Wabash Rugby celebrates 50 years as a club sport this season and brought the first half of the season to a successful conclusion with a 3-0 record in the tournament held on campus last Saturday at Little Giant Stadium.
The wins end the first half of the season, which will pick up again in early February of next year as the squad tries to qualify for the nationals. They last qualified in 2023, and went on to finish third in the nation. They like to mention that they had the most team wins of any sport on campus last school year.
Rugby is not a sanctioned sport by the NCAA, and is funded entirely by the Student Senate and from alumni donations. Just like any Wabash anything, they have a loyal base of alums going back through the years.
They have seen success, like the third place finish in the Nationals. They beat Michigan State in a tournament in 2025, defeated IU Mud Sharks, Purdue and almost beat UW Eau Claire who went on to win nationals at Irish 7’s in the spring of ’25.
“That match against the Irish got us back on the national radar,” noted Head Coach Kelly Romano.
The Little Giants sport a 32-6 record under Romano since she took the volunteer reins in the fall of 2024.
She teaches blind students in the Carmel school district, and comes to Crawfordsville twice a week for practice. She has played internationally as a college student and is also a coach in Indy for the playoff-bound Circle City Tempest. She is assisted by Matthew Brooks, who played for her and now coaches with her.
“We’ve been successful, but we have also been safe,” she emphasized. “We have had zero concussions and zero career-ending injuries. We have 26 players this year, and a lot of new guys, and keeping they safe is first. They are Wabash Men, and they all have incredibly bright futures in front of them.”
With no head gear and no other protective equipment, the coaches spend a lot of practice time teaching the guys how to tackle safely, how to take a tackle and how to land.
But that doesn’t take anything away from the brute force that is rugby, where it’s 7-on-7 or 15-on-15 guys literally trying to move a large pile of humanity towards the opponent goal line.
The ball, similarly shaped but much rounder on the end than a football, rolls better and doesn’t take the crazy bounces that a football does.
The objective is to move the ball down the field, but the team cannot pass the ball forward at all. To avoid being tackled, the ball gets lateraled backwards.
Silas Mills, President of the Wabash Rugby Club, explained.
“Rugby looks chaotic and unruly, but is actually quite simple when you understand what is occurring,” he said. “Each team is attempting to score in the other team’s end goal, and that occurs when the scoring team touches the ball down, scoring a try for 5 points. Following that, the scoring team can kick a conversion for 2 points.”
“Passes can only be made backwards, but kicks can be forward at any time,” he continued. “Matches generally last 14 minutes for seven-man rugby and 80 minutes for 15-man rugby. Penalties occur for various reasons, and the other team earns possession when those occur.”
The squad hosted the tournament last Saturday, which was preceded Friday by a jersey ceremony.
“At the Jersey Ceremony,” Mills said, “we pass down jersey numbers and tell about the guy who wore it last. It is a great way to carry on tradition. The guy who wore the old jersey will send the new wearer a video telling about their time with the team.”
That ceremony, like any match or tournament, is accompanied by a great deal of socializing. The bond of rugby players is tight and intense. They can safely be known as the original tailgaters.
Adam Frey is one of the two team captains, along with Nate Powell.
“Rugby is probably my favorite thing on the planet,” Frey said. “These guys are my rugby brothers. We make each other better. The level of trust we have to have with each other on the field is like nothing anywhere. We hang out away from rugby, and these guys have become lifelong friends.”
Like most of the team, Powell played some rugby in high school, but has sought out the sport in college.
“It’s all about making your jersey better,” he said. “Whether you play five minutes or 29 matches, you want to make that jersey better than it was. Rugby is a culture, and we are members of the brotherhood, here to support and protect our friends.” Rugby fever never goes away.”
The fever was spot-on Saturday with the three wins.
In Match 1, it was Wabash with a 19-5 win.
“Kyrece Rhoades and Brock Frazier, who are both rookies, scored their first trys,” Roman said. “Daniel Shaw scored as well.”
In Match 2, it was Wabash again with a 22-5 win.
“The first try was run in by Isaac Ward and he passed to Robbie Franklin for the first try,” Romano reported. “Robbie is also a rookie and scored twice more before rolling his ankle. Nate Powell scored the 4th try.”
The sweep was completed with a Wabash 22-5 win in Match 3.
“Rookies Leo Brown and Cruz Rojas scored their first try,” Romano said. “Senior Ashton Jonas also scored twice.”
Saturday’s tournament only ended the first matches of the school year. Conditioning and more practice is never-ending.
“Rugby is a continuous sport,” Romano continued. “There are no set plays so communication is so important, and trust in your teammates is so important.”
The coach noted a few of those players.
“We have such a wonderful group of guys,” she said. “Guys like Ashton Jonas, Colton Cooper, Carter Ripke, Logan Weinzierl, Ryland Whitacre and Michael Sisk, among others. They are the guys who make Wabash Rugby so great.”
“I am so unbelievably grateful to share my love of the sport with these incredible humans,” she continued. “Everyone is such an important part of the team. They are some of the smartest, most stand-up guys you will ever meet. They make my heart soar to see all the things they do on and off the pitch. I am truly blessed – truly.”
Wabash Rugby, 50 years and going strong.
