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| FINANCIAL SPONSORS |
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The Aztec Foundation
Thanks our Individual & Corporate
Financial Contributors
INDIVIDUAL
S. Allen
D. Buboltz
C. Connolly
D. Crist
M. Eshoo
D. Fitzpatrick
R. Kirk
S. Marshall
B. Moore
D. Parker
J. Parker
J. Rubin
k. Salas
W. Stanley
J. Wood
CORPORATE
Citibank
Cons. Contact
John Quigley Trust
Buy Design Graphics |
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COACHES
CORNER
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Head coach Dan Payne returns to lead the Aztecs on the heels of his impressive debut against South Africa in the Rugby World Cup.
Coach Payne is very pleased with the team's efforts so far.
Asked on the impressive start of the team Coach Payne, stated "that we have three wins in what will be a very tough 9 team league for us. Beating Cal Poly just made the target on us bigger and brighter. Every game remaining will be a battle as team's contest for number 1. UCLA, UCSB, ASU & UOA are all ranked in the top 25. We only have two of those 4 games at home. We learned last year that any team can beat us on any given day if we don't play our best. We now need to train with that attitude in our mind."
The Foundation thank's Dan & and the rest of the coaching staff for their efforts.
Nice Start!
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WE NEED YOUR HELP! |
Fellow Aztec's your help is needed. Our database of suporters continues to grow however is still quite low at 280 names.
PLEASE get involved by forwarding this email and contacting ALL alumni you know.
This is one area where your help is crucial. Please utilize the link at the bottom of this newsletter
to forward on or email me directly at davidbcrist@yah
oo.com
I will add their names directly into the database or confirm their current address. |
| Join The Foundation! |
Have you been wondering how to get more involved with the Foundation?
Would like to have your voice heard?
Want to vote for the board? Want to run for Office or sit on a board of a Non Profit organization?
Well supporters it is easy. On Alumni day of 2007 the Foundation announces parameters to join the Foundation.
Technically, everyone who played or coached rugby at SDSU is eligible to join the Foundation. There is a dues structure in place however with memberships available for:
Rookies: 1 - 3 years post participation at SDSU:
$100.00 a year.
Full Members: 3+ years post participation at SDSU:
$250 a year.
Some supporters have already met their eligibility and were automatically enrolled as a Foundation Member upon receipt of their donation. We welcome your interest in becoming involved.
To join, please mail your check to:
Aztec Rugby Foundation
PO Box 910682
San Diego, CA 92191
San Diego, California 92191
8:00AM-5:00PM
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Greetings!
The Aztec rugby team has won three key match ups to assume first place in SCRFU. Impressive wins over Claremont 45-7, USD 54-0 and Cal Poly 29-26 have catapulted the Aztec's into first place and what surely will once again be a top 10 National Ranking.
The Foundation continues to move forward with new developments as well. Please read below for the latest team and Foundation progress. Here are highlights:
1. Major Donation Received to Grow Legacy 100
2. Team Updates D1 & D2
3. Remaining Home Schedule
4. Foundation supports U19 USA Selection
5. Quigley Trust Scholarship Applications Due
6. Web designer Chosen
7. IRB Sevens at Petco Park
8. Save The Date UCLA Bus Trip
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| Major Donation Received
First off though is a our special segment thanking the Foundation's latest financial contributors. In January The Foundation received it's largest single donation to date:
Dennis Fitzpatrick has donated $3000.00 to help build The Foundation and SDSU Rugby.
The Foundation thanks Dennis for his gracious support!!
To all of our financial contributors we thank you for your generous contributions. It is alumni like you that will continue to help build and strengthen the Aztec Foundation and the Aztec Team both now and into the future. Way to Go Dennis!
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| Aztec's Only Undefeated Team Remaining:
Big wins have categorized the team's league play this year. These wins have solidified the team as the only undefeated team remaining in Southern California. This early success should once again place the team in the top 10 National Rankings.
