Michael Mangan ‘19 grew up in Westlake, Ohio with his younger brother and older sister and attended St. Bernadette's for grade school.

Before playing rugby Mangan participated in multiple rugby camps at Saint Ignatius and also played Rookie Rugby. Mangan’s parents were thrilled that their son was playing rugby and that he found a sport he excelled at. In addition to excelling at the game, Michael also loved the guys he played with every weekend.

“Hanging out with the boys these past few years I’ve made so many amazing memories that I will never forget. My favorite memories from the past 4 years have been going on the trips with the guys. From France to South Africa to Ireland, the great times I have had with my teammates they are my most cherished memories. Another great rugby memory was winning the state championship with my teammates last year. We had worked hard as a team throughout the entire year, and I was extremely happy that all our hard work paid off.”

Michael originally wanted to be a forward, as he loved the hard work and physical mentality of being a part of the pack. But eventually, he ended up showing impressive skills at center. The biggest challenge Michael faced was the learning curve that presents itself when a player transitions from playing 7’s to 15’s. Like the other players who transitioned, he noticed that there were more rucks and set pieces in 15’s than 7’s.

Mangan will be attending Ohio University in the fall and plans on majoring in accounting. He would like to thank the following people, “I would like to thank my coaches, teammates (past and current), and my family for always helping me excel in this sport that I love so much.”