🏆St. Martin's clinches the three-peat.

Five weeks ago, Aquinas handed Saint Martin’s a 12–10 loss.

Saint Martin’s didn’t forget.

In the Kansas state final at Westwick Field, the Kingfishers ran wild, defeating Aquinas 50-0 to win their third straight state title.

It started out tight, with neither team able to gain an advantage. Both sides had big opportunities wiped out by forward passes, and the territorial kicking game took center stage. But once St. Martin’s started rolling, it was all Kingfishers, all day.

Senior captain Ethan Blakie set the tone with big early hits, and Luke Sapio got them on the board around the 10th minute.

But the key sequence came soon after. Aquinas threatened inside five meters and appeared to crash through for a try, but St. Martin’s Will Van De Ryt held the ball up in-goal.

An offsides penalty gave the ball right back to Aquinas, and they went right back to hammering the Kingfishers’ defense near the try line. But St. Martin’s held firm, turning away each runner with ferocious tackling. Peter McDonald, playing through an ankle injury, helped organize a smothering defensive stand, and Sam Egger poached the ball to shut the door.

From there, momentum swung to St. Martin’s—and they never let it slip away.

JP Gallo and Ben Walsh added first-half tries, both set up by heavy carries and quick hands from the forward pack. Will Van De Ryt nailed all three conversions to make it 21-0 Kingfishers at the break.

In the second half, they stomped on the gas again.

Mulholland, JP Van De Ryt, Prosper Owen, and Henry Schafer each scored, with Van De Ryt adding two more conversions and a penalty to bring the total to 50. Aquinas couldn’t get out of their own end. Joseph Masny’s defensive reads and Will Van De Ryt’s kicking game kept them pinned down all half.

The last 15 minutes became a senior send-off for St. Martin’s, including an emotional return from Berkeley Nordhus, who’d missed the season with a knee injury but suited up one last time.

Saint Martin’s had everything working—Robbie Ritson’s control at nine, Finn Burch powering through contact, Blakie and Owen leading the defensive charge, and a back three that moved decisively on the counterattack.

St. Thomas Aquinas is still one of the best teams in Kansas. But this day belonged to Saint Martin’s.

Final Score: St. Martin’s 50 — 0 St. Thomas Aquinas

St. Martin’s has only been around since 2019, but there are already whispers of “dynasty” floating around their halls. Premature? Maybe. But there’s no denying how impressive this win was.

It’s a shame the Kingfishers won’t be returning to nationals this year. They found a new gear to close out the season—and we want more.

Next up: St. Martin’s season ends on a high note, while St. Thomas Aquinas heads to nationals next week to test their mettle against Raptor Rugby (TN) in the opening round.