{"id":799326,"date":"2019-09-10T18:16:01","date_gmt":"2019-09-11T00:16:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/?p=371350"},"modified":"2019-09-10T18:16:01","modified_gmt":"2019-09-11T00:16:01","slug":"summit-girls-rugby-surfs-eye-of-the-hurricane-en-route-to-summit-7s-championship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/local-news\/summit-girls-rugby-surfs-eye-of-the-hurricane-en-route-to-summit-7s-championship\/","title":{"rendered":"Summit girls rugby surfs \u2018eye of the hurricane\u2019 en route to Summit 7s championship"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Summit’s Brielle Quigley takes down a Fort Collins player at the Summit 7s rugby tournament Saturday, Sept. 7, at Tiger Field in Breckenridge. Summit defeated Fort Collins, 38-5 to open up their championship run.<\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

FRISCO \u2014 Head coach Karl Barth said the Summit High School Tigers girls rugby program often talks about a concept called the \u201ceye of the hurricane.\u201d The idea is that the Tigers play in a high-speed fashion that creates a devastating pace for their opponents.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut we are settled right inside of that, just being real calm,\u201d Barth said. \u201cAnd I thought they did a real good job of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Barth was alluding to the triumph of the Tigers top rugby sevens team Saturday at the annual Summit 7s rugby tournament. At Tiger Stadium in Breckenridge, Summit marched its way through pool play before knocking off elite rival United Girls Rugby Club of Utah. <\/p>\n

Summit defeated United in a nightcap at Tiger Stadium that Barth described as \u201celectric\u201d with the two sides battling it out until the final whistle.<\/p>\n

The championship match began with a try and conversion for a 7-0 lead after United used its physicality to barrel in for a score in the early going. The Tigers responded when speedy junior Kily Hess broke free for a long run. The drive was eventually capped by a score by Tigers senior PK Vincze, but a failed conversion attempt by senior leader Nicole Kimball left the Tigers down, 7-5.<\/p>\n

After back-and-forth action to begin the second half, Kimball responded, making a break on the outside to put United on its heels. When United\u2019s sweeper decided to crash out on Kimball, the senior passed the ball back inside to Hess, who jetted under the post for another score and the eventual final winning margin of 12-7, following a successful Kimball conversion.<\/p>\n

Reflecting on the victory Tuesday morning, Barth said he was elated at the rugby IQ and the tenacity the Tigers exuded throughout the day Saturday, particularly during that nerve-wracking nightcap. He pointed at first-year, top-team players Brielle Quigley and Bryton Ferrari, a pair of speedy players at scrumhalf and flyhalf, who exuded focus and confidence as lynchpins of the Tigers attack.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are not that big, but they bring ferocity to the game,\u201d Barth said. \u201cThey come in there and think they are the biggest kid in there and they are going to knock everyone out, even if it doesn\u2019t always work.\u201d<\/p>\n

In that spirit and style, Summit\u2019s top sevens side responded at the outset of Saturday\u2019s action after Fort Collins scored in the first game\u2019s opening moments. Barth said the team played well after that wake-up call, countering right away with a long run to tie the contest, which eventually ended with Summit on top, 38-5.<\/p>\n

As the day played out, the Tigers also had what Barth said might have been their most impressive result of the day: a shutout of eventual third-place finisher Wasatch High School from Utah, 33-0. Also en route to the final, Summit defeated Monarch, which they took on in last fall\u2019s Colorado state championship. Barth said the team rose to the challenge of Monarch\u2019s physicality, controlling the feel of the game, ultimately winning 26-7 to book that date in the final with the tournament\u2019s only other undefeated side, United.<\/p>\n

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