In the final rugby state final at Curry College, the No. 3 Weymouth Wildcats blasted top-seed Algonquin, 57-14, to repeat as the Div. 2 boys rugby champions.
Junior fly half William Savage led the scoring with three tries and six conversion kicks in a start-to-finish victory.
“There was a wrestling state title in 2001, soccer in 1997. To come in and get two, it’s not only great for our program, it’s great to show the other teams in the school that you can do it,” said Weymouth coach Ryan Casey.
“It’s honestly a great feeling,” said Tyler Ahern. “I joined this team as a sophomore, and we were winning absolutely no games. We recruited some football kids last year and ever since then I’ve watched this program build up and up. I’m super proud to be a part of this team.”
After a back and forth opening, Anthoni Gonzalez-Dumont started the scoring for Weymouth. The junior flanker pushed through Algonquin’s left wing for the score and Savage added the conversion kick. Savage followed up with his first try, breaking down Algonquin’s left wing, 30-plus yards for the score. Just three minutes later, Naheem Ridore powered through the middle of Algonquin’s defense to add a third try for Weymouth. Savage missed both kicks in the sequence, giving Weymouth a 19-0 lead.
Algonquin tried to turn the tide, keeping possession in Weymouth’s half, but were unable to break through as Weymouth forced a turnover and Michael Mastrocola blew past the Algonquin left wing for the score. In stoppage time, Weymouth again endured a sustained Algonquin attack, forced a turnover, and saw Savage go 50-plus yards for the score, giving Weymouth a 31-0 lead at the half.
“We preached it all year. Defense is a mindset; it’s effort and it’s want. They wanted it more and they came up as a team and were relentless,” said Casey.
In the second half Savage earned his third try, breaking down the right sideline after an Algonquin turnover. On the ensuing possession, Weymouth’s Ridore received a red card for an illegal dive on Algonquin’s Kaz Conway. Algonquin nabbed their first try following the red card, as Liam Cunniffe punched in the score through the middle while Kyle Colebourn added the conversion kick.
Weymouth refused to let Algonquin build any momentum though. The Wildcats kept possession from Algonquin and Christian Laenen finished the play with a try through the right flank. Seconds later, Ryan Kane blew past the Algonquin defense going 50-plus yards to put Weymouth up 52-7. Two final tries for each side ended the high-scoring affair.