USA Rugby Announces Locations of Spring College Playoffs

USA Rugby is pleased to announce the locations for the 2018 Spring College Playoffs for the Men's D1AA, Women's D1 and D2. For D1AA the Round of 8 will be played on the campuses of  Long Beach State and Kansas University on the 7th and 8th of April. The winners will advance to the Spring Championship in East Carolina on the 21st of April. The women's D1/D1 Elite and D2 playoffs will be played on the weekend of April 20th, 21st and 22nd, the playoffs will be held at Stanford, Life University, East Carolina University and one site to be determined. The Championships for all of these divisions will be played over the May 4th and 5th weekend.

In the Men's D1AA the race for the Spring Championship is wide open, as the incumbent (UC Davis) has been promoted to the D1A ranks. The Spring champion that will be decided in East Carolina, will then face-off against the Fall Champion Mary Washington for the National Championship at the beginning of May. This will be the first time in two years that the D1AA National Championship will not be between Notre Dame College and UC Davis.

The Women's D1 Elite/D1 format returns again this year. This hybrid format is where every team that qualifies for the playoffs is entered into a single bracket. All the teams that win their matches on the 21st of April will enter the semifinals. The winners on the 22nd of April will enter into the D1 Elite Semi-Finals while those who are on the other end of the scoreboard will be entered into the D1 Spring Championship Semifinal. These Semi-Finals will be hosted in the first weekend of May.

The Women's D2 Playoff will follow the traditional structure. The round of 16 will be played on the 21st of April, with the winners advancing to the Quarter-Finals on Sunday. The winner of the Quarter-Finals will then advance to the Championship Semi-Finals that are being held on the first weekend of May.

Director of College Rugby, Rich Cortez elaborated on the Spring Playoffs, "We are excited to welcome the best collegiate teams from across the country to the Spring playoffs.  The extremely competitive qualification process highlights the growth of rugby across the country and we look forward to showcasing that growth at these playoff locations."