Congratulations to Jamie Demers, Travis Dantzer, and Liam Clancy, for their hard work and accomplishments this summer.
Jamie Demers
The opportunity to attend the Collegiate All-American camp in Glendale was amazing and I’m so happy I was able to take it. We had two days of training sessions, twice a day, which were taxing but taught me a lot and really developed me as a player. They also employed a lot of new technologies and recovery techniques that showcased how professional rugby is in the USA these days. This culminated in two East vs. West games at Infinity Park on what is definitely the nicest field I have ever touched. I played in the first game and I was nervous being surrounded by players who have been playing a lot longer than the 3 years I had under my belt. Fortunately I really held my own and made some good plays, and while I didn’t make the 30 man squad I definitely feel like I was on the edge. Nevertheless, I met a lot of really cool players and coaches and learned a lot that I’m already bringing back to Michigan. Huge thank you to Coach Sparks and the Michigan Rugby Foundation for making this all happen, it was an absolutely unforgettable experience!
Travis Dantzer
This summer, Junior Openside Flanker Travis Dantzer worked as a Construction Management Intern at Spence Brothers in Saginaw, MI where he played with the Tri-City Barbarians. At the end of his internship Travis had the opportunity to travel to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on a Real-time Storm-water systems research project through the Kerkez Lab at UM. While there Travis installed and programmed off-grid water quantity sensors, explored the city, and worked on his dance moves. He’s looking forward to expanding his attacking and poaching abilities this season.
Liam Clancy
This year for summer sevens I had the privilege of playing with the Mystic River Rugby Club, D1 Men’s 15s national champions and former team of my coach Brandon Sparks. After playing four qualifier tournaments throughout the summer, Mystic sealed its place at Club 7’s Nationals and ended up placing third in the country. The experience I gained this summer was invaluable to my rugby career and really opened my eyes to what the next level of rugby demands.
Now, as I prepare for my trip to Japan for study abroad this fall, I look forward to finding a team that will allow me to develop further as a player. It’s funny to think all of this started two years ago at Mitchell Field. Still young in the sport, I look forward to where rugby will take me next.
