Valley Panthers start rugby season at Wortman

The Valley Panthers kicked off the fall rugby sevens season with a pre-season jamboree at Laurin Middle School in Vancouver, Washington, on Saturday. The Panthers lost all three of their games, but head coach Christine Bader isn’t worried. “The jamboree is all about stretching the legs, trying different combinations and getting some players out there for the very first time,” Bader said. The Panthers graduated 13 seniors last year, so its roster is dominated by the sophomore class that came out last fall in record numbers.

The Panthers’ two lone tries of the day came from Ava Kowitz, an exchange student from Australia attending McMinnville High School for the fall. Kowitz ran the ball in twice and successfully kicked one conversion in the Panthers’ first game versus Clark County, which the Panthers lost 12-21.

The Panthers were shut out in the subsequent two games against the Salem Snapping Turtles (most of whom were coached by Bader last spring, as Salem did not have enough players for the 15s season and merged with the Panthers) and the Portland Grackles, 29-0 and 27-0 respectively.

The team now heads into league play, which consists of tournaments the next four Saturdays to determine seedings for the finals on Oct. 18.

The Valley Panthers will host next Saturday’s tournament at Wortman Stadium, Saturday Sept. 27 from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m.