Men’s rugby suffers first loss

The Owls, previously undefeated, lost to the West Chester Rams, 12-10, in the playoff finals.

The Temple men’s rugby team (6-1) experienced its first loss of the season Saturday to the West Chester Golden Rams (5-1) in the Eastern Pennsylvania Rugby Union Finals. The 12-10 loss broke the Owls’ undefeated streak and dropped them to second in the Eastern Pennsylvania Division II rankings.

“It was a disappointing loss, but we have to hold our heads up high for the spring playoffs,” coach John Sciotto said. “We’re in the process of rebuilding the team [after this loss], and it’s a step in the right direction. We’re trying to become one of the rugby powerhouses.”

The Owls put up a fight but were no match for West Chester. The Golden Rams got four penalty kicks in the first half and scored on three of them. The first penalty kick, given in the first eight minutes, ended in a missed kick. The Rams scored on the second one after 19 minutes of play to take a 3-0 lead. West Chester’s lead lit a fire under the Owls, though, and pushed them to score their first try by junior prop David Deming for a 5-3 Temple lead. That didn’t last long though, as in the last few minutes of the first half, West Chester scored their third penalty kick to place them, once again, in the lead, 6-5.

West Chester scored two more penalty kicks in the first 20 minutes of the second half to increase the Rams’ lead to 12-5. The Rams’ defense also seemed determined not to let Temple score, as the unit kept the Owls at the end zone for 15 minutes by constantly knocking the ball out of bounds. Senior fullback Tom Folkes scored the last try, but the Owls could not get on the scoreboard again and lost.

The Owls had a good season this year regardless of the playoff outcome. Temple recorded its first undefeated season with six wins and no losses until this game. The Owls also defeated Millersville, 46-20, in last Saturday’s Eastern Pennsylvania Rugby Union Division II semifinals. West Chester’s only loss came to that Millersville team Temple beat. The Rams beat Saint Joseph’s, 21-10, last Saturday in the other semifinal to advance to Saturday’s playoff game against the Owls.

With the victory, West Chester overtakes Temple as the No. 1 team in the Division II series. The Owls drop to second place. Although this loss knocks Temple from the top spot, the Owls can still go onto the spring playoffs, as the top three teams advance.

“West Chester played well,” senior team captain and outside center Gareth Jones said. “We just couldn’t capitalize on good field positions. We played sloppy and made a lot of mistakes. We tip our hats off to West Chester. They played well.”

Nadia Elkaddi can be reached at nadia.elkaddi@temple.edu.

Seashore vacation turns fatal for budding student athlete

Rugby player Josias Sterling, 19, was enjoying the waves on Ocean City, N.J. when he fell victim to a rip current.

When Josias Sterling stopped at diners on the road to rugby games, he always ordered a slice of apple pie for dessert. The 19-year-old native of Philadelphia’s Olney section will be remembered for his American spirit, his love for rugby and his affinity for that certain dessert.

Sterling, a Temple student, was in Ocean City, N.J., with a group of former teammates from his alma mater, North Philadelphia high school St. Joseph’s Prep, for a rugby tournament. Little did he and his teammates know, those summer days would be the last they’d see their friend: While swimming off the shore with a friend, Sterling was tragically swept to sea and drowned.

On July 24, Sterling and friend Ryan Gregory were in the ocean when they were caught in a rip current. Gregory made it back to shore, but Sterling didn’t. Later that day, rescue crews searched for the 19-year-old athlete but could not find him.

More than a week later, policeconfirmed that Sterling’s body was found by the Route 52 Bridge in Ocean City and identified.

Sterling’s coaches and friends joked about his love for America’s classic dessert. His former coach, Bill Gregory, recalled how every time they dined out on the road, Sterling would order apple pie. Soon, Gregory’s wife began making the budding young athlete pies when he came over for dinner.

