Women’s rugby qualifies for Nationals in spring season

Perhaps overshadowed by the buzz surrounding the Vassar College men's soccer game at the NCAA Division III Championships, the women's rugby team qualified for their own National Championship tournament with a 20-19 victory over Rutgers University last Saturday. Entering the weekend, both the men's and women's teams had the opportunity to qualify for their respective national championships, hosting qualifying tournaments. The seventh seeded women's team needed to win just one of their two games, while the top-seeded men's team needed to win both contests.

The women's team was able to avenge a regular season loss to the Scarlet Knights with an exciting last-second penalty kick, converted by leading scorer O'Mara Taylor '12, who also scored two tries. The contest proved to a back-and-forth affair after the Brewers jumped out to an early 5-0 lead, the largest deficit either team faced on the day.

After a stunning late try by Rutgers put the Scarlet Knights up 19-17, the Brewers marched down the field and were awarded with a 30-meter penalty kick. Taylor calmly stepped up and converted the kick and the match official whistled the game over shortly after, sealing the Brewers' victory. Dallas Robinson '14, who put the Brewers ahead 17-14 with a second half try, shared her joy in an emailed statement, writing, "Our win on Saturday was such an amazing feat. I am still so excited about what that win means."

The next match on Sunday against Norwich University proved to be a more difficult task, as the Brewers fell to their powerful opponents 46-0. Robinson again explained, "Sunday, was a much rougher day for us, but we played so hard. Norwich is definitely a team that knows rugby, and I think the fact that we did keep them from scoring for so long definitely counts for something." While the Brewers will certainly have to think about the loss for the time being, they have Nationals to look forward to come spring. Robinson sums up the exuberance she feels about the weekend, remarking, "This weekend was amazing and bitter at the same time. I love this team so much, and Nationals is going to be surreal. Get ready, USA!"

The women's triumph came just hours after a heartbreaking 43-35 loss by the men's team at the hands of Fairfield University.

The preparation for the weekend was one of immense anxiety for the team. "For starters this past week was the longest week of my life," senior winger Brett Anker explained in an emailed statement. "In my 17 years of sports I never wanted to win a game more than this weekend." The Brewers men's team faced a Fairfield team that they were able to defeat earlier this season by a score of 19-13. In the opening half, it appeared as though the earlier result would be duplicated. Anker continued, "We came out fired up and took an early lead."

However, it was clear that this match was a far cry from the regular season contest against the Stags. "Vassar's game against Fairfield was a very volatile, exciting and high-scoring game, which was in sharp contrast to the drag-it-out battle in the trenches that occurred when the two teams played earlier in the year," commented Jonathan Chu '13; and, unfortunately for the Brewers' side, their defensive effort was lackluster enough to allow Fairfield to gain a few lucky breaks, ultimately defeating Vassar 43-35. Anker described the end of the game, writing, "We just couldn't put in the knockout punch that would have launched us into the final. With about five minutes to go, they took the lead on a 90-meter try. I was devastated. They added another try and finished us off."

Anker cited the play of some of the Vassar forwards, commenting, "I would also say that Adam Steele ‘12, James Purtle '12 and Andrew Jdaydani '14 played fantastic games." Despite the great team play, the Brewers couldn't quite pull out the victory. Chu provided final thoughts about the weekend match and the fall season, stating, "We were all sad that such a great season had to end in such a disheartening game. Nonetheless, I think I can speak for the entire team when I say that we're all very proud of what we've done this season and how far we've come. The spring season can't come soon enough!"

With the Vassar men's squad having an excellent combination of youth and experience to build upon and the women's side claiming a berth at Nationals, both rugby teams will have plenty to to look forward to for the Spring 2012 season.