The team kicked off the season against a tough and well coached Claremont team but by the end of the day it was the Aztec's who turned in a stellar performance. Final score SDSU 45 Claremont 7. Beau Russell (#2), Zac Heiller (#8) and Duncan Kelm (#10) had huge games to lead the Aztecs.
The second match up of the year was against cross town rival USD. This was a grudge match for the Aztecs as USD remained a black eye on a great 2007 season with their upset victory. The team had heard a lot of talk leading up to the game and were ready for this year's match up. The teams met each other on Robb Fields main pitch as one of the key collegiate games in the San Diego Invitational Rugby Tournament. The Aztec's struck first, hard and often in rolling to a 32-0 half time score. The bitterness from last year remained entering into the second half as the team continued to add points and rolled USD to a 54-0 final score.
An added motivational factor was the National Guard, a key new sponsor for USA Rugby, asked the Aztec's to wear the National Guard Logoed jerseys and if they can film the game. The Aztec's thanked them for their support by putting together several hard hitting set pieces that allowed our outside speed game to shine with numerous long trys!!
The National Guard was so proud of the Aztec effort that they are making plans to donate a set of jersey's to the Aztec's.
Alex Main #4, Joe Fontana #5 and Alex Lichtig #14 turned in stellar performances on the day!!
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo was the setting for the third game of the season. Ranked 7th in the USA, Cal Poly has been dominating the SCRFU with yearly #1 finishes. Even though the Aztecs beat them last year the USD loss cost them a first place crown. That title was on the line over the weekend of the 16th, with the winner to hold the drivers seat for the SCRFU championship.
The start was remarkably close to last year's match with the Aztec's racing out ahead with punishing runs from the loose, superior rucking and ball security which has become the Aztec's signature trademark. The halftime score was 22-7. However the Mustangs made it a game in the second half in a gritty comeback. The last 10 minutes of play were hectic with the Aztec's camped behind their 22 meter line. The defense held though giving up zero penalties and zero points to stop the Mustangs. Final score Aztec's 29 Cal Poly 26.
Ryan Howe #7, Matt Rose #13 and Alex Ross #14 provided unbelievable defense and for Alex 2 trys were the turning point in the game.
With the win the Aztec's remain the only undefeated team in Southern California and #1 position in league.
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| Division 2 Update:
The Aztec Division II side is off and running. The team has played two league matches so far and based on the performances so far it looks like the D2 will be a contender as well.
The team met the #1 ranked D2 UC Irvine squad to start the first ever campaign in D2. It was a hearty group of mostly freshman and sophomore who faced off against an upper class group of UCI. A couple of early miscues by the young Aztec squad gave UCI an early lead. The team rallied from their to find their first score. At half the score stood at 21 - 7 in favor of UCI. The second half proved to be not as fruitful for the team as UCI used a heavy downwind advantage and racked up four additional trys. Final score was 54-7. Werner Pieters #10 was dominant on the day.
The following week the team regrouped to meet CS Fullerton. This time the young team was up for the challenge and by playing tight patterned play the Aztecs were able to consistently move the ball down the field. Once they scored the first try they never looked back. Utilizing nice clean ball from the forwards #13 James Coder was able to break through the defense for some beautiful long trys.
The defensive highlight of the day came when the UCI wing picked up an errant bounce at the 50 meter line with clear sailing to the tryline. Our #11 Cedric playing in only his second game raced from the other sideline to give chase. At the 10 meter line it looked close but Cedric was not to be denied. He took the wing out at the 1 foot line denying CSF their only try. Final score 52-0 Aztecs on top with a total of 8 tries on the day.
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| Remaining Home Schedule
The Aztecs have three remaining home games. Two will be on Friday nights and one game scheduled for Sunday. The Friday night games are relished by the team where the crowd and atmosphere is electric. All games are scheduled to be played on the Football practice fields located adjacent (West) to the 55th street parking structure. Don't forget to pay for parking at the yellow kiosk structures located in the front of the parking lot.
Please check: aztecrugby.com for any last minute scheduled adjustments. Listed below are the scheduled dates, games and times.
