MILTON >> In a rematch of last year’s final, BC High once again prevailed over Xaverian, 13-7, to repeat as Div. 1 boys rugby champions.

Unlike last year’s 40-38 thriller, both teams struggled to break into the end zone, with the pouring rain adding an additional challenge beyond the stout defensive play.

“Both teams are athletic and love to tackle, hit, and defend. The weather kinda played into that proclivity. We talked about it, whether we win by one point or a hundred, it doesn’t matter. We just need to find that one extra gear and the defense stepped up today,” said BC High coach Paul Carty.

BC High opened the contest by dominating possession. After 10 minutes, a Xaverian penalty allowed BC High to take a place kick for the lead. Charlie Thomison drilled the kick, putting the Eagles up 3-0.

Ten minutes later, Thomison found space in Xaverian’s defensive line, driving the ball deep into Xaverian territory. Cillian O’Callaghan finished the possession, diving past the pylon to score the try. A missed Thomison kick gave the Eagles an 8-0 lead which held until halftime.

The Eagles added one more try in the second half, this time coming from Max Ford. The junior was able to push through the Xaverian block at the goal line for the score after a prolonged Eagles possession.

Much like last year, Xaverian managed to put the pressure on late, earning two five-meter scrums which the Eagles defense narrowly held off. With two minutes to go, senior captain Luke Bell finally secured his team’s first points with a try that cut the lead to 13-7.

“A lot of déjà vu,” said senior captain Mikey Smith on enduring another superb effort from Xaverian. “We’re battle tested through that, especially against them. We knew we had it in us.”

With the pressure on, BC High managed to hold off the desperate Xaverian attack, clinching the title and an undefeated season.

“These guys have put in all the work,” said Carty on his team’s repeat title.

“It’s unreal,” added Thomison. “Last year was sort of the same scenario, it always gets down to the wire with these guys. It just feels good when you leave it all out there and know you can climb the mountain over these guys.”

In the Div. 2 state final, No. 1 Hanover rolled to victory over No. 2 Brookline, 59-7. The win marks Hanover’s first boys rugby state final since 2017 and avenges their loss in last year’s state final to Weymouth.

“It’s been a really special group. We’ve had some strong teams over the years, but this is hands-down the most talented. I think today was as close to perfect as we’ve been all season,” said Hanover coach Andrew McLean.

Hanover seized the lead in the first five minutes thanks to senior fly half Lochlan Garvey, who scored the try and hit the conversion. Minutes later, Hanover scored back-to-back tries with near identical mauls down the sideline. Later in the half, Matthew Bellerby followed up with another try before David Bonilla capped off the scoring with a punishing run through the middle of Brookline’s defense, giving Hanover a 33-0 lead into halftime. In addition to scoring the first try, Garvey also went 4-for-5 on conversions in the half and 8-for-10 in the match.

“I think that was Lochlan’s best game for us,” said McLean, “it was really high-level stuff.”

Hanover was held quiet for a stretch in the second half before Juneau Mofford found the end zone, receiving a pass from Garvey to dive in.

On the ensuing possession, Love’on Flowers received a kick in Hanover’s half and broke past the entire Brookline line for a score. Nate Lockwood grabbed the lone try for Brookline before Canden Scott scored the final try of the day and completed a dominant performance for Hanover.