Navy Rugby Alumni Association News

-Trajectory Bending Moves

Ruggers past and present,

Since the formation of NRAA, I have been especially grateful to contribute to the development of our Alumni Association and our Navy Rugby program. I am beyond humbled by the opportunity to be your President and build on the exceptional progress we've made thus far. Further, we are anxious to see what we can do with strong numbers and more involvement. To that end, with the authority, responsibility, and accountability that comes with leading this team, we will endeavor to make you proud. More specifically, we will be laser focused on 3 strategic interests

1) Building our Alumni Membership and Network. Remember? The Might of The Chain

2) Leveraging our Capacity to Contribute. Remember? "With You"

3) Unlocking our Philanthropic Potential. Remember? Strength in Numbers...

All of us are stronger than one of us. To these endeavors we commit ourselves, and by doing so, we commit ourselves to the men and women of Navy Rugby...yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

With you & Vr,

Pat O'Mahoney, '99 NRAA President

Navy Rugby Alumni, Family and Friends,

 It is our honor to announce the Navy Rugby Alumni Association (NRAA) Hall of Fame Class of 2025!

Our 10th annual “With You” dinner is about celebrating one another as we honor the past, present, and future of our storied Navy Rugby program. This year we also celebrate 30 years of Women's Rugby at the Naval Academy.

This year’s class is joining an elite group of former players, coaches, teams and supporters from over 80 combined years of on field excellence.

 The HOF plaque ceremony and subsequent annual “With You” dinner will be held at Navy Marine Corps Memorial Stadium on Friday, 3 October, 2025. 

We look forward to another great weekend promoting the Men’s and Women’s programs, preserving our legacy, continuing to grow the NRAA Hall of Fame, and of course connecting with former teammates and friends.

2025 Hall of Fame Inductees

Players

Ted Serfass '74

Nick Kalt '00

Jack McAuliffe '15

Tracy Klopp '03

Elizabeth Trujillo '10

 Supporters

Mr. Chet Gladchuk, USNA AD 2001-2025

Tom Brodmerkel '80

 Team

1986 Men's Team

1993 Men's Team

TICKETS ARE SELLING FAST! You can register for the event now by clicking the link below. if you have any questions, please reach out to our “with you” dinner chairman, Joe Buenavista at 209-346-0856 or jcbuenavista7@yahoo.com.

On Saturday, October 4th, the Men’s team hosts the Life University Running Eagles looking for revenge from last fall's close loss to the national championship runner up. 

Cheers,

Rob Sinram ‘97

Navy Rugby Hall of Fame Chairman

-NRAA Legacy Leaders:

This is the first salvo of many that we hope will build a connection with our scholar warriors headed to the FLEET.  Dennis Volpe ('96), Executive Performance and Transition Coach, Severn River Leadership Group, LLC, a rugger skilled in the art of executive coaching and professional development, has volunteered to lead our Legacy Leaders Program.  As you may recall, we've recently established this program as a vehicle to (1) Create and sustain a connection with graduating Firsties and rising Midn to mentor and develop our rising leaders; and (2) Connect Alumni to Alumni for professional support, mentoring, and networking. Jack McAuliffe ('15) will be assisting Dennis in this endeavor. The initial moves relate to our Class of 2025 service selectees and how we'll do more to connect with them ahead of joining the FLEET.

With you & Vr, Pat O'Mahoney, '99, NRAA President

-Class Captains: NRAA Class Representative Program:

Greetings All - Rick "Pokey" Keller, class of 81' coordinating our Class Captain efforts as we look to take the next steps toward continued Navy Rugby Excellence. I am reaching out to men and women Navy Rugby Alumni asking for volunteers to act as the "Class Captain" for your class. We are looking for someone in each class to help rekindle the enthusiasm we all had as classmates/teammates and use that to get behind our current Navy Rugby programs. As the Class Captain you will be a conduit to your classmates amplifying messaging, helping ensure that we have as complete a roster of alumni as possible, and tailoring information to your class and their particular situations among other things. Contact me direct with questions if needed: pokey.keller@gmail.com / 256-558-0235

CLASS CAPTAIN LINK UP SUMMARY - 27 May 2025

-Highlighted the role Class Captains play in ensuring that each class roster is complete and up to date and that Class Captains are the focal point for class involvement in supporting Navy Rugby across the board (Fundraising, volunteering, general support, etc.).