Friday Feb 22nd vs UCSD 6:00 PM
Friday Mar 7th vs ASU 6:00 PM
Sunday Mar 9th vs UOA 1:00 PM
Aztec gear will be on sale at all the games. Come on out and show your support!!!
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| Foundation Supports USA U19 Selection
The player talent continues to expand at SDSU with one of our newest member being selected to the USA Under 19 squad. Mike Hicks SDSU's new starting fullback was selected over the Christmas break to join the U19 team on a trip to Ireland. Mike turned in stellar back to back performances in the ITT's representing Southern California to earn his selection.
Due to financial hardship Mike was almost not able to join the USA team. Hearing this the coaching staff and the Foundation stepped forward to ensure that this premier selection to USA Rugby was not forgone.
Mike joined the team on December 26th and travelled to Ireland playing in two of the three scheduled matches over a 10 day Ireland tour. Overall the team went 1-2 on the tour with Mike relishing the experience and coming back hungry for more.
Please join us in congratulating Mike on this incredible achievement! Nice job Mike!!!
Your donations help the Foundation in sponsoring future Aztec's that grow their game to the highest levels. Please keep your support coming. |
| John L Quigley Family Trust Continues Scholarship Sponsorship
Early in January the Foundation received a $5000.00 check from the John L Quigley Family Trust. John was a stern supporter of rugby and I had the opportunity to witness this first hand when he joined our tour to Australia and Fiji in 1993.
Applications for this year's scholarships have been distributed and are due on Feb 21st.
Applicants will be judged in a number of categories including:
Team Contributions
Player Development
Financial Hardship
Player Impact
As in previous years the Foundation may award one or several scholarships. Scholarships will be awarded in early March of 2008.
We thank David Quigley and The John L Quigley Family Trust for their continued support.
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Website Designer Selected
In January the Foundation selected:
Rene Lausen of Buy Design Graphics as our website designer. Rene is a Kiwi by birth so supporting rugby was inherrent for him. He is in the process of compiling our information, adding graphics along with advertising capabilities and establishing key links for the Aztec Team, The Foundation Newsletters and PayPal.
The domain name we have secured is:
aztecrugbyfoundation.org.
Please look for our site to be up and running by the end of March. In the future, if you need Web Design or Graphic Arts support please contact Rene at
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| IRB Sevens Scheduled for San Diego
The second year of the scheduled five year run for the International Rugby Board Seven's Championship took place in San Diego on Feb 6 -10th, 2008. And what a tournament it was. Teams from 16 nations around the world came to San Diego with NZ winning their 6th tournament in a row. Hong Kong and Melrose, Scotland are the only two settings left in the 2008 IRB Sevens schedule.
This event is the largest rugby event in North America. The venue was San Diego's Petco Park with attendance averaging 20,000 for the two days. Club sides and individuals travelled from all over the world to be a part of these premier destination tournament.
San Diego and the USA team did not let the crowd down. San Diego produced perfect conditions with mild Santa Ana winds and temperatures in the high 70's. The USA went on to perform well too finishing 3-3 and while missing a full time kick to push Wales into overtime. The team has improved in the 6 tournaments to 16-18-1 compared to a year ago when they went 6-28-1.
If you have not made it out to this tournament yet please set your calendar for next year for this world class event.
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| Save the Date For Alumni Road Trip:
Alumni March 15th will be a special gathering weekend for Aztec Rugby Alumni & Parents. The team is putting together a 40 foot motor coach for all Aztec alumni, family and friends to travel from SDSU to UCLA. The coach will leave early Saturday the 15th and return after the scheduled league matches on the day. An Aztec Tee Shirt, refreshments, food and a lively attitude will be served to and from the game.
Head coach Dan Payne is the organizer for this occasion so please contact him directly for a flyer at: danieltpayne@aol.com UCLA has been playing very good rugby and appears to be a contender for top 3 finish in league. The team boasts a paid full time coach and his recruiting and program development are starting to emerge.
