With endless concussions and other injuries to key varsity players, the rugby program has suffered its share of losses this year.

The varsity squad with a 1-5 record this season has lost eight returning starters this year.  Six players are not playing due to injury while two have made college commitments preventing them from playing.

“It’s been a tough season for us this year.  We were very unlucky in having starters miss some or all of the season due to injury,” senior and varsity co-captain Matthew Crane said.

Due to a shortage of players, the varsity squad has had to play with JV players in multiple games.

“At the beginning of the season we had exactly enough to field two squads, but the number has diminished through the season. At the last couple away matches, we haven’t even had a JV game,” assistant coach and English teacher Eric Sutton said.

Though the program has had several setbacks this season, the varsity team beat its rival, Calvert Hall.

“It was definitely positive that we were able to beat Calvert Hall with a depleted roster,” Sutton said.

The win has also given the team a boost of confidence and optimism, staying positive about the remaining three games in the season against North Bay, Archbishop Spalding and Loyola.

“My expectation is that we will win our last three games,” Crane said.

“We played two scrimmages in the beginning of the season against club teams and beat both of them, so we’re pretty confident we can beat North Bay,” Sutton said.

Taylor Schafer is the lifestyle editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com