Spring Results
Ok, so I did a poor job updating things last spring. The Bucks had a very successful spring campaign, but fell just short of nationals. After a warm-up scrimmage against Cedar Rapids, the Bucks travelled out to Rochester, NY for their Midwest crossover playoff match. The Bucks upset Rochester to qualify for the Midwest Final Four.
The Bucks travelled to Elkhart Indiana where they once again took on the Eastside Banshees, the #1 seed out of the Western Conference. Due to a number of personal commitments, the Bucks were only able to travel with 16 players. Despite this, Bremer played hard and nearly pulled out the victory. The final score was 17-10, with Bremer on the short end.
The following week the Bucks finished off the spring season as co-champs of the A Division with Palmer at the All Iowa tournament. The Bucks beat Des Moines and Clinton to qualify for the championship. However, due to conflicts for both teams, Bremer and Palmer opted to declare co-champions in place of playing the championship match.
Buck's Schedule Spring 2012
| Sat. March 31 @ Cedar Rapdids | |
| Sat. April 7 off | |
| Sat. April 14 @ Rochester, NY (Playoffs) | |
| Sat. April 21 off | |
| Sat. April 28 @ Elkhart, IN (Playoffs)* | |
| May 5-6 @ Iowa Falls (All Iowa Tournament) |
* If the Bucks lose April 14, instead there will be a home match against the loser of Dubuque and St. Paul
Bucks Travelling to Rochester, NY this Spring
The Bucks 1-1 weekend at the Western Conference playoffs has qualified them for a spring crossover match. They will be travelling to Rochester, NY to take on the Rochester Aardvarks. That match will take place April 14. I will post more information as I receive it.
Congratulations on another great season Bucks! Now let's keep it going this spring!
Bucks Finish League Schedule with Spring Playoff Berth
The Bucks closed out the final half of their league schedule a perfect 4-0. Those four victories included wins over Clinton, Metro, Des Moines, and Cedar Rapids. None of the games were particularly close as the Bucks continued to work out the rust all season long until things started to really click in the last couple games.
The 4-0 finish put the Bucks at 6-1-1 on the season and in second place in the Western 1 Division of the Midwest. The Bucks' lone loss and tie both came to the Eastside Banshees who won the Western 1 Division. Following the regular season, the top 3 teams from the Western 1 and 2 Divisions travelled to Cottage Grove, WI, to compete for 4 spots in the spring Midwest crossover matches.
The Bucks were matched up against the Southside Irish from Chicago on the first day of competition in Wisconsin. The Southside Irish were the #2 seed from the Western 2 Division. The Bucks got off to a slow start, and started the match trading blows with the Irish. At first neither team could pull away from the other, but the Bucks finally broke things open in the middle of the game and went into halftime with a respectable lead. Bremer was able to add to that lead at the start of the second half, but then the Irish started to battle back near the end of the game. However, Bremer came away victorious with a 33-29 win.
Saturday's win qualified Bremer for the spring crossover matches, and on Sunday they played Wisconsin RFC for home field advantage in the spring. Once again the Bucks started out slow. A strong headwind and couple costly mistakes saw the Bucks going into halftime with a 24-0 deficit. However, with the wind at their backs the Bucks came out strong to start the second half. Zeus put in an early try that energized the team. As the half went on Bremer put in two more tries to be within 5 points at 24-19 with 10 minutes left. Despite battling hard, the Bucks just couldn't overcome their haltime deficit and lost the tough match 29-19.
Upcoming Game Times
There will a couple of irregular start times for our games in the coming weeks. The home match October 8 against Clinton will kickoff at 2:30. The October 15 home match against Metro B will be at the normal 1:00 kickoff time. The Friday match against Des Moines will take place in Valley Stadium in Des Moines at 7:00. Finally, the final match in Cedar Rapids will most likely kickoff at the standard 1:00 time.
Bucks Off to Strong Start in League Schedule
The Bucks' fall league schedule is already at the halfway point (yeah, I've been kind of lazy about updating the site) with 4 games down and 4 to go. The season opened at the end of August when the Buck traveled to Eagan, MN, to take on the Eastside Banshees. The Bucks were a little short on players and only had a couple subs. Despite the long travel and lack of players, the Bucks played strong and held the lead at halftime. However, the lack of subs eventually caught up to Bremer and the Banshees edged them out in the end.
