BOYDS, Maryland - They were close in every game, but the American International College men's rugby team went 1-4 to finish 16th at the National Collegiate Rugby 2026 National 7s Collegiate Rugby Championship on April 24-25.

AIC defeated Marian University 24-19 in overtime before falling 19-14 in extra time to Dartmouth College and 19-12 to Clemson University on the first day. The team then dropped a 15-14 decision against the University of San Diego and a 10-5 finale to Wingate University the following day.

Marian struck first in the opener, but AIC countered with tries by Jo Roberts and Leiukamea Schaaf before halftime, and Ivan Rossi conversions put the Yellow Jackets ahead 14-7 at the break. Marian was able to close the gap, and a late second-half try and conversion tied the game at 19-19 after DJ Ta'ape put AIC up by seven midway through. In the extra session, Dalvin Paki broke free at the try line, putting the ball down and in to secure the victory.

Against Dartmouth, the teams traded tries in both halves; the Big Green struck first before Juan Carrazana and Rossi tied things with a try and conversion, and then in the second half Schaaf and Rossi combined for an early seven before Dartmouth leveled the score. The second overtime of the day was not as kind to AIC as the first, with Dartmouth breaking free for a try in the second extra minute to win the game.

In the third match against Clemson, AIC overcame an early try quickly as Schaaf scored his third of the day and Rossi converted. Roberts then countered a second-half try for the Tigers with one of his own, but Clemson scored in stoppage time to secure the win.

AIC conceded an early try against San Diego, but took a 7-5 lead at the half on a Gabriel Bloomfield try and Rossi conversion, and jumped to a 14-5 edge early in the second with another Schaaf and Rossi 5-2 combo. However, San Diego bounced back, scoring two tries in the final minute for a stunning 15-14 win over the Yellow Jackets.

In the finale with Wingate, AIC fell behind 10-0 at halftime; Bloomfield scored with four minutes to go in the second, but AIC could not find the try zone again and finished in 16th place.

Schaaf's 20 points led the team, with Rossi's 12 in second and Bloomfield and Roberts each scoring 10.