BOULDER, Colo. – Greensboro, N.C., will play host to the 2013 USA Rugby College 7s National Championship. The matches will be held at Bryan Park Soccer Complex November 23-24.
Three separate champions will be crowned at this year’s College 7s Championship. In addition to the Men’s DI and Women’s pools, there will be a Men’s Open Division champion with schools representing the Division II and Small Colleges ranks. To date, six teams have qualified for the National Tournament, with 20 regional qualifying tournaments yet to be played.
Last year’s Men’s DI champion Arkansas State beat 2011 College 7s Champion Life University in the Final. Each school will be expected to be among the favorites if they qualify for the 2013 Championship. As for the women’s field, 2012-2013 Division I National Champion Penn State and Division II National Champions Washington State will be vying for a spot in this year’s Sevens Championship, along with other highly touted women’s programs.
Teams will qualify for the College 7s Championship by either winning an automatic qualifying tournament or by earning an at-large selection determined by the Collegiate Championship Committee. In all, 48 schools and over 600 college student-athletes will be playing for the title of 2013 College Sevens Champion.
More than 25 qualifying events will be held throughout the country in 14 different states leading up to the College 7s National Championship. The number of qualifying tournaments, their locations and teams competing are decided by the individual college rugby conferences and tournament directors. Each tournament must meet basic criteria in order to be granted automatic qualifying status. Men’s DI and Open conference tournaments are permitted automatic qualifying status by confirming a minimum of seven different teams within the same conference. Non-conference tournaments must commit at least eight USA Rugby-eligible teams to be awarded automatic qualifying status. On the women’s side, at least four different USA Rugby-eligible schools must compete to be considered a qualifying event.
All matches will be streamed live and can be viewed at USA Rugby TV. Select matches from the second day of the tournament will also be streamed live on ESPN3.
Here is the current list of college sevens qualifying tournaments:
Men’s Division I
Allied Rugby Conference
Cougar 7s
Southwest Conference
Heart of America
West Coast 7s
Northwest Collegiate Rugby Conference
Atlantic Coast Rugby League
South Independent
Rocky Mountain West 7s
PAC 7s
Ivy League
Pacific Western 7s
California 7s
Southeastern 7s
Battle in the Bay
California State University Championship
Women’s Division I
NOVA Collegiate 7s
Big Ten 7s
Stanford Invitational
South Independent Rugby Conference
Ivy League
Southwest Women’s Conference
Oregon State 7s
Men’s Open Division
Battle for Atlanta
Northern California 7s
Gateway
New England Collegiate 7s
Cardinal 7s
Several qualifying tournaments are still accepting additional teams for participation and other conferences are still in the organizational phases of their tournaments. Check the list of college 7s tournaments for more information.
To apply for an at-large selection for the 2013 College 7s National Championship – to be reviewed by the Collegiate Championship Committee please download the Application for Consideration document here.
About USA Rugby
Established in 1975, USA Rugby is the governing body for the sport of rugby in America and a Full Sport Member of the United States Olympic Committee. Currently headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, USA Rugby is charged with developing the game on all levels and has over 115,000 active members. USA Rugby oversees four national teams, multiple collegiate and high school All-American sides, and an emerging Olympic development pathway for elite athletes. It also hosts over 30 national playoff and championship events every year as a service to its members. In October 2009, the International Olympic Committee announced that Rugby Sevens (the seven-a-side version of the game) will appear in the 2016 Olympic Games to be held in Rio de Janeiro. Visit www.usarugby.org for more information.
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