{"id":801212,"date":"2019-11-10T20:00:45","date_gmt":"2019-11-11T03:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/?p=374325"},"modified":"2019-11-10T20:00:45","modified_gmt":"2019-11-11T03:00:45","slug":"dandy-dozen-summit-girls-rugby-wins-12th-straight-state-title","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/local-news\/dandy-dozen-summit-girls-rugby-wins-12th-straight-state-title\/","title":{"rendered":"Dandy dozen: Summit girls rugby wins 12th straight state title"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Lily Hess and Olyvia Snyder scramble for the ball as the Tigers take on the Valley Valkyries in the State Rugby Championships at Garry Berry Stadium in Colorado Springs on Sunday, Nov. 10.<\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

COLORADO SPRINGS \u2014 For Summit High girls rugby head coach Karl Barth, the final state-championship game of the season served as the perfect microcosm for the 2019 campaign.<\/p>\n

Up against underdog Monarch, Summit was the heavy-favorite. But just minutes into the game, senior center Nicole Kimball \u2014 arguably Summit\u2019s best player \u2014 was lost due to injury on a tough scoring play. In a season ravaged by injuries that included two unexpected losses to Arapahoe and Glenwood Springs, Kimball\u2019s injury was the latest challenge.<\/p>\n

For Barth, the word that comes to mind for this year\u2019s Tiger team is exactly that: \u201cchallenged.\u201d But for Kimball, the word that comes to mind is \u201covercoming.\u201d This year\u2019s Summit team had all of the excuses to not win their 12th consecutive state championship. There were injuries, unexpected losses and an element of finding team chemistry and roles. There was inexperience, lack of size and postponed games. But in the end, the Tigers rose up to the pressure of the legacy of Summit\u2019s history and storied standard, defeating Monarch in the title game 40-0 for 12 in a row.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s overcoming,\u201d Kimball said after the championship win at Garry Berry Stadium in Colorado Springs. \u201c\u2026There was a high pressure on us. But I think we are known for overcoming those losses and working hard and putting our heads down for the rest of the season. And it showed today.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLosing Kimball in the first five minutes and having to play short-handed at the end, it was definitely a big challenge for them,\u201d Barth added. \u201cThey really showed their character.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Tigers cemented yet another championship season on Friday by first avenging a recent loss to Glenwood Springs, defeating the side known as the \u201cValley Valkyries\u201d 29-0. After an extended time away from the pitch due to weather concerns that delayed and relocated the state championship tournament from Boulder to Colorado Springs, Barth felt the Tigers had a good first game playing the aggressive, rush defense the team played in recent weeks. From the get-go, Summit senior leaders PK Vincze and Kimball set the tone as Summit succeeded in playing a more direct attack on a more narrow field. <\/p>\n

The Tigers then took on Monarch in the second game, Summit prevailing 24-0 on the strength of scores from McKenna Orr, Vincze and Kimball, who faked-out Monarch\u2019s defense on some fake pitches to the flank, jetting up the gut of the field for the score a couple of times.<\/p>\n

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LIVE: The Summit High Tigers varsity girls rugby team takes on Fort Collins in their final pool-play game to advance to the title game at Garry Berry Stadium in Colorado Springs to compete for their 12th-straight Rugby Colorado 7s State Championship\u2026<\/p>\n

Posted by Summit Daily News<\/a> on Sunday, November 10, 2019<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

\u201cEarly in the season we moved the ball out wide,\u201d Kimball said, \u201cso that\u2019s how teams trained to defend us. And when there\u2019s the movement, and their shoulders are turned, then they are visualizing (the pass out wide) and if their hips don\u2019t turn then I\u2019ll move the ball out. But if their hips do turn, your hips don\u2019t lie. You can\u2019t move without your hips.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kimball and the Tigers continued to read what the opposition was giving them in their third game of the day, a 33-5 win over Fort Collins. Though Fort Collins broke a run outside to take a 5-0 lead early in the game, Summit scored 33 unanswered points to advance to the final, as Vincze\u2019s dogged play from the prop position helped the Tigers secure possession and set up scores.<\/p>\n

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LIVE: At the Rugby Colorado Girls 7s State Championship, the Summit Tigers go for the program\u2019s 12th-straight title, at Garry Berry Stadium in Colorado Springs, vs. Monarch\u2026<\/p>\n

Posted by Summit Daily News<\/a> on Sunday, November 10, 2019<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

\u201cIf you watch the whole team there\u2019s no real panic,\u201d Barth said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got some real veteran players out there who, also some young players, and obviously PK took some of that (leadership) but I think it was really spread across the whole team.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the championship game against Monarch, despite losing Kimball to injury, the Tigers continued to do what they\u2019d done well all day. Players like Maleena Mero, sophomore Olyvia Snyder and senior Maggie Hoehn filled their roles off the bench. Junior Lily Hess tracked down much bigger plays and laid them out with perfect form tackles. And junior Bryton Ferrai seized each big moment, running over bigger defenders and sprinting to the center of the end one for scores.<\/p>\n

After the Tigers sewed up their 12th title in a row with the 40-0 win over Monarch, Kimball put the final game \u2014 and season \u2014 into perspective. When Ferrari described her championship-clinching scores, the veteran Kimball stopped her in her tracks. There was one word she wanted to add to how Ferrari described those big plays: \u201cConfident.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou were running confidently,\u201d Kimball told Ferrari.<\/p>\n

The junior Ferrari then deflected credit to a Summit senior, Logan Simson. To Barth, Simson and the rest of the Summit seniors led the way in being committed and buying into the brand of aggressive defense he wanted them to play. In the end, she was there, side-by-side on the flank grinding through Monarch tackles to help break Ferrari free.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s what this season was about: Championship-winning experienced seniors like Vincze, Kimball and Simson coming together with younger players like Ferrari, Hess and Snyder to become champions once again.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe definitely had to work for what we had,\u201d Simson said. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t just putting on the Summit jersey and expecting to win, which we kind of thought in the beginning of the season. It was realizing we had to really try some new things and get our heads in the game. And we did that.\u201d<\/p>\n

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