Doylestown Rugby Football Club News – May 9th, 2022
Doylestown Rugby Scholarship Presentations
On Sunday, May 1, 2022, the Doylestown Rugby Club awarded scholarships to three high school seniors, who currently play for the Doylestown Rugby Academy, who will be attending college in the fall. The scholarship is in memory of former Academy Coach Garry Smith. In 1988, Garry Smith almost immediately connected with the Doylestown Rugby Club after arriving from Australia. Garry coached at the men’s level and was instrumental in starting our youth and high school programs. He dedicated more than twenty years to our club and our programs. Garry influenced the lives of many players. He was respected by his peers throughout the league, his players, and those who coached beside him. In 2011, Garry lost a hard-fought battle with cancer. Garry was instrumental in not only creating top notch rugby teams, but also reinforcing the importance of culture and sportsmanship. Garry’s spirit lives on through the club and the club has named the scholarships to honor his memory.
Three $500 scholarships were handed out to graduating seniors from High School Boys and Girls teams which were presented to the winners on May 1. The honorees are:
Nate Smith, Grace Bolling, and Liz Johnston.
From the boys team was Nate Smith. Nate has been playing as a Dragon since flag. He plans to attend West Chester University in the fall. This year, we had two winners from the girls’ team, Liz Johnston and Grace Bolling. Grace will be attending Clemson University, majoring in Language and International Business; she plans to play on the Clemson Women’s Rugby team. Liz plans to attend West Chester University and be enrolled in their Nursing program with plans to work in pediatrics.
Everyone involved with Doylestown Rugby is very proud of these kids and wishes them the best as they take the next step!
Photo #1 – Liz Johnston and Grace Bolling
Photo #2 – Nate Smith
High School Boys’ Team
On Sunday, May 8, 2022, the Doylestown Rugby Academy High School Boys’ Team fell to Berks in the Quarterfinals of the RugbyPA State Championships. The match was played at Alvernia University in Reading. The final score was 59-19. Try scorers for the Dragons were Matt Cleland (2) and Cade Aivazian (1). Cleland also kicked two conversions. Berks had nine tries and seven conversions.
Junior (U15) Boys’ Team
The Doylestown Rugby Academy Junior Boys’ Team defeated West Chester in an away match on Sunday, May 8, 2022. The final score was 67-27. Try scorers for Doylestown were Jack Druger (3), Aaron Kelly (3), Joey Craig (2), Santiago Bustelo (2), and Marco Burns. Conversions were kicked by Joey Craig (2), Chris Zapf, Liam Harding, Judson Boyer, and Marco Burns. West Chester had five tries and one conversion. The Dragons will play in the Semifinals of the RugbyPA State Championships on Sunday, May 15, 2022.
Youth (U13) Boys’ Team
The Doylestown Rugby Academy Youth Boys’ Team defeated West Chester in an away match on Sunday, May 8, 2022. The final score was 64-7. Try scorers for Doylestown were Jackson Hornick (4), Sonny Wade, Jamie Weir, Liam Hoey, Gavin Graham, Owen Pudlo, and Liam Laphen. Weir kicked seven conversions. West Chester had one try and one conversion. The Dragons will play in the Semifinals of the RugbyPA State Championships on Sunday, May 15, 2022.
For more information about Doylestown Rugby Football Club, go to www.doylestownrugby.com