UCLA represents another grudge macth for SDSU as the coach contested the last years game even though the score was 46-12. After numerous faxes and additional paperwork turned into Southern California Rugby the team was cleared with the win. The sting of the allegation from the inquiry has left a bitter taste in the young Aztec side and has provided additional motivation for this years match.
The Foundation will send out a separate email when all the details have been finalized. For now though, simply save the date and make plans to make this wonderful trip. |
| Aztec Rugby Foundation Launches "Legacy 100" Campaign
In the last newsletter we once again announced the Legacy 100 campaign. With that call to action we received are largest donation to date. In addition several Aztecs have verbally committed to join. Please see the details below of the Legacy 100 and start to make plans to join this proud Aztec group.
In conjunction with Alumni Day 2007 the Aztec Rugby Foundation launched it's primary fund raising campaign for 2008, the Legacy 100. The announcement of the Legacy 100 is an effort to immediately jump start our financial base. The Foundation is searching for 100 proud alumni to step forward and contribute $1000.00 each by the end of our fiscal year June 30, 2008.
If we are successful our goal of establishing a base financial structure of $100k will be achieved. This base will be utilized to maintain a self-sustaining financial core for the SDSU Rugby Program. To put this in perspective this is an initial effort to get moving. It has been stated that Cal - Berkeley's foundation financial base is in the neighborhood of $42 million!!
Fellow Aztec alumni and supporters we ask that you review what Aztec Rugby has meant to you. In my daily life rugby has contributed to so many memories that I could not imagine my life without it. Whether it is fond memories of games, trys scored, friendships made, great coaches or travelling to new places, Aztec Rugby has impacted all of us in a positive way. The Foundation hopes you agree and will step forward at this time to carry on the tradition for a future generations.
Packages are still being compiled for the Legacy 100 members. However, immediate recognition will be via the newsletter, our website and on our masthead for all future letterhead. Your name will appear down the side of our future letterhead as a Legacy 100 member. Additionally, we are compiling Aztec apparel packages.
If you have made a financial contribution in the past but it was under the $1k mark to become a member, then the Foundation will honor your previous contribution. For instance if you had previously donated $500 and wanted to be a Legacy 100 member than a second donation of $500 would only be needed to become a full member.
This campaign will be a great start for guaranteeing future years of Aztec Rugby. PLEASE DON'T DELAY- JOIN THE LEGACY 100 NOW.
Please mail your contributions with check payable to:
Aztec Rugby Foundation
PO Box 910682
San Diego, CA. 92191 | |
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| About Us:
Foundation Principles & Directors
What is the SDSU Rugby Foundation? We are a newly formed Public Benefit Corporation, Incorporated in the State of California. The Foundation is organized under the Nonprofit Corporation Law for charitable purposes. We are exempt from Federal Income Tax as a non profit 501 (c) (3) public charity designation. As part of of our designation all donations to the Foundation our tax deductible.
The Foundation's mission is to develop, foster and support rugby at San Diego State University. Our specific purposes stated in our bylaws are:
1. Development and management of resources for the support of the San Diego State University Rugby Program.
2. Development and management of scholarship, networking and academic enhancement programs for the benefit of the San Diego State University Rugby Program.
3. Promotion and protection of Rugby at San Diego State University.
4. The implementation and monitoring of fundraising to assure the continuation of the San Diego State Rugby Foundation.
The Foundation's financial vision is long term in nature. We are looking to build an endowment fund that will not only help support the current team but also provide for future generation of Aztec's.
This newsletter's purpose is to serve as a communication vehicle to bring the Aztec Rugby Community, located throughout the world, up to date with the current status of San Diego State Rugby.
In November of 2006, six former Aztecs were elected to sit on the inaugural board of the Foundation. We believe this group of officers and directors bring a unique blend of professional experience including engineering, finance, legal, nonprofit and entrepreneurship to help lead the Foundation forward. The officers and directors are:
David Crist, President 85-87*
Jimmy Parker, Vice President 81-87*
Stephen Marshall, Treasurer 84-88*
Chris Morris, Secretary 86-89*
Dwayne Parker, Director 82-87*
Chris Prell, Director 84-88*
* Aztec Rugby
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