Sep 21, 2025
In the end, the very end, the king of Queens was St. Bonaventure.
In a rollercoaster match between two of the best rugby clubs in the nation, the Bonnies traveled to Charlotte, North Carolina, Saturday afternoon and defeated Queens University, 32-29, on the final play.
Ranked No. 3 in the National Collegiate Rugby preseason poll, the Bonnies crawled out of three different holes to edge No. 2 Queens when Noah Edwards scored on the right flank more than 2 minutes past the 80-minute mark.
(Like soccer, rugby allows for officials to add time for injury and other stoppages, and even then, the play isn’t over until a dead ball situation arises, such as a try, penalty, knock-on, or ball out of bounds.)
SBU trailed 12-0 midway through the first half, but Edwards broke the ice with a booming penalty kick from 40 yards. A Troy Heroldt try and two more kicks from Edwards — a conversion and PK — gave the Bonnies a 13-12 halftime advantage.
The lead evaporated quickly in the second half. A Queens PK and 40-yard dash for a try gave the Gaels a 22-13 lead.
Two brilliant Bonaventure interceptions on Queens attacks flipped the momentum.
In the 68th minute, Tanyaradzwa Takaendisa picked off a pass and charged into scoring territory, eventually leading to a Dara Falope try.
With just 5 minutes to play, Queens was pushing to get its lead back to two scores, but Falope read a wide, looping pass, snatched it, and raced in for a try from midfield.
Edwards conversion made it 25-22, but on the ensuing kickoff — the scoring team receives in rugby — two Bonnies bumped into each other. Queens gained possession not far outside the try line and scored just two minutes later to make it 29-25.
Queens advanced the kickoff to midfield, but just before the 80-minute mark, the Bonnies were awarded a scrum on an infraction.
They advanced the ball by free kick well inside the 22 after a Queens offsides, and slowly bulled their way toward the try line before swinging it wide to Edwards for the winning score. His conversion ended the game.
SBU Coach Danny Neighbour said his team took to heart a quote they learned to start their preseason from Irish boxing legend Katie Taylor: “Train to win with skill but be prepared to win with will.”
“We have that will and grit you need when you’re not playing your best. You’ve got to get it from somewhere deep,” Neighbour said. “This game was good for us to realize we have the will.”
Edwards, who scored 17 points, was named Man of the Match. The Bonnies JV squad thumped Queens, 60-19; Sean Kull was named Man of the Match.
The Bonnies (2-0) host preseason No. 7 Kutztown at 11 a.m. Saturday as part of SBU’s Family Weekend. The women host Cincinnati at 1 p.m.
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About the University: The nation’s first Franciscan university, St. Bonaventure is a community committed to transforming the lives of its students inside and outside the classroom, inspiring in them a commitment to academic excellence and lifelong civic engagement. Out of 167 regional universities in the North, St. Bonaventure was ranked #8 for value and #19 overall by U.S. News and World Report (2025).