PMHS grad Nick Lapponese taken in first round of draft by New York Ironworkers of Major League Rugby

By Phoebe Schwarz, Assistant Managing Editor • August 22, 2023

Nick Lapponese will play professional rugby for the New York Ironworkers.

Call it a homecoming.

Nick Lapponese, a 2019 PMHS graduate, was drafted into Major League Rugby by the New York Ironworkers for the 2023-24 season and will play his home games at Memorial Field across the river in Mount Vernon.

The Ironworkers are the only professional rugby team in New York and were crowned Major League Rugby (MLR) Champions in 2022. The Ironworkers play a total of 16 games during their five-month season and face teams from all across the nation and Canada.

Lapponese was the No. 33 nationally ranked player coming out of high school. He led PMHS Rugby to multiple state championships during his high school years. He went on to have a successful college career, playing for Fairfield University. As a senior captain, he earned first team All-American status and helped lead Fairfield’s Red Ruggers to their first playoff since 2016.

See a video on Lapponese on the Ironworkers’ Instagram account @rugbynewyork.

Comments (0)

The Pelham Examiner intends for this area to be used to foster healthy, thought-provoking discussion. Commenters must provide their FIRST NAME and their LAST NAME. Comments are expected to adhere to our standards and to be respectful and constructive. As such, we do not permit the use of profanity, foul language, personal attacks or the use of language that might be interpreted as libelous. Comments are reviewed and must be approved by a moderator to ensure that they meet these standards. The Pelham Examiner does not allow anonymous comments, and requires a valid email address. The email address will not be displayed but will be used to confirm your comments. We will check to see if it works and may also request a street address if an email looks to be spam.

Share your thoughts...

All Pelham Examiner Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest