Men's Rugby: Yale claims Koranda Cup in hard-fought match

One year later, a second-floor balcony in Chicago collapsed, bringing down the balconies below it and claiming the lives of 12 people. Koranda was one of those 12.

The trophy presented to the winning side was renamed the Rob Koranda Cup to celebrate Koranda’s life. Though never a captain of the team, Koranda was the first recipient of the Mello award, given to the player “who best demonstrates loyalty to the team on and off the field.” The award is named after Chris Mello ’98, who was aboard American Airlines Flight 11 when it crashed into the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

“When Rob died, we had the idea of developing or naming the regular rivalry in Rob’s name as a way of remembering Rob and to help celebrate the spirit of why we all do it,” coach Richard Lopacki said. “Young men going out and enjoying themselves, playing hard, but also developing friendships and developing good, quality character.”

The game on Saturday, however, was not all about mourning Koranda’s tragic passing. Rather, the memory of the former player spurred both teams to what was a truly meaningful contest. The Tigers’ squad was swelled with players, who made the trip up to New Haven to be a part of a rainy, muddy contest for one reason: They were playing Yale.

“It’s huge,” junior tight-head prop Dusty Davidson said.

“I was looking forward to the game for a really long time ... I was extremely ready to play and very excited.”

Talk on the sidelines before the game began centered on the Tigers’ “epic” defense this season. Princeton entered the contest on a five-game streak of not allowing a single point. Lopacki addressed the team and stressed the need to be extremely physical with the experienced Yale team.

The Tigers listened to their coach.

Over the course of the game, the Princeton scrum proved superior to Yale’s. When the ball went to the ground, Princeton outmuscled the Bulldogs’ ruck. The offense, however, struggled.

“The obvious problem was the weather,” senior fullback Adam Nassr said. “The ball was extremely hard to control. We were getting slow ball, so by the time two people had passed it, the defense was on us. There was just too much pressure to get the ball out wide.”

The pressure and the conditions led to multiple errors, blocked kicks and turnovers that allowed Yale into the match. Despite Princeton’s furious comeback effort, the Bulldogs prevailed 22-17.

The game capped Yale’s first back-to-back victories against Princeton for the Koranda Cup. The loss was emotionally crushing, and senior loose-head prop John Veras was moved to tears.

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The game had been heated. Both benches had been animated and the players on the field were fired up. But amazingly, the final whistle seemed to change everything. Players mingled together for the postgame photo.

Yale coach Jan Pikul refereed the B-team game. The muddy conditions had left the Princeton team caked in dirt — Yale was kind enough to let the team use the varsity field house to shower.

“It’s not easy,” Nassr said of being sportsmanlike after the loss.

“But that’s what rugby’s all about ... A huge aspect of the sport is socializing with the other team after the game and celebrating the fact that you guys both enjoy the sport.”

Two much cleaner teams shared dinner together, a barbecue at a little pub in downtown New Haven that the Yale team had rented out. Players who had been trying to, in Lopacki’s words, “crucify” each other mere hours before shared tables and joked around while waiting for the burgers, hot dogs and ribs to come off the grill.

Lopacki presented Pikul with the Koranda Cup, and senior captain and eight-man Zak Deschaine smiled his way through a speech to both schools. It was a stark contrast to his stony-faced address after the loss.

Koranda was a student of the game, and he was also beloved. After graduating, he moved to Chicago to live with former teammates. After his death, close friends and classmates came together to engrave a stone that now graces the Princeton chapel. Even the team’s MVP award is named after Koranda.

“He was very mature for a college student,” said Robert August Koranda scholarship president Sandy Lopacki, Richard’s wife.

“He really became a very close friend to both Richard and me. He was a very considerate young man, very thoughtful.”

Richard Lopacki loves to talk about the camaraderie of the game that he has been playing since he was a kid. “Collegiality” is an oft-repeated explanation for how such a physical game can engender so much good will. And though Princeton lost, it was a night of celebration. Nine years ago, Koranda was enjoying the same collegiality between two tough competitors.

“In a way all of us are like Rob at this particular age,” Lopacki said. “It’s sort of part of what we’re trying to do here — help the guys think a little bit about themselves, where they are and be thankful for what they have.”