🏉NC State Final: South Meck Leaves No Doubt—And Takes the Trophy 🏆

South Meck 41 — 19 Charlotte Catholic

They weren’t going to let it end any other way.

South Meck had one goal this season: win the whole thing. And today, after fifty-eight minutes (more on that in a minute) of high-stakes rugby, that’s exactly what they did. They are the 2025 North Carolina State Champions.

Charlotte Catholic was every bit as good as advertised. They came in with confidence, an elite kicking game, and the kind of grit that had carried them through an incredible season.

But South Meck had something extra in the tank today—a refusal to let this moment slip away.

South Meck did almost everything right in this game. They played the fast, physical brand of rugby that brought them to this moment, and their team leaders played at an even higher level than usual. Quinn Miller led a smothering forward pack, and Jameson Beatty had himself a day commanding the backline.

Even so, for the first 30 minutes of the game, this was a dogfight. Catholic nearly matched South Meck try for try, and at the 27 minute mark, the score stood at 15-14, South Meck. It felt like this one could go either way. Several phenomenal defensive stands by each team kept things razor-thin.

But that was as close as it was going to be.

Just before halftime, Jack Flemings darted through the defense for a huge try—bringing South Meck’s lead to 22-14 at the break.

Second half

Jameson Beatty was an animal for South Meck all day. The guy can torment a defense with his running ability, but to open the second half, he showed another game-changing element of his skill-set.

Seconds into the second half, Beatty made a tackle, and followed it with a textbook poach. He slung the ball out to Brody Evans who drew a defender and passed to Patrick Dugan, who outflanked the Catholic defense and notched another try for South Meck. Missed conversion. Score: 27-14, South Meck.

Then, Beatty struck again. This time, he took a pass following a lineout, faked a pass outside, and sprinted through the defense for his second try of the day. (Score: 34-14)

Charlotte Catholic wasn’t done though.

They responded by methodically marching down the field and punching the ball through…only to be held up by South Meck’s Jackson Wilson in the try zone.

But Catholic didn’t let that deflate them. Instead, Vince Keller launched a booming kick and South Meck mishandled it right on their try line. After several tense phases near the try zone, South Meck committed a penalty and Keller struck decisively—taking a quick tap and plowing into the try zone. Kick wide right. Score 34-19, South Meck.

And just like that, Catholic had some momentum.

They took the ensuing kickoff and began another impressive march down the field keeping the ball in-hand.

Then, disaster struck for Catholic.

South Meck’s defense swarmed, forcing a frantic pass that hit the deck.

And guess who was right there to scoop it up?

You guessed it — Jameson Beatty.

He pounced on the loose ball, hit the afterburners, and was gone—sprinting 60 meters untouched to the try zone.

41-19, South Meck, after the kick.

That’s when things took an ugly turn. I’ll give you the short version without naming names: Two players started chirping at each other during the conversion kick, the bickering continued up to half-field, and then it came to blows. A mini brawl ensued, and the officials decided to call the game with 12 minutes left on the clock.

Definitely NOT how you want a state final to end.

Final Score: South Meck 41 — 19 Charlotte Catholic

Despite the fisticuffs ending, this was an incredible game. And although the match was ended early, let there be no mistake: South Meck had their foot firmly on the gas pedal, and they deservedly took home the trophy, putting an exclamation point on an exceptional season.

For Charlotte Catholic, they have plenty to hang their hat on. Their turnaround season was nothing short of remarkable. It takes a special group of players and coaches to go from 0-7 to a state title match.

I’m sure this one stings. There’s no denying that. But these kids balled out this year, and most of them will return next season to make another run for it.

If I were in the prediction business, I’d say we’ll see these two battling it out again next year.

But today belongs to South Meck.

They overcame adversity. They proved the doubters wrong.

And they rightfully took home the hardware.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you the North Carolina State Champions:

🏆South Meck🏆

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