But more than anything, friends and former coaches alike said they remember Sterling for his love of rugby. He was known as a tenacious and skillful player with a hard work ethic and natural athletic ability.
Sterling was the son of Haitian immigrants and one of six children. He attended high school at St.
Joseph’s Prep on Girard Avenue near 17th Street, graduating in 2008 before continuing his education a stone’s throw away at Temple, pursuing a dual degree in advertising and communications.

Gregory, head coach of the University of Scranton’s rugby club, was Sterling’s first coach at the Prep school. He took Sterling under his wing and said the two became like family after long trips on the road.

“It was love at first sight. He was a son to me,” Gregory said.

Tom Farren, the head rugby coach at Sterling’s high school, recalled his speed and aggression on the field.

“He was one of the most tenacious players I’ve seen. He was a real game changer,” Farren said.

Sterling was one of the key players who led his team to state playoffs during his senior season, Farren recalled. He was also named as one of eight tour captains for the team’s trip to Ireland that year.

Sterling’s death delivered a hard blow to the rugby world. Former coaches and teammates expressed their upset over losing such a dedicated player, and USA Rugby even sent its condolences to his family.

But Sterling was much more than another player on the field.

“He was as intelligent as he was athletic,” said Gregory.

A lover of music, Sterling also had a busy social calendar. Friends recalled that he was always there for them and always had a smile for everyone. Temple rugby head coach John Sciotto remembered the teen’s positive attitude.

“He was a great kid. He’d be smiling all the time, even when I’m yelling at the guys in practice,” Sciotto said. “He distracted me from being mad.”

St. Joseph’s Prep is honoring Sterling’s memory this year during its annual Black Friday tournament. After the alumni games, there will be a seven-on-seven game in his honor. Plans are not yet official, but several teams already committed sport the name “Josias Sterling Apple Pie 7.”

Cait Berry can be reached at cait.berry@temple.edu.

Men’s rugby squad fights to 3-1-1 finish

The Temple rugby team made a strong showing on Saturday at the Liberty Cup Tournament, winning three of its five games, and fighting another to a scoreless draw.

While the matches do not count as regular season games, they did provide a testing ground for new members of the team who had little experience.

In the first match, Temple took on Villanova, but neither team was able to score. In their next game against Drexel, the Owls won on a single, five-point try. Later in the afternoon, Ursinus defeated Temple in a close game that ended with a score of 5-0. The Owls wrapped up the day by defeating La Salle and Shippensburg, coming back from an early deficit in the latter game and taking control of the second half.

By the afternoon, heavy rain had an effect on play, though there were no delays due to weather. Mud made for bad footing, while the wet ball led to more missed passes.

The team fielded two squads throughout the tournament, taking the spot of another school that was unable to make the event. Both teams were primarily comprised of B and C team players, with starters occasionally mixed in.

Junior Gareth Jones, team captain for the Owls, said they are ready for the regular season and had aspirations of winning their league’s championship. Only a few players left the squad from the previous year, and other problems with players are no longer an issue.

“We were plagued with injuries last year,” Jones said. “Now we have a healthy team.”

“We’re going to build on new guys from last year. Last year we taught the game. Now we’re teaching the tactical aspect of it,” he added.

One of the players injured last season was senior Nolan Young, who was out with a broken collarbone. Young played aggressively throughout the tournament, knocking one opponent out of the way so hard that the player was left gasping on the ground while play continued around him.

Aggressive and physical play was not limited to one person, however. All of the Owls were willing to both make tackles and take hits. Senior Neil Deloggio was singled out by another player for “laying out one guy cold.”

Senior Tyler Rumsey, one of the starters for the team and a Mid-Atlantic Rugby Football Union all-star, said he thought the team would be in good shape for the season.

“We’re going to do well,” he said. “We only graduated one guy last year. We’ll build on the new guys from last year.”

While Temple rugby has had a limited practice schedule, the team can only practice on Tuesdays and Thursdays due to field availability and the university’s policy. Jones did not indicate that it was any sort of setback.

“During summer practice we were trying to do as much as we could with what we had,” he said.

Temple will play four games in the regular season, which starts later this semester.

Gregory Weber can be reached at gregory.weber@temple.edu.