Cal Maritime rugby 7s enjoy Elite Eight run; Jonah Wolfe named to All-Tournament Team

NEW ORLEANS – Cal Maritime's rugby 7s club team enjoyed a deep postseason run when it visited New Orleans to compete for a national championship during Memorial Day weekend. Commonly referred to as May Madness, the Keelhaulers earned their berth at the country's largest collegiate tournament last month thanks to victories against Pacific, Stanford, UC Santa Cruz before defeating New Mexico Tech in the championship game of the Boise State qualifier and winning that event.

When the team arrived to Shrine on Airline Stadium, the home of Major League Rugby's NOLA Gold, it competed within the Men's Premier Division — a group of 32 elite programs from across the nation.

In its opening match of the national tournament, Cal Maritime defeated Minnesota, 24-12, and earned the right to face Mount St. Mary's, the top-seeded team in its bracket the following day.

When action resumed, the Keelhaulers enjoyed one of the finest performances of the tournament by securing a 31-26 victory, punching their ticket to the Elite Eight in the process. Later that afternoon, Cal Maritime squared off against an Iona squad coming off an upset of its own after sliding past Army by a single point a few hours prior.

With a berth in the semifinals on the line, every Keelhauler turned in a phenomenal performance against the Gaels. However, a late controversial call ended up being the difference in that matchup as the Keelhaulers' championship run ended with a 26-20 loss.

Even through Cal Maritime's weekend ended with losses on Monday against a pair of Big 10 schools — Indiana and Penn State — May Madness 7s officials bestowed All-Tournament Team distinction to Jonah Wolfe, one of only seven competitors to receive this honor.

Representing the Keelhaulers throughout this unforgettable opportunity to battle rugby's blue bloods were seniors Josh Bates, Nate Bond, Andrew Cavinta, JJ Graves, Jacob Jenkins, Jacob Pina, Wolfe, junior Jerry McLarnon, freshmen Gavin Murray, Ryan Packard, Wilson Urkov, and Larry Ward III.