It was a busy weekend for Kenmore Rugby, as all 4 of our teams were in action. On Saturday, the middle schoolers traveled to Fairport for Round 2 of Middle School 7s. On Sunday, the high school girls celebrated senior day before a showdown with Syracuse. Across town, the high school boys faced off against McQuaid and Fairport for the first league matches of their season.
It was a day of growth for the middle schoolers, who continue to develop their game and are seeing the results on the field. The boys went undefeated on the day with a record of 2-1-0, defeating Fairport and Grand Island, while drawing with Syracuse. Sean Krawczyk led the way with five tries, Lucas Melish-Rinne added two, and Randy Schaus scored once. The girls team lost their opener against City Honors, before teaming up with them to take on Fairport and Corning twice each. They finished the day with a 3-0-2 record, sweeping Corning and splitting with Fairport. Natalie Marzullo logged four tries, and Briella Macleod added two more. The 5th and 6th grade boys team dropped both their matches, but showed improvement with each passing minute. Zeke Schutt and Lucas Melish-Rinne each scored once.
"I think it was awesome for these kids to see the fruits of their labor. They've been grinding at practice, and so for them to see positive results and get some wins, that's really fun for them." - Kenmore Rugby MS Head Coach John Bressette
Before taking on Syracuse, the high school girls celebrated our seniors. Emily Pytlewski, Karli Schmitt, and Rosie Miller have been standouts for the team. Each of them brings a different element to the game, and we proudly recognized each of them before the match. It was clear the day had the girls amped up, as they rolled to three straight victories over Syracuse. The offensive outburst was led by the seniors, as Miller scored eight tries, Pytlewski scored three, and Schmitt added two scores and six conversions. Also scoring for Kenmore were Maddie O'Malley (three tries), Maddy Greene (one try), Aislyn O'Malley (one try) and Sophia Guarino (one try).
"Though these three are all seniors they have varying experience levels. Emily started back in 2021 when we got the team started post-pandemic, Karli joined the next year in 2022 and Rosie joined just this past year, but all 3 of them are leaders on this team. Whether it’s breaking tackles, making tackles or using their voices they all really stand out. They will be missed! " - Kenmore Rugby HS Girls Head Coach Rachel Noone
The high school boys opened their league season with pod matches against McQuaid and Fairport. It was a rough day on the scoreboard, as the lost both of their matches. However, it was far from a bad day, as several players had standout performances. Aidan O'Malley scored for Kenmore, Shaw Freeman and Nathan Wells played exceptionally, and Jacob Nice and Emerson Stinner were awarded Man of the Match.
The boys will look to build on their performances as they take on Corning and Syracuse on Saturday. On Sunday, the middle school teams will head to Corning for round 3 of Middle School 7s. The girls will enjoy a bye week before returning to action on Sunday, May 19th.
Founded in 2004, the Kenmore Rugby Club is WNY's oldest and largest youth & high school rugby club with over 100 active players in grades K-12.