-Emphasized that NRAA is for all Navy Rugby - both Men's and Women's - and a strong point for us... Mentioned plans for recognizing Women's program founding anniversary at this years HoF dinner.

-Shared NRAA Vision documents for our support to Navy Rugby and continued growth of the Alumni Association.

With you and VR, Pokey ‘81

UPDATE (4/11/2025): Still need Class Captain volunteers for the following classes/teams, Thanks!:

Men's - ‘67, ‘68, ‘72, ‘73, ‘04, ‘08,

Women's - ‘02, ‘05, ‘06, ‘12, ‘13, ‘14, ‘17, ‘22, ‘23, ‘24, ‘25

Sincere Appreciation to those that have volunteered! BEAT ARMY!

1963-Ernest Blake 1964-Ernest Blake 1965-John Fyfe 1966-Andre Simonpietri 1967- 1968- 1969-Thomas Meteer 1970-Michael Knudsen 1971-John Cherry 1972- 1973- 1974-Rusty Kollmorgan 1975-Michael Langley 1976-Frederick Yarger 1977-Jim Bethmann 1978-John Wissler 1979-Peter Long 1980-Richard Carlquist 1981-John Burke 1981-Patrick Keller 1982-Matthew Aylward 1983-Mike Coughlin 1984-Randy King 1985-Marty Migliori 1986-JT Young 1987-Joe Buenavista 1988-Bob Strong 1989-Rob Cassady 1990-Rob Garretson 1991-Christian Bonat 1992-John Tarzon 1993-Brandon Lewis 1994-Jason Hedberg 1995-Daniel Morris 1996M-Sean Donovan 1996W- Jen Goddard 1997M-Daniel Freedman 1997W-Nikki Peoples 1998M-John Maguire 1998W-Ashley Sullivan 1999M-Pat O'Mahoney 1999W-Sarah Jansen 2000M-Devin Smiley 2000W-Lindsay Hawkins 2001M-Seth Stegmaier 2001W-Kathy Borkoski 2002M-Rob Stimis 2002W- 2003M-Ryan Curry 2003W-Aileen Kenney 2004M- 2004W-Bridget Seymour 2005M-Nick Ralston 2005W- 2006M-Mac Marrone 2006W- 2007M-Lindsay Blake 2007W-Catherine Long 2008M- 2008W-Sasha Frankhouser 2009M-Patrick Wheatley 2009W-Marianne Carlson 2010M-Kyle Millerd 2010W-Danielle Cicuto 2011M-Sean Rohrs 2011W-Jennifer Sandifer 2012M-Michael Bressler 2012W- 2013M-Matthew Kelley 2013W 2014M-Broderick Neel-Feller 2014W- 2015M-John McAuliffe 2015W-Hailey Brunette 2016M-Henry Dewing 2016W-Samantha Casey 2017M-Jake Martin 2017W- 2018M-Gardy Lebon 2018 M-Ben Johnston 2018W-Liz Pitman 2019M-Cole Euverard 2019W-Sidney Knipple 2020M-Bo Kendrick-Holmes 2020W-Robyn Roper 2021M-Dallas Elliston 2021W-Kayla Ann Eshleman 2022M-Eddie Howell 2022W- 2023M-Connor Bradisch 2023W- 2024M-James Downing 2024W- 2025M-Ryan Hotaling 2025W-

-US Naval Academy Letter Winners Association: Honoring all varsity and club athletes:

If you played A or B side rugby before USNA issued letters/sweaters or need a replacement here is the link to the Navy Lettermen's Association to obtain one. The Letter Winners Association is working hard to finalize our rosters but needs input from the class captains in some cases. From the website:

Lost or Damaged Letter Sweater? No Problem!

The Navy Letterwinners Association is happy to offer a letter sweater replacement program for verified letterwinners. For more information, visit our letter sweater page on our website at the link below.

Be ready to show off your letter sweater at your next alumni gathering!

-A great podcast interview with Coach Gavin Hickie, Director of Navy Rugby, covering rugby life at Navy, the legacy of the program, training techniques, and the road ahead!