After taking a week off, Bremer played their home opener against in-state rivals the Cedar Rapids Headhunters. The Bucks got off to a slow, and were hammered with penalties that kept the ball deep in their half of the field. Despite the penalties, the Bucks went into halftime with a small lead. Bremer would finally turn around and open things up in the second half, and piled on a number of tries en route to a victory.
The third game of the season saw the Bucks getting a chance at revenge against the Banshees. Bremer came out fighting and put up a 26-5 halftime lead. However, the Banshees managed to put a couple tries to open the second half. The Bucks couldn't quite hold on, and the Banshees tied the game with 10 minutes remaining in the match. The Bucks made a strong push in the closing minutes, but couldn't put up any points and the match ended in a tie.
The Bucks traveled to Clinton to close out the first half of the season. The Bucks played a strong first half and went into halftime with a comfortable lead. The Bucks finally managed to put together a complete game, adding a number of scores en route to a 37-12 victory over Clinton. The Bucks 2-1-1 record and 13 points is good enough to put the Bucks in second place in the league standings behind the Banshees. If Bremer can continue building up through the second half of the league schedule, a repeat DII Midwest playoff berth should be imminent.
Get CIPP'd!
Everyone who is planning on playing this fall needs to get CIPP'd before they can play! Do so here: USA Rugby Online Registration
Buck's Schedule Fall 2011
| Sat. Aug 27 @ Eastside |
| Sat. Sept 10 vs. Cedar Rapids |
| Sat. Sept 17 vs. Eastside |
| Sat. Sept 24 @ Clinton |
| Sat. Oct 1 off |
| Sat. Oct 8 vs. Clinton |
| Sat. Oct 15 vs. Metro-B |
| Fri. Oct 21 @ Des Moines (7 pm) |
| Sat. Oct 29 @ Cedar Rapids |
| Nov 5 & 6: Playoffs |
Bucks Close Out Spring as All Iowa Runner-ups
Bremer County closed out the spring season last weekend at the annual All Iowa Tournament in Iowa Falls. The Bucks won their respective division the previous two years and looked to make it three in a row this year, but came up short in the finals.
The Bucks were paired with Cedar Rapids and Iowa Falls for pool play on Saturday. Bremer County beat both teams earlier in the spring, but many teams step up at the All Iowa and this year was no exception. The tournament started for the Bucks with a match against Cedar Rapids. It was tight first half, but the Bucks went into halftime with a 7-3 lead. The Bucks broke the game open in the second half with three more tries and walked away with a decisive victory over their cross-state rivals. The second match of the day for Bremer County was against tournament-hosts Iowa Falls. The Bucks got off to the lead in the first half, but went into halftime with only a 7 point lead. However, this changed quickly in the second half when Bremer County scored try after try and very quickly put the match out of reach.
The championship match on Sunday saw the Bucks paired up against Palmer College, the nationally number 2 ranked club in Division I. Palmer got of to an early lead against the Bucks, but Bremer County played physical and kept the match very competitive going into halftime down 17-5. Palmer got an early try in the second half and the Bucks couldn't recover as Palmer went to win the match and prevent Bremer County from winning their third straight title. Despite the loss, the Bucks played a very tough match against a very skilled Palmer club.
That's it for the spring 15's season. Congratulations Bucks on yet another successful season! We will start up 15's with league play in the fall and make another run at a DII Midwest title and beyond! In the meantime we will be entering in various 7's tournaments this summer.
Bremer Braves the Elements to Beat Cedar Rapids
The Bucks closed out the final of their 3 home matches this spring by beating Cedar Rapids on Saturday, 22-15. It was a cold and windy affair, with the last of the snow melting off the pitch just prior to the game starting.
The unfavorable weather led to lots of sloppy play in early in the match with plenty of dropped balls and knock-ons. However the Bucks managed to score first with a Zach Behrends' try. The rest of the first half continued to go back and forth. Eric Whitcome added a second try for the Bucks, but Cedar Rapids matched each of the tries and added a kick to go into halftime with a 15-12 advantage.
The Bucks had the strong wind at their backs for the second half, and used it to their advantage. Bremer got a try from Tyson Teut, and later a long run by a Wartburg back led to a Blake Sukhow score. The Bucks kept the Headhunters scoreless in the second half and went on to win 22-15.
Bremer closes their season May 7 and 8 at the All Iowa tournament where they look to defend their A Division title and win their third consecutive All Iowa tournament (B Division in 2009, A Division in 2010).
Bucks Fall Short in Playoffs
The second exhibition match of the season saw Bremer County beating Iowa Falls at home 62-3. There's not lot to mention from that match. The Bucks played well overall, but had a few points to clean up before the playoffs.
