Every division of the Mid-Atlantic took to the rugby pitch on Saturday as a tie, a domination, a last minute comeback, a championship rematch, and a 100-point blowout highlighted week three's action. All four divisions of the men and three divisions of women competed in a total of 36 matches in the region.
The surprise in Men's DI was the Potomac Exiles' 19-19 tie against the Norfolk Blues on the road. After losing both matches last season to the Blues, Potomac jumped up to a 19-5 lead before Norfolk mounted its comeback bid.
"Potomac plays an aggressive game and attempts to get you to play that same style,' Norfolk's Chris Porter said. "The second half we regained our composure and stuck to our plan. We were able to pull the game even with a chance to win it in the end. Jake [Humphrey]'s penalty kick just fell short at the whistle. The boys showed a ton of heart at the end and I am very proud of how they finished the match.'
In Women's DI, Philadelphia ripped off its second straight victory with a dominant, hard-hitting 64-7 home win versus Boston. It was a total team effort as seven players found the tryzone.
"We came out striking from the first minute of the game on Saturday,' captain Becca Fagan stated. "We wanted to shut down any attacks early and fast so we focused on creating a strong defensive front, and then worked to keep the ball in hand as much as possible. Once we dotted down the first try, we knew we had to keep pushing.'
A thriller in Men's DII saw the Richmond Lions come back from a 26-point deficit to beat Raleigh 39-38 on a Geronimo Guzman penalty in the 77th minute. Brandon Granger and Joseph Forkins scored hat tricks in the win, but Guzman got the glory with the game-winner.
"We started chipping away in the second half and the next thing you know, we were down eight with seven minutes left,' Richmond coach Ben Morgan said. "We started building pressure, worked our way down, and scored an unconverted try. We were then down by two, built pressure again, and they got a yellow card. We kicked the penalty and were able to run it out.'
In the rematch of last season's Women's DII Championship, Harrisburg repeated history with a 21-5 defeat of Doylestown. Although the squad is still working out the kinks, Harrisburg coach Scott Stratton was encouraged the play of his impact reserves.
"It was nice to sub in six forwards and not miss a beat,' Stratton said. "To be able to continue what we were doing with the bench in, it is important if we want to go far in the playoffs and compete on a bigger stage. It is big thing to focus on to make sure we are developing all of our players, not just the starting 15. That is our biggest accomplishment of the last two games.'
Lastly, in Women's DIII, the South Jersey Devils reached the century mark against Lehigh Valley. Eighteen tries were dotted down in the 100-0 win with Jenelle Fuller leading the way with six.
Weekend Results:
| HOME | SCORE | AWAY | SCORE | DIVISION |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh Harlequins | 36 | Schuylkill River Exiles | 15 | Men - DI |
| Norfolk Blues | 19 | Potomac Exiles | 19 | Men - DI |
| Washington Irish | 33 | Northern Virginia Rugby | 15 | Men - DI |
| Phoenixville White Horse | 13 | North Penn Rugby | 12 | Men - DII-North |
| South Jersey Devils | 29 | Doylestown Dragons | 47 | Men - DII-North |
| Old Gaelic Rugby | 60 | Lehigh Valley Hooligans | 20 | Men - DII-North |
| Wilmington Rugby | 30 | Lancaster Roses | 37 | Men - DII-North |
| Virginia Rugby | 40 | Washington Rugby | 15 | Men - DII-South |
| Raleigh Vipers | 38 | Richmond Lions | 39 | Men - DII-South |
| Severn River Rugby | 47 | Frederick Rugby | 10 | Men - DIII-Central |
| Virginia Griffins | 24 | Rocky Gorge Rugby D3 | 50 | Men - DIII-Central |
| West Potomac Beavers | 26 | Washington Renegades | 19 | Men - DIII-Central |
| Washington Irish D3 | 26 | Northern Virginia Rugby D3 | 33 | Men - DIII-Central |
| Hibernians Rugby | 10 | Media Rugby | 27 | Men - DIII-North |
| Harrisburg Rugby | 15 | Wilkes-Barre Scranton Breakers | 55 | Men - DIII-North |
| Happy Valley Barbarians | 10 | Reading Rugby | 78 | Men - DIII-North |
| Jersey Shore Sharks | 57 | Philadelphia Gryphons | 7 | Men - DIII-North |
| Schuylkill River Exiles D3 | 0 | Northeast Philadelphia Irish | 67 | Men - DIII-North |
| Delmarva Rugby | 10 | Brandywine Rugby | 38 | Men - DIII-North |
| Norfolk Blues D3 | 0 | Virginia Beach Falcons | 40 | Men - DIII-South |
| Rappahannock Rugby | 42 | Newport News Mariners | 47 | Men - DIII-South |
| Blackwater Rugby | 17 | Blacksburg Rugby | 7 | Men - DIII-South |
| Rocktown Rugby | 17 | Roanoke Rugby | 46 | Men - DIII-South |
| Patuxent River Rugby | 5 | Washington Renegades D4 | 20 | Men - DIV |
| Prince William County Rugby | 56 | North Bay Rugby D4 | 22 | Men - DIV |
| Phoenixville White Horse | 75 | Washington Scandals | 0 | Men - DIV |
| Western Suburbs Rugby D4 | 67 | Baltimore Flamingos | 10 | Men - DIV |
| Philadelphia Rugby | 64 | Boston Rugby | 7 | Women - DI-East |
| Harrisburg Rugby | 21 | Doylestown Dragons | 5 | Women - DII-North |
| Phoenixville White Horse | 62 | Brandywine Riot | 26 | Women - DII-North |
| Severn River Rugby | 50 | Chesapeake Rugby | 24 | Women - DII-South |
| Norfolk Storm | 67 | D.C. Furies D2 | 5 | Women - DII-South |
| Philadelphia Rugby D3 | 35 | York & Lancaster Thorns | 33 | Women - DIII-North |
| Lehigh Valley Rugby | 0 | South Jersey Devils | 100 | Women - DIII-North |
| Patuxent River Rugby | Forfeit | Frederick Rugby | Win | Women - DIII-South |
| Rappahannock Rugby | 19 | Maryland Stingers | 38 | Women - DIII-South |
