| | |
| Sport | Rugby Union |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2002 |
| First season | 2002-03 |
| No. of teams | Varies |
| Country | United States |
The NCR National Championships are the national championship tournaments sponsored by National Collegiate Rugby (NCR, formerly National Small College Rugby Organization) for men's and women's college rugby in both 15s and 7s rugby.
NSCRO rebranded as NCR in 2020, when it expanded its mission and reach by offering membership and organizing championships for larger colleges playing in upper divisions. Prior to this NSCRO sponsored four regional tournaments: New England, New York/Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, and South. The regional champions were invited to compete in the annual "Fearsome Four" to determine the NSCRO National Champions. The 15's championship is now branded as a part of the Collegiate Rugby Championship.
Division Championships include (for both XVs & 7s):
Former competitions were:
From 2002 to 2006 for Men's 15s, and from 2003 to 2006 for Women's 15s, the event name was "East Coast Division 3 Collegiate Championship". In 2007, the events were renamed to "NSCRO Men's Collegiate Division 3 National Championship", "NSCRO Women's Collegiate Division 3 National Championship" and "NSCRO Women's Collegiate Division 4 National Championship". In August 2012, Small College Championship nomenclature replaced Division 3, and since Fall 2012, the "Women's D4 Championship" was discontinued. [1]
In 2015, NSCRO inaugurated the lower-level Men's Challenge Cup Championship, which ran until 2021. In the 2020-21 season, NSCRO rebranded to National Collegiate Rugby (NCR) and introduced Division I, I-AA and II championships. [2] The Small College division and its championship was renamed to Division III in 2024. [3]
| Year | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Location | Date | ref |
| 2021 | St. Bonaventure University | 19 - 18 | Penn State | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 12 Dec 2021 | |
| 2022 | Brown | 21 - 5 | Queens | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 10 Dec 2022 | |
| 2023 | Notre Dame College | 33 - 10 | St. Bonaventure | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 9 Dec 2023 | |
| 2024 | Brown | 23 - 20 | Queens | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 14 Dec 2024 | |
| 2025 | St. Bonaventure University | 55 - 19 | Queens | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 13 Dec 2025 | [4] |
| Year | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Location | Date | ref |
| 2021 | Virginia Tech | 34 - 22 | West Chester | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 12 Dec 2021 | |
| 2022 | Virginia Tech | 24 - 22 | Louisville | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 10 Dec 2022 | |
| 2023 | Kentucky | 43 - 28 | Louisville | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 9 Dec 2023 | |
| 2024 | Kentucky | 57 - 14 | Bowling Green | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 14 Dec 2024 | |
| 2025 | Tennessee | 21 - 15 | Bowling Green | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 13 Dec 2025 | [5] |
| Season | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Location | Date | |
| 2021 | Thomas More | 21 - 17 | Adrian College | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 12 Dec 2021 | |
| 2022 | Principia | 34 - 22 | IUP | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 10 Dec 2022 | |
| 2023 | IUP | 20 - 17 | Memphis | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 9 Dec 2023 | |
| 2024 | IUP | 19 - 14 | Northern Iowa | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 14 Dec 2024 | |
| 2025 | Vermont | 71 - 5 | Chicago | SaberCats Stadium, Houston TX | 14 Dec 2025 | [6] |
| Year | Champions | Score | Runner-up | Location | ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-15 | University of the Pacific | 39 - 32 | Northern Colorado | Founders Field, Cheswick, Pennsylvania | [20] |
| 2015-16 | Salem State University | 43 - 17 | Point Loma Nazarene | Founders Field, Cheswick, Pennsylvania | [21] |
| 2016-17 | Bethel College | 30 - 21 | Iowa Central Community College | Founders Field, Cheswick, Pennsylvania | [22] |
| 2017-18 | MiraCosta College | 56 - 5 | John Carroll University | Founders Field, Cheswick, Pennsylvania | [23] [24] |
| 2018-19 | Azusa Pacific University | 30 - 21 | Washington & Lee | Siena College, Loudonville, NY | |
