USARL South 9’s: Axemen Keep the Score Close, Lose in Semi Final

The 121 Financial Jacksonville Axemen got off to a good start in the USARL South 9’s Tournament last Saturday with a convincing 22-12 win over the Central Florida Warriors. The Axemen’s second game of the day against Tampa was much more of a challenge, with the lead going back and forth until finally ending in a tie of 16-16. The final game for playoff position was versus Atlanta who had already won their first 2 games. The game came down to conversion kicks, with the Axemen and Rhinos both scoring 3 tries. With Atlanta completing all three kicks to Jacksonville’s two, the Rhinos squeaked out with the win.

Jacksonville went into the playoffs in the second seed (1-1-1) versus the Central Florida Warriors (1-2). The game started off well with a 12-4 lead at the half, but the Warriors made a comeback, scoring 3 more tries for a 14-12 win and a ticket to the final.

The Warriors kept their Cinderella story alive in the final, completely dominating the Rhinos with a 20-0 win to become the first USARL South 9’s Champions.

Photo Credit: John Lynch

Game Timing: 1^st Half: 9 Min, Halftime: 5 Min, 2^nd Half: 9 Min Change Over: 2 min

Complete Tournament Results

Game 1: 3:30PM – Tampa Mayhem v Atlanta Rhinos

Result: Tampa 16 Atlanta 18

Game 2: 3:55PM – Jacksonville Axemen v Central Florida Warriors

Result: Jacksonville 22  Central Florida 12

Game 3: 4:20PM -Tampa Mayhem v Jacksonville Axemen

Result:Tampa 16   Jacksonville 16

Game 4: 4:45PM – Central Florida Warriors v Atlanta Rhinos

Result:Central Florida 4  Atlanta 10

Game 5: 5:10PM -Tampa Mayhem v Central Florida Warriors

Result:Tampa 14  Central Florida 28

Game 6: 5:35PM – Jacksonville Axemen v Atlanta Rhinos

Result: Jacksonville 10  Atlanta 12

Playoffs Semi Final 1: 1v4 – 6:40 PM Atlanta v Tampa

Result: Atlanta 16  Tampa 14

Playoffs Semi Final 2: 2v3 – 7:05 PM  Jacksonville v Central Florida

Result: Jacksonville 12  Central Florida 14

Southern 9s Championship – 7:30 PM  Atlanta versus Central Florida

Result: Atlanta 0  Central Florida 20