Wayne State College Rugby teams hosted their annual series of first games called “Rookie Rumble- Vets Fumble” and the wins and excitement over the event hosted by both the men’s and women’s teams left freshmen, upperclassmen and coaches grinning.

“We have had Rookie Rumble for 17 years now,” head coach Darrin Barner said. “The main purpose is to get those new players lots of playing time so their family can see them play, and it lets the older players get the rust out.”

The women’s team started out the day with an educational rugby camp presented by the Prairie States Conference from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and finished the day off with a win against the Prairie States U24 Select Side team with a final score of 55-5.

The men’s team played a total of three games walking away with two wins and one loss. The final scores of the wins were WSC against UNL 35-7 and WSC against Creighton 35-7. The loss was a very tight game against a combined All-Star team with a final score of 19-20.

With a day full of hard-fought rugby games, the teams walked away with more knowledge to further the rest of the season.

“I was very impressed with the aggressiveness from both the men and women freshman players,” Barner said. “Many of those freshman players have only had eight or nine practices and it was amazing how well they took to the open game and showed their talents. I simply love the smiles on freshman faces after their first game, they come out of the weekend understanding the game, and also have the passion of our program.”