Philadelphia-Whitemarsh claimed USA Rugby's club 7s title in front of a hometown crowd Sunday with a 26-19 victory over NOVA.

The champions had dispatched Orlando 24-0 in the semifinals while NOVA had cruised past Seattle-Fiji 31-0. The Pacific Coast side went on to take third place, winning the cup consolation match 19-12.

But in contrast to the comfortable victory margins of the semis, all teams struggled through tough quarterfinals, none more so than the eventualchampions. With fulltime up on the clock, Philadelphia-Whitemarsh strung together a 60-meter scoring movement to snatch a 14-12 win from Baltimore-Chesapeake. Orlando also waited until the last play of the game to sneak by Elvis at the Oprey 14-12, while NOVA fought its way to 17-7 win over St. Louis and Seattle Fiji dispatched Tempe 19-7.

In the Plate round of the competition in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, the semifinals saw Baltimore-Chesapeake stave off Elvis at the Oprey, 14-12, and Tempe defeat St. Louis 12-0. The Arizona side then took the Plate final 24-12 over Baltimore-Chesapeake.

Belmont Shore, meanwhile, took the Bowl with a 26-7 victory over Louisville. The Long Beach, California, side went past Kansas City 10-7 in one bowl semifinal while Louisville stormed back from a 17-point deficit against Hartford to win their match 19-17. The Bowl quarterfinals were cancelled due to weather and the teams ranked third in their pools advanced to the semifinal round.

At the women's invitational, Maryland's Kim Thompson contributed three tries to her side's 33-7 romp over the West Select side in the finals. Eagle Diane Schnapp added a try for a team that also featured several Berkeley players, and Jane Mitchell had a try as well as four conversions.

Although not featured in the scoring column, Krista McFarren was the title-winning team's field general, directing play and involved in crucial set-up throughout the tournament. Her Maryland side were 43-0 victors over Atlantis I in their semifinal while the West team battled past Atlanta 14-10. Atlantis would go on to claim third place with a 7-5 win over Atlanta, the try scored at the very end of the match.