Four games were decided by fewer than three points and there were precious few runaways in a hugely competitive opening day of the 2018 Boys High School Rugby National Championships on Thursday at Swope Soccer Village in Kansas City, MO.

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Single-School Bracket

Three of the four quarterfinals in the single-school division saw significant stretches in which one team pulled away from the other—the exception was one nip-and-tuck thriller that proved to be a battle until the end.

As a result, the bracket is set for a couple of cross-country semifinals on Friday, with Xavier from New York drawing Herriman from Utah and Gonzaga from D.C. getting Jesuit from California.

In Thursday's first game, Gonzaga got on top of Greenwich (CT) early and didn’t look back en route to a 36-17 win. The Cardinals kept it competitive in the first half, conceding just a two-try lead at halftime in trailing 15-5. But they never got any closer than two scores. It was a similar story in Jesuit’s 38-14 defeat of Fishers (IN).

(Photos by David Hughes)

The Marauders and Tigers swapped scores early, then Jesuit reeled off 19 straight points to close the door. Vili Hopoi, Max Schumacher, Max Sackett, Ben Skinner, and Carson Harthun all dotted down for Jesuit. Hilton Mambo and Isaiah Dunnuck crossed over for Fishers.

Meanwhile, the quarterfinal between Penn (IN) and Herriman witnessed the Utah-based Mustangs outlast the Hoosier State natives for a 19-17 victory. Herriman standout flyhalf Maea Leakehe got things started with a try he’d convert himself. Then Penn hooker Gabe Yeoman dotted down to level the table before back-to-back scores from Colin Wilson and Peni Vakalahe pushed the team's lead to 17-7. But Herriman wasn’t done, reeling off successive tries by Morris Mclane and Sterling Burr to round it out, with the winning conversion coming off Leakehe’s tee.

Single-School Scores
QF: Gonzaga 36, Greenwich 17
QF: Jesuit 38, Fishers 14
QF: Herriman 19, Penn 17
QF: Xavier 36, St. Edward 17

Friday's Matchups
SF: Gonzaga vs. Jesuit
SF: Herriman vs. Xavier
Cons. SF: Greenwich vs. Fishers
Cons. SF: Penn vs. St. Edward

HS Club

Two of the club quarterfinals ended with huge point totals, with Danville (CA) stacking 52 points on South Bay (CA) in a 52-21 victory and the defending champion Royal Irish (IN) separating from the host Jr. Blues (MO) in the second half to win 29-7. 

The Danville Oaks looked impressive in their win but weren’t impenetrable, as they leaked a few tries and were under threat until a string of late scores put the game out of reach. Standing out for Danville were center Jason Severance (despite a yellow card), No. 8 Luke Freeman, and hard-hitting openside flanker Nick Cox. South Bay was bolstered by the performances of fullback Denaylan Fuimaono, who was very elusive; No. 8 Mava Roberts; and powerful prop Aizak Fido.

Luke Ogburn and Luke Freeman break down Danville's win:

The meeting between Granite Bay (CA) and United (Utah) was much more competitive. Granite Bay got up early and seemed to think it had put the quarterfinal away, but United stormed back to make a game of it. Ultimately, the Californians were too good, thanks in large part to a very potent backline.

While Fort Hunt (VA) eventually won by a 43-15 margin over the Irvine Rhinos (CA), their matchup was a tale of two halves. The Rhinos kept it close, imposing their physicality early. But their fitness let them down in the second half, as last year’s runner-up reeled off five consecutive tries to make it a rout.

Club Scores
QF: Danville 52, South Bay 21
QF: Granite Bay 21, United 19
QF: Royal Irish 29, Jr. Blues 7
QF: Fort Hunt 43, Rhinos 15

Friday's Matchups
SF: Danville vs. Granite Bay
SF: Royal Irish vs. Fort Hunt
Cons. SF: South Bay vs. United
Cons. SF: Jr. Blues vs. Rhinos

Tier II

In Tier II, Wando (SC) did superbly to get past home team St. Thomas Aquinas (KS), eking out a tight one for a 15-14 win. It was also close between Aspetuck (CT) and Phoenix Alpharetta (GA), with the Connecticut team getting through by a point, 28-27. The San Diego Mustangs came in with something to prove and did so in a 38-7 victory over Union (NJ). The same can be said of the Washington-based Eastside Lions, who beat Brownsburg (IN) by an impressive 37-13 margin.

Tier II Scores
QF: Eastside 37, Brownsburg 13
QF: Aspetuck 28, Phoenix Alpharetta 27
QF: Wando 15, St. Thomas Aquinas 14
QF: S.D. Mustangs 38, Union 7

Friday's Matchups
SF: Eastside vs. Aspetuck
SF: Wando vs. S.D. Mustangs
Cons. SF: Brownsburg vs. Phoenix
Cons. SF: Aquinas vs. Union