UNLV Rugby Kicks Off 2015 Season
The UNLV Rugby Football Club kicks off their 2015 collegiate season this Friday, January 30 at 2:00pm against the defending national champions BYU in Mesquite, Nevada as part of the Red Rock Invitational (Pictured: UNLV Rugby Scrum (Black) against Dixie State Preseason Game).
For the first time, UNLV Rugby will be entered into Division 1AA competition as part of the Utah Collegiate Rugby Conference governed by USA Rugby. UNLV will be the only team from the state of Nevada in the conference and will play against other collegiate teams including BYU, Utah State, Dixie State, and more.
While rugby at UNLV has a long history, it was only recently the club decided to refocus its’ efforts into becoming one of the premier collegiate teams in the United States. “Rugby at UNLV has been an official sports club since May of 2014,” said Robert Moynahan, a sophomore at UNLV and current team President. “We’ve really excelled since then, winning multiple (preseason) games before our first regular season.”
UNLV Rugby is head coached by Vaha ‘Esikia, a former member of the 2007 USA Eagles World Cup Team and current founder of the Las Vegas Rugby Academy.
“We’re really lucky to have the coaches we have and our team has the opportunity to compete with the defending three time national champions BYU this Friday” said Moynahan.
UNLV Rugby is a student run sports club featuring athletes that are full time UNLV students. Anyone interested in playing rugby for UNLV can fill out the contact form at UNLVRugby.com or come to a practice. UNLV Rugby practices every Tuesday and Thursday from 7:00pm to 9:00pm at Charlie Frias Park. No experience is necessary. Follow UNLV Rugby on Twitter at @UNLVRugby or Facebook at UNLVRebelsRugby.