Forward Nic Allen leads the charge to the Trenton High School goal line during the PECI’s 33-5 win Wednesday, May 7. (Jason Parks/Gazette Staff)
The undefeated PECI Junior Boys Rugby team is on the hunt for Bay of Quinte gold today.
The Panthers prowled their way to a 5-0-1 record in the Bay of Quinte Athletic Conference this season, scoring a league high 208 points while surrendering just 29 in six contests.
Coach Doug Holt said his squad has been equal to the task despite playing without a full lineup for most of the regular season.
“We’ve played several games where we were missing five or more starters and the level of play hasn’t dropped,” said the skipper. “We’ve had Grade 9s step-up, Grade 10s step-up, new guys, veteran guys … everyone can do a job. It’s just impressive to see that everyone can come in and play and our level of effort hasn’t decreased.”
PECI Coach Doug Holt
This is a great group of young men,
we have veteran leadership from our grade 12s and many grade 11s
that have stepped up into key roles this season
The Cats were business-like in their final regular season game, dismantling the visiting St. Theresa Titans 43-5. Panthers Captain and 8-Man Jack Lavender plunged across the Titans goal line for a pair of tries while Avery Longwell, Drake Wight and Cole Byford had singles.
With their starry record, the Junior Panthers earned a bye directly to the Bay of Quinte semi finals. Kick off this morning against a yet-to-be-determined opponent at Mary Ann Sills Park is slated for 9:30 a.m.
In Senior action on Thursday, the host Panthers let a victory slip through their clutches as Nicholson escaped PECI with a 28-20 win.
It was a tough loss for the Cats as they roared back from a halftime deficit to take a lead with five minutes left in the second stanza.
The Cats crawled back into the contest in the early going of the second half when winger Connor Borton snaked his way across the goal line to make the score 14-12 for the visitors.
Just over three minutes later and Nicholson down a player due to a yellow card, the Nicks took a penalty in the shadows of their goal line. The hosts chose to try a kick from the field and the big boot of Declan Vincent didn’t disappoint as he sent a three pointer sailing betwixt the poles.
Ahead by a point, PECI continued to roll and Oliver Lewis completed a nice run to the in goal area for a five-point score with about five minutes left.
Unfortunately for the Cats, the Nicks were able to capitalize on some confusion in the PECI line. With the score 20-14, a missed open field tackle at the 22 metre line allowed a Nicks ball carrier to cross the goal line. A converted kick put Nicholson ahead to stay 21-20 and the visitors added another score as the whistle went for full time.
Coach Holt said it was tough to see the squad bow out in the Quarter Finals.
“This is a great group of young men, we have veteran leadership from our grade 12s and many grade 11s that have stepped up into key roles this season,” the coach lamented. “We were close, it just came down to a couple of moments that didn’t go our way.”
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