Michigan’s Second and Third Sides began their season at Mitchell Field last Saturday, playing in a developmental-side tournament featuring teams from across the state of Michigan. Braving cold and on-and-off flurries throughout the day, both sides looked to capitalize on momentum built by the first side a month prior in Pittsburgh.
The Third Side began the tournament for the Wolverines, facing off against Michigan State’s “Green Side” in the very first match. After an early score by MSU, freshman Tommy Hamann punched in a corner try for Michigan to tie the game 5-5 at halftime. The Wolverines hit the ground running in the second half—Hamann and fellow freshman Jeremi Owusu each scored—helping the Third Side cruise to a 17-10 victory.
In their next game, the Third Side played against the more-experienced Grand Valley State side. Despite sophomore Nate Seevak scoring his first try and Tommy Hamann getting his third of the day, the Wolverines were unable to hold on, falling 10-24.
The Second Side, meanwhile, got off to a glowing start, with resounding victories against Hillsdale (43-14) and Calvin (50-0). Strong performances by virtually the entire squad catapulted the Wolverines to dominance—in each game, five unique players scored tries for Michigan, with multiple players scoring multiple tries. Best of all, junior Max Rector received ample opportunity to hone his kicks, with nine conversions made over both games.
Following the early departure of Oakland and both of Michigan State’s sides from the tournament, both Michigan sides were combined into a single team for another bout against GVSU. After shaking off some jitters from the confusion the Maize and Blue prevailed, winning 24-10.
By this point in the day the weather still had yet to improve, and all sides playing at the tournament were starting to feel its effects. Grand Valley State, in the true spirit of the game, wanted to continue—and so they put together a squad of their best players present at the tournament to face off against the Michigan Second Side for the cup final. Michigan got off to an early lead, with Emerson Kekhoua and Matt Daines scoring two tries apiece in the first half. A valiant late effort from GVSU narrowed the score as time expired, but in the end Michigan won the cup 24-17.
The Second Side victory last weekend is another source of hope for the Wolverines, who will play again this Sunday, March 26, at Chicago Hounds 7s. All three sides will face off against teams from Michigan State, Illinois, and Wisconsin.
