the University are very proud of. Many college clubs cannot claim the same record. The AU rugby club stands as a tribute to the disciplines and to the warm embrace of Alfred University to support all of its students, and in this case on this day, this very special group of student athletes.

For coach AU Associate Athletic Director Tony Aquilina and his protégé club captain, player-coach Rick Krouse (from ASC), this victory validates their close working relationship dating back to 2014, with Aquilina serving as the teacher/mentor and Krouse as the student/becoming the teacher.

Without these two men, the Alfred University Rugby Club would not be where it is today.

On this very special day, the club was joined by the parents of deceased rugby club charter member, club captain and 1988 Upstate Rugby Union Academic All-Star Dr. Jeffrey Hollier ’88. Mr. and Mrs. Paul Hollier live in Angelica and they were invited by the rugby club to attend this match as a tribute to their departed son who passed on in 2009. It was Jeff Hollier’s death in 2009 that prompted the return of Coach Bill Pulos to the club to coach for 6 seasons who then turned over the reins to Aquilina. And it was a heartfelt reunion for Pulos and Hollier’s parents with the entire team looking on with the poster made to commemorate Hollier’s life before the game started.

The team presented it to Hollier’s parents dedicating their game in memory of their son, who went on from Alfred University to earn his PhD in neuro-psychology and continued his rugby career with international level play and a try-out with the USA national team, the USA Eagles. Hollier is buried in Rushford.

The Alfred University Championship Rugby Team now heads to the second round of the National play-offs in North Adams, Massachusetts next week, November 17 – 19. The winner of those games goes to the National Small College Rugby Organization Championship “Sweet 16” next spring.

Best of luck to the Rugby Club! GO FRED!