NORTH CANTON, Ohio — How on earth can a brand new rugby team find themselves ranked #1 nationally before ever playing a game?
At Walsh University, the makeup of their men's rugby roster looks eerily similar to the national championship-winning program at the now-shuttered Notre Dame College.
In April, the majority of the men's and women's rugby teams at NDC agreed to transfer to Walsh University following their school's closure, with 43 men players and 22 women making the move, along with several coaches.
RELATED: Notre Dame College rugby teams finds new home at Walsh University
On Friday, the men's team debuted at Walsh University with a 62-10 win over Thomas More University.
How we got here
Believe it or not, Northeast Ohio is home to some of the best rugby players in the country, with alumni participating at the Olympics and the highest levels internationally.
At Notre Dame College, home to about 1,500 students, players recruited from all over the globe descended on South Euclid, Ohio, for a chance to compete at the highest level.
"It’s a brotherhood," Asher Hannon from Murietta, California, explained.
"Rugby is my life," Lachlan McDonald from Brisbane, Australia added. "We're such a close knit group of boys and built a strong culture."
The men's team has won the National Collegiate Rugby Division I National Championship twice, in 2023 and 2016.
The women's rugby team isn't bad either, with two-time national champion runners-up.
Notre Dame College have unveiled their 2023 DI National Championship banner 🏆 pic.twitter.com/1YrrHxee0F
— National Collegiate Rugby (@ncrrugby) February 22, 2024
While both teams shined past the shadows of their compact campus, the tune changed.
On Feb. 29, the Notre Dame College Board of Trustees announced the school would close at the conclusion of the spring semester.
"Like many small higher education institutions across the country, NDC has faced long-standing challenges related to declining enrollment, a shrinking pool of college-aged students, rising costs and significant debt," a release said.
That prompted rugby players to wonder what's next for their program.
"It was just hard to believe," then-sophomore Avery Bruzda said. "Last season being a falcon, it’s kind of sad."
"Coming off a national championship season and then finding out this news, it’s a bit tough," McDonald added.
In the following days, players and coaches would meet to discuss their options as some started fielding offers from other colleges and universities.
That’s when Notre Dame College Rugby Director Jason Fox came up with a new strategy: asking around to see if anybody wanted a top-notch women's and men’s rugby team.
Enter Walsh University
Fox told News 5 that while the team planned to meet with several colleges, the decision was made pretty quickly after their first visit, which involved a chartered bus trip to Walsh University's North Canton campus, which is about 50 miles south of Notre Dame College.
"Some of the team leaders stood up and said, 'Coach we don't want to muddy the waters, we found a home,'" Fox said. "I got off the bus and told the [Walsh University] President, 'I think you have a national championship rugby team.'"
"Rugby was not something we thought about," Dr. Tim Collins, President at Walsh University, chuckled. "We weren’t even looking at this as an emerging sport. They gave us a chance to let them look at us. The college they came from is similar to where they're at now, and they knew we were a place focused on people who will serve others."
Walsh University welcomed 103 students from the now-closed Notre Dame College this fall, making it their largest incoming undergraduate class in a decade.
"It’s unreal, I didn't think we’d get here and it’s definitely a story that will be written in books some day," Hannon said. "It’s still family, everyone’s here."
On Saturday, the women's team opened up their season in Athens with a 46-10 win over Ohio University.
"The fact everyone is willing to go together, after I heard that I didn’t need to be convinced," senior Abigail Dickerson said. "It's one last chance to play with my girls on the team."
Now, both the men's and women's teams are hoping to recapture the sustained success they saw in South Euclid.
"I think we have all the right pieces in place," Fox said.
"It takes courage in the fact that when you have a team, they can stick together through it all," McDonald said.
Clay LePard is a special projects reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow him on Twitter @ClayLePard or on Facebook Clay LePard News 5.
News 5 appreciates National Collegiate Rugby and Jack Nece Photography for the footage and images provided to News 5 for this story.
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