Girls Midwest Championship Scores

-----Opening Ceremonies 4/30/11-----

Midwest Girls High School Championships 2011

Sunday 5/1/11
Championship DSHA 36 Lakewood 5
3rd Place Fox Chapel 0 Kettle Moraine 24
5th Place St Joseph’s 5 Armstrong 0
7th Columbus 15 Traverse City 0

Second Division:
Catholic Memorial 10 Brookfield 0

Saturday 4/30/11
Quarterfinals:
DSHA 36 St Joseph’s 0
Fox Chapel 5 Columbus 5
Lakewood 32 Armstrong 5
KM 27 Traverse City 5

Semifinals
DSHA 42 Fox Chapel 0
Lakewood 32 Kettle Moraine 7
Consolation Bracket:
St Joseph’s 48 Columbus 0
Armstrong 10 Traverse City 10

Division Two:

Quarterfinals
Catholic Memorial 55 Carmel 5

Brookfield 22 South Bend 0

Semifinals
Catholic Memorial 62 Plainfield 0
Brookfield 51 Penn HS 0

DSHA, Lakewood, KM, Fox Chapel, St Joseph's, Armstrong, Columbus, Traverse City

Midwest Championships 2011

This weekend, four Wisconsin teams converge on the Midwest Championships. With nineteen different programs and twenty-four sides represented in three different divisions, including five b-sides, this event has become probably the largest and most competitive girls rugby event in the country. Six different state champions will be represented in a unique regional championship. Established in 1999, the Midwest will crown its 13th Regional Champion. With six different teams currently listed in Rugby Magazine’s top twenty in the country, and several more who could stake a claim to consideration, the brackets are as stacked as they’ve ever been.

The top two brackets feature several great matchups. In particular, if #6 Lakewood and #7 Kettle Moraine manage to advance, and that’s by no means a given, they are poised for an epic semi-final clash of two talented programs with high aspirations.

Midwest Championships 2011
Carmel, Indiana
Division I Championship
DSHA HS v Traverse City
Columbus v Fox Chapel
Kettle Moraine v Armstrong
Rockford v Lakewood
Blue Championship Bracket
Brookfield v Carmel
Lakeview v Plainview
Catholic Memorial HS v Livingston
Penn HS v St Joseph’s Academy

Wisconsin Growth Part iii: The Positive

The Positive

WGR’s first two installments examined Wisconsin’s rugby growth in terms of numbers of teams and players. The third and final part to our year-end-review looks at indications of excellence and the relative stability or strength of programs. Wisconsin Girls rugby and the Midwest in general is growing stronger and more stable than a decade ago:

(Picture courtesy of Ric Benavides. DSHA offloads in the 2010 final vs KM 2010)

-Every girls team in division one played second side matches. That’s a lot of young ladies getting the opportunity to play and learn on a regular basis. Kids stay involved when they play games and contribute.
-Girls teams get game and playoff experience each week. Each division one team played nine weekends of matches in the Fall. Playoff teams continue to play, even after a loss, to determine their final ranking and possible qualification for Midwest or for promotion/relegation. There were zero match cancellations in division one this Fall. Playing a Fall Conference season with its manageable weather helps in this regard. Couple that with eight or so weekends in the spring and young players are getting the opportunity to play on a regular basis. A decade ago it was difficult to find matches; they tended to be against the same two or three teams over and over again.

-The competitive success of these girls teams is remarkable.
-Wisconsin has had five different teams qualify and compete at the National Championship: DSHA, Northshore, Kettle Moraine, Vernon, and Brookfield.
-Of the thirteen Midwest championships, Wisconsin has won twelve and placed a second team 2nd or 3rd on seven occasions.

-The Midwest High School Girls Championships is an impressive event. Teams from seven states compete in three divisions of play. 24 girls sides competed in 2010. This event has improved the level of play for MW girls teams by providing serious incentive to compete at higher levels, against different regions. The event is well-run by dedicated volunteers in Carmel, Indiana, who continually impress parents, players, and supporters with the event.

-There isn’t another girls championship event of this size in the country. The Midwest has 81 girls teams. The Northeast is the next closest territory at 37. Overall, girls teams have more than doubled in the last five years, from 121 to 243. The results of this growth can be seen in the competitiveness and increasing athleticism in good teams. DSHA has acknowledged on more than one occasion that the challenge the MW Championship provides is part of the reason they find so much success at Nationals ---- they often have to defeat three state champions just to advance.

-The runner-up from the Midwest has finished in the top three at Nationals on nine occasions, out of eleven championships. Seven times a Wisconsin team has been the Midwest runner up and finished in the top three. These teams are competitive at the highest levels.

-DSHA’s success is unparalleled, both in height and longevity: Six National Championships and twice runner up since the championship was first held in 2000; Twelve Midwest Championships, and a seven-year unbeaten run.

-Division I and II works. Dividing teams by program size and development level helped these newer teams find some success, while also providing competition. The scores of teams playing in their own division showed that each week was competitive. There weren’t any 100-0 matches, which isn’t healthy for either side involved. The semi-finals were more competitive than the finals of year’s past.