This past weekend Bremer County traveled to Dayton, OH to face the Flying Pigs in the Midwest DII Quarterfinal playoffs. The Bucks traveled extremely well considering the 10 hour driving distance between Waverly and Dayton. However, strong thunderstorms on Saturday prevented four Bremer starters from being able to make the trip. The strong thunderstorms also led to an extremely muddy pitch which had very sparse grass coverage before the match even began.
When the match finally started, it was back and forth with neither team able to gain an edge. Approximately 10 minutes into the match Dayton made a strong push but the Bremer pack kept them out of the end zone. A penalty was called on Bremer just as lightning forced a 20 minute match delay. Dayton elected to kick for goal and made it to go up 3-0. Dayton eventually put up a try and went into halftime up 8-0 over Bremer.
The Bucks came out extremely strong after halftime and appeared to have scored off a behind-the-back pass from Joe to Zeus, however it was called back due to an apparent knock-on. This gave the ball to Dayton who kicked it deep into Bremer territory. Dayton put up a couple more scores putting the Bucks behind a sizable point deficit. Bremer County didn't give up and finally Mack put in the try after the back line was able to break free and chain together some long runs. It wasn't enough though, and the Bucks eventually fell to Dayton, 28-5.
That game concludes the Bucks current playoff run, but they will play host to Cedar Rapids this weekend and look to defend their A Division crown at the All Iowa in a couple weeks.
Bucks Open Spring Season With Big Win
The spring season is underway, and Bremer County is off to a 1-0 start after a 92-0 victory over Pearl City. The Bucks looked crisp and played a cohesive game despite being the first match of the season and welcoming a number of new faces to the team. There isn't a whole lot to cover for the match. Bremer County got off to an early lead and continued to build on the lead for the duration of the match.
This weekend the Bucks will play host to nearby rivals, Iowa Falls. The match is in Waverly and starts at 1:00. This will be the final preparation match for the Bucks before travelling to Dayton, OH, to continue their Midwest playoff run.
Spring Season Getting Underway
Bremer County just wrapped up another successful Bucks Night thanks to kind gents at the Pourhouse, and are ready to kickoff the spring season this week. Practice starts on Thursday at 6:00 at the pitch, and it will continue every Tuesday and Thursday at 6:00. If you have any desire to play with us stop on out to a practice, no prior experience in necessary and we're always looking for new players.
The spring season is also posted. We have a number of home matches lined along with a long road trip to Dayton, OH for the Midwest playoffs with another roadtrip hopefully following that with a victory in Dayton.
We will be ordering T-shirts and posters this spring, and we're looking for sponsors to help out with our growing expenses as an up and coming DII team. Check out the sponsors page for details.
And that's about it. Let's dominate this spring season!
Bremer County Concludes Successful Fall Season
No, I haven't been doing a good job keeping things up to date. Yes, the season went on as normal and yes, the Bucks had a pretty good season. After starting out 1-1, the Bucks went to Des Moines and won decisively in the rain. This was followed by a 54-15 victory at home against Milwaukee who beat Bremer County last season. The final two games were against division rivals Des Moines and Cedar Rapids. With no rain to contend with, the Bucks managed to put up 74 points against Des Moines en route to a 74-10 victory. Bremer closed the regular season with a 39-13 victory over Cedar Rapids to finish 5-1 in league play.
The Bucks' 5-1 record combined with their incredible point differential was good enough to qualify for the Western Confernce playoffs with the #2 seed, narrowly edging out Wisconsin who was also 5-1. Bremer play host to Fox Valley Maoris in the first round of the playoffs. The Bucks went on to win by a whopping 64 points, 64-0. Bremer County hosted Wiconsin in the second round. It was a back-and-forth match that eventually went into overtime after Wisonsin made a penalty kick with no time left in regulation. Overtime was also back and forth, but Wisconsin edged out the Bucks, 29-26. Bremer County was scheduled to finish the fall portion of the playoffs against the Southside Irish, but the Irish forfeit giving the Bucks the #3 seed from the West for the Midwest crossover playoff matches in the spring.
Bremer County will be traveling to Dayton, OH April 9 to take on Dayton in the first round of East/West crossover matches. A victory in Dayton will qualify Bremer for the Division II Midwest Final Four April 30. Playoff brackets can viewed here.
Congratulation Bucks on a great fall season. Let's continue winning through the spring!
