SMRC Qualified for 7s Nationals!

DOLPHINS  BACK TO REPRESENT SANTA MONICA ON THE NATIONAL STAGE

For the 5th consecutive year, your Santa Monica Dolphins have qualified for the Club 7s National  Championships, and we need your help getting there! This year the tournament is being held in New York City from August 10-12.

The Road So Far

SMRC started the 7s season in San Diego with a hot start. Undefeated through pool play against Tempe, Belmont Shore Gold, and OMBAC, they faced a tough challenge against a stout Oceanside team. A last second try wonderful team try capped off by rookie sensation Quinn Perry put the Dolphins through to the finals. Ultimately the team finished 2nd on the weekend but garnered valuable points in the standings.

The following weekend, the team traveled up to San Francisco to take on the best teams on the West Coast with the winner qualifying directly to Nationals. The team was able to beat SFGG and Old Gaels quite comfortably, but fell short to a strong Life West Team. That set up an all important Quarterfinal matchup with NorCal rival Olympic Club. SMRC shut out O-Club 19-0 lead by an outstanding multi try game by Joey Krassenstein. In an all SoCal semifinal matchup, the Dolphins lost to a strong Belmont Shore team who would go on to win the event.

The team was not discouraged by the previous results and knew that a strong weekend in Long Beach at the Sunsplash 7s was crucial for Nationals Qualifications. A tough pool with Oceanside and Belmont Shore Gold saw the Dolphins finish 1-1, losing at the death to Belmont Shore Gold. The team would however do enough to qualify for Nationals by winning their Quarterfinal matchup which they did by shutting out a surging Tempe sides. The team would lose a one try game to Belmont Shore but beat Oceanside for 3rd place to secure the number 2 seed to Nationals.

This year, with a young and exciting team that is gelling into a cohesive unit at the perfect time, the Dolphins are ready to turn some heads in New York City. Coached by former Springbok 7’s player Shane Spring, former Australian Schoolboys stud Steven Stagg, and former SMRC Coach Tim Lewis, the players have an added level of confidence and responsibility that has helped overcome some early adversity. No longer content with just making it there, or barely breaking the top ten, SMRC will be looking to make the leap to the upper echelon of 7s teams in the USA.