Penn looked as though they were going to make it an Indiana sweep of the USA Rugby high school invitational championships early on, jumping out to an 6-0 lead with two Nathan Vincent penalties.

But Dixon settled in and reeled off 43-straight points and won 48-11 to take the HS crown.

Dixon got on the board first when fullback Anthony Salaber slid into pay dirt. He missed the conversion, leaving Dixon down one.

The Northern California champs then pressured a Penn scrum deep in the Indiana team’s end, and Penn flyhalf Jake Garwood knocked on the out pass. Dixon flanker Nick Bonovich astutely dove on the ball for the try, giving the Northern California club the lead 12-6 lead following Salaber’s conversion.

Dixon’s next score was a long-range individual effort, as inside center Nolan Williams shot through the Penn defense and raced more than half the field along the touch line, using dummies to keep would-be tacklers at bay. Williams was caught about five meters from pay-dirt, but pirouetted through an attempted tackle and carried the Penn defender clinging to his jersey across the line.

Dixon extended its lead when hooker Richard Bedoya displayed some surprising speed, bursting 40 meters through the Penn defense before being brought down inside the Penn 22. After a series of hard-charging runs, Salaber dotted down his second score and converted to extend Dixon’s lead to 24-6, which is how the half would end after Vincent missed his third shot at goal.

Dixon immediately picked up in the second half where it left off, as Salaber completed the hat trick finishing off a backline movement with a try, pushing Dixon out to a 31-6 lead. Chris Rico added two more tries, and Nolan scored his second, to round out the Dixon scoring. Jack DeLuca dotted down for Penn in the 60th minute.

For his 23-point performace Salaber was named the MVP. 

Dixon 48
Tries: Salaber (3), Bonovich, Williams (2), Rico (2)
Cons: Salaber (4)

Penn 11
Tries: DeLuca
Pens: Vincent (2)