Bucks Split First Two League Matches
The Bucks started fall league play against the Cedar Rapids Headhunters. Cedar Rapids just came off a third place finish in the Division III nationals. The Bucks and Headhunters were long-time rivals at the Division III level and are set to continue that rivalry at the Division II level. Bremer County got off to an early lead in the match and never looked back. Casey Hansen and Eric Whitcome both scored two tries apiece, and a number of other Bucks scored tries as well. Many new players also made thier debut for the Bucks late in the match. Bremer County went on to win 52-12, earning a victory as well as a bonus point. Ryan Saunders was named Man of the Match for the Bucks.
For the second game of the season, Bremer County traveled to Chicago to take on the Chicago Blaze, who finished in 9th place at Division II nationals last year. Once again the Bucks got out to an early lead off a kick from Saunders. However, the rest of the first half was played on the Bucks' side of the field. The Blaze managed to put in a try before half and go up 5-3 at half-time. The second half was more of the same with the ball stuck on the Bremer side of the field. The Blaze put in another try to go up 12-3. Tyson Teut put in a try for the Bucks and the kick was good which put the score at 12-10. Bremer County continued to keep it close, but constantly playing defense took a toll on the team, the Blaze put a couple more tries and went on to win 32-10. Next, the Bucks look to bounce back when they travel to Des Moines
Schedule and Stuff
The Midwest DII fall schedule has been released and the Bucks' schedule is listed below. Also, as mentioned below, all players that want to play this fall will need to follow the link below and get CIPP'd with the team. Finally, Bremer County will be travelling to Des Moines July 10 to defend their Toys For Tots 7's title. If you are interested in playing contact Jesse or Zach for details.
Get CIPP'd!
Everyone who is planning on playing this fall needs to get CIPP'd before they can play! Do so here: USA Rugby Online Registration
Buck's Schedule Fall 2010
| Sat. Sept 11 vs. Cedar Rapids |
| Sat. Sept 18 @ Chicago Blaze |
| Sat. Sept 25 @ Des Moines |
| Sat. Oct 2 vs. Milwaukee |
| Sat. Oct 9 vs. Des Moines |
| Sat. Oct 16 @ Cedar Rapids |
| Sat. Oct 23 off |
| Oct 30: Playoffs |
| Nov 6: Playoffs |
| Nov 13: Playoffs |
Bremer County Captures Division A All Iowa Championship
The Bucks concluded their spring season in Iowa Falls at the annual All Iowa Tournament May 1-2. After winning the Division B championship in 2009, the Bucks competed in the Division A bracket this year. The Division A bracket is the top bracket in the tournament in which the best teams in Iowa compete. Bremer County was matched up with Iowa Falls and Clinton on Saturday for pool play.
The Bucks opened against the tournament hosts, Iowa Falls. Bremer County started out a little flat and almost gave up an early lead when an Iowa Falls back broke a long and almost scored, but was eventually brought down from behind by Peanut. From this point on the Bucks had very little trouble for the rest of the tournament. The Bucks went on to beat Iowa Falls with a final score of approximately 45-7.
The second game of pool play was a rematch of the previous week's match against a tough Clinton Muddy River team. Clinton got off to an early 3-0 lead, but the Bucks scored a couple times to go up 10-3 and then broke the game open in the second half to go on to win 30-3. Some highlights of the game included two well-placed kicks by Neil Boettger who decided to show off his past soccer skills. Both were recovered for tries for the Bucks. Another highlight came late in the game off a Bremer penalty play where Brett Behrends took the ball himself from the Clinton 22 meter line and ran through most of the Clinton team to score a try.
Bremer County faced Des Moines in the championship on Sunday. Des Moines made it to the championship by defeating Iowa State and Pearl City on Saturday. The Bucks didn't have too much trouble defeating Des Moines to capture the Division A title. Bremer County came away with their first shutout of the tournament en route to beating Des Moines approximately 50-0. Team president Zach Behrends came away with the tournament MVP award. This was the Bucks first Division A All Iowa championship and fourth All Iowa championship overall (1 C title, 2 B titles, and this A title).
Although the Bucks were supposed to play in the Luther tournament the following weekend, too many guys had other commitments so instead the players that were available traveled to Clinton to play with Clinton in a friendly match against the DI Nationals-bound Palmer. Five Bremer players made the trip. Although the Clinton-Bremer Muddy Bucks(?) lost by two tries the game went well.
That wraps up the 2010 spring season for Bremer County. We hope to see everyone back in fall, and congratulations on another great season Bucks!