| 2019-20 | Tournament cancelled due to Covid-19 | ||||
| 2021 | Siena College | 25 - 20 | Wayne State College | SaberCats Stadium, Houston,TX | [25] [26] [27] |
| Season | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Location | ref |
| 2022 | Michigan | 41 - 14 | Notre Dame College | SaberCats Stadium, Houston,TX | [28] |
| 2023 | Michigan | 33 - 17 | Notre Dame College | SaberCats Stadium, Houston,TX | [29] |
| 2024 | Wheeling | 58 - 17 | Southern Nazarene | SaberCats Stadium, Houston,TX | [30] [31] |
| 2025 | Southern Nazarene | 82 - 21 | Northern Iowa | SaberCats Stadium, Houston,TX | [32] [33] [34] |
| Season | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Location | ref |
| 2025 | Northeastern | 44 - 10 | Colorado | SaberCats Stadium, Houston,TX | [35] [36] |
| Season | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Location | ref |
| 2022 | Wisconsin-Eau Claire | 78 - 0 | Marquette | SaberCats Stadium, Houston,TX | [37] [38] |
| 2023 | Wisconsin-Eau Claire | 32 - 29 | Vassar | SaberCats Stadium, Houston,TX | [39] [40] |
| 2024 | Vassar | 24 - 5 | Wisconsin-Eau Claire | SaberCats Stadium, Houston,TX | [41] |
| 2025 | Coast Guard | 51 - 12 | Wisconsin-Eau Claire | SaberCats Stadium, Houston,TX | [42] [43] |
| Season | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Location | ref |
| 2022 | Sam Houston State | 17 - 15 | Salisbury | Gold Mine, New Orleans, LA | [67] |
| 2023 | San Diego | 15 - 7 | Clemson | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [68] |
| 2024 | Louisville | 29 - 0 | NC State | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [69] |
| 2025 | NC State | 12 - 7 | UNC - Charlotte | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [70] |
| Season | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Location | ref |
| 2022 | Indiana University of Pennsylvania | 17 - 7 | Lander | Gold Mine, New Orleans, LA | [71] |
| 2023 | Indiana University of Pennsylvania | 12 - 7 | NC State | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [72] |
| 2024 | Maine | 19 - 15 | Georgetown | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [73] |
| 2025 | UNC Wilmington | 24 - 12 | Montana State | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [74] |
V - Title was vacated by NSCRO
| Season | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Location | ref |
| 2022 | Roger Williams | 12 - 7 | Wisconsin-Eau Claire | Gold Mine, New Orleans, LA | [86] |
| 2023 | Clemson | 29 - 17 | UMass | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [87] |
| 2024 | Claremont | 17 - 7 | Oregon | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [88] |
| 2025 | Northeastern | 15 - 12 | Iowa | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [89] |
| Season | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Location | ref |
| 2022 | Chicago | 10 - 5 | South Dakota | Founders Field, Cheswick, Pennsylvania | [90] |
| 2023 | Roger Williams | 10 - 5 | Colorado Mines | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [91] |
| 2024 | Wisconsin-Eau Claire | 22 - 5 | Roger Williams | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [92] |
| 2025 | Coast Guard | 17 - 5 | Roger Williams | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [93] |
| Season | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Location | ref |
| 2014 | Wayne State College | 24 – 7 | South Dakota State | Grand Valley State University, Allendale, Michigan | [94] |
| 2015 | Wayne State College | 22 – 17 | Mount St. Mary's University | Founders Field, Cheswick, Pennsylvania | [95] |
| 2016 | Wayne State College | 20 – 0 | Colorado College | Founders Field, Cheswick, Pennsylvania | [96] |
| 2017 | Colgate University | 15 – 12 | Wayne State College | Founders Field, Cheswick, Pennsylvania | [97] [98] |
| 2018 | Wayne State College | 24 – 5 | Lee | Founders Field, Cheswick, Pennsylvania | [99] |
| 2019 | Wayne State College | 31 – 7 | Rochester | Founders Field, Cheswick, Pennsylvania | [100] |
| 2020-22 | Tournament cancelled due to Covid-19 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Endicott | 15 - 10 | Lee | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [101] |
| 2024 | Yale | 31 - 7 | Gannon | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [102] |
| 2025 | Endicott | 32 - 0 | Baldwin Wallace | Maryland SoccerPlex, Greater Washington, DC | [103] |
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