The Wartburg College Rugby Club is off to an impressive start as a virtually brand new student organization.

Jake Ahles, a junior from Lino Lakes, Minn., started the rugby club during his freshman year and is pleased with its progress.

“I am astonished by the way the school reacted to it,” Ahles said. “The students really showed love for it, and they took to it faster than even I had expected.”

Because it is not an NCAA sport, the Wartburg Rugby Club plays club games throughout the Midwest in the fall and spring — including a recent match against Luther College, which Wartburg won 39-0.

Wartburg also claimed a 3-1 record at a large tournament in Wayne, Neb., and a 46-0 win over Iowa State’s B-side.

“All of the teams we have played — besides St. Ambrose — have been around for many years and are well established,” Ahles said. “The thing that makes our season this spring so spectacular is the fact that we are a new team, entirely run by students, and we are self-coached.

The students are much like Ahles, who only picked up the sport in college after watching his older brother play at college.

“Many of our players have only been playing for a couple of spring seasons and have already been invited to be part of Iowa’s Select Side team,” he said. “We have a few people who played in high school, but for the most part it’s new guys. That’s the great thing about rugby, it’s really easy to pick up.”

As with intercollegiate sports, the rugby club must now reload. Ahles said it must find enough members to commit to playing after losing nearly half of the squad to graduation.

“If anybody would like to play they shouldn’t think twice,” Ahles said. “It’s a phenomenal sport that you can enjoy for many years to come, while building great skills, friends and memories.”