Author: Sarah Minahan

This Saturday we traveled to Dartmouth to participate in the Division 2 bracket of their 7s tournament. We weren’t sure what to expect, having never played 7s before, but were excited to try this new form of rugby and learn a lot! To our surprise and excitement, we ended up winning the tournament with a 3 – 0 – 1 record. Scores and scorers are listed below.

Colgate: 10 – 10
Colgate (5)
Emily Duh (5)
Stevie Durocher (5)
Colgate (5)

Bowdoin: 27 – 0
Sarah Minahan (5)
Emily Duh (5)
Sarah Minahan (5)
Emily Duh (5) (2)
Molly Benedetto (5)

Brown B Side: 26 – 10
Katie Linder (5) (Duh – 2)
Sarah Sicular (5) (Duh – 2)
Sarah Sicular (5) (Duh – 2)
Sarah Minahan (5)
Brown (5)
Brown (5)
Dartmouth B Side: 24 – 12
Sarah Minahan (5)
Dartmouth (7)
Emily Duh (5) (2)
Stevie Durocher (5) (Duh – 2)
Molly Benedetto (5)
Dartmouth (5)

Last weekend we headed down to Rhode Island to compete in the largest collegiate rugby tournament in the eastern United States. We were a bit nervous going into it, having just 15 people with no subs.

The first day week came out hard and gained two well-earned wins in the first round of pool play over Wentworth and Brandeis. With these high scores, we were able to go into the quarterfinals on Sunday with the number 1 seed.

Unfortunately our opponent in the quarterfinals, Franklin Pierce did not show up and we won by forfeit. Our next game was the semifinal match up with Roger Williams, which we won 43 – 0 despite some issues with penalties. Finally, we met Plymouth State in the final and won the D 3 Women’s Championship title with a score of 19 – 5.

We were incredible proud of our ability to dominate this tournament, given our lack of subs and limited ability to practice this spring due to weather. Every player did an excellent job, and we returned to Vermont with an aggregate score of 137 – 5, and a shiny trophy cup!

Day 1
Wentworth: 43 – 0
Brandeis: 32 – 0

Day 2
Franklin Pierce:  forfeit
Roger Williams: 43 – 0
Plymouth: 19 – 5

Final Score, 67 – 0, win

It was a truly beautiful day for rugby as we headed to Amherst’s  home field in the lovely Pioneer Valley.

After a difficult loss against Colby we were ready to come out hard against Amherst and play 80 minutes of strong, competitive rugby. After a few minutes of offensive attack, outside center Emily “The Fast and the Furious” Duh (’14) ran the ball within a meter of the try line, allowing scrum half Sarah “You’re Gonna Hear Me Roar” Minahan (’14) to pick it up and place it just over the line for our first try of the game.

Another series of beautiful attack got us to our offensive 22-meter line. A knock-on allowed an Amherst scrum, however a strong collective drive from our powerful forwards won the ball for Middlebury. Sarah Minahan picked the ball off the scrum and ran it in for the second try of the game.

Lightening quick balls out, hard rucking, and the incredibly fast feet of Emily “Too Fast Too Furious” Duh led to try number 3. No sooner had we set up to receive again when a naïve Amherst kicked it straight into the arms of Emily “Tokyo Drift” Duh, who proved to be untackleable, running through the entire Amherst defense and straight into the try zone.

Not two minutes later, Emily “Fast & Furious” Duh passed a quick ball to full back Tiff “Walking Co-op” Chang (’17) allowing her to put her name on the board.

Middlebury’s forwards and backs worked together seamlessly, both in rucks and offensive lines. Especially strong rucking from prop Katie “Early Bird Special” Linder (’15) and hard runs from wing Heather “Judy Blume” Tourgee (‘17) kept the play in the Amherst defensive half. After a series of aggressive scrums and strong offense, Emily “Fast & Furious 4” Duh scored her third try, making it a hat-trick.

After the seventh received kick-off from Amherst, Middlebury again battled their way to the opposing try line. Inside center Marissa “Who Needs a Pinky?” Shaw (’14) pulled a classic and took the ball off of a ruck, plowed through the unsuspecting Amherst, and scored yet another try.

After a brief intermission, Middlebury kicked off to Amherst. Amherst led a valiant effort, driving down the field nearly to Middlebury’s try-line. Middlebury reclaimed the ball and the counter-attack began. A breakaway run by fly half Sarah “Silent But Deadly” Kravitz (’16), followed by an offload to Tiff Chang allowed her to score her second try of the game.

Amherst conceded a penalty just in front of their uprights, allowing Emily “Fast Five “ Duh to put another 3 points on the board. Shortly after, Amherst conceded another penalty within 5 meters of their defensive try line. Sarah Minahan popped it off to lock Molly “Yellow Brick Bridge” Benedetto (’14) who fought off tackle after tackle to place the ball into the try zone for her FIRST TRY EVER! Tears were shed by members of both teams, fans, and the ref.

To finish off the game, Emily “Fast and Furious Six” Duh danced her way effortless through the Amherst defensive line yet again for the tenth and last Middlebury try of the game.

It was a great game from all players. Shout out to our loose forwards, Brita “Sorry France is Closed” Fisher (’15), Lissa “Don’t Tell Me What To Do” Ortega (’17), and Franny “Get Low” Suarez (’17) for their impressive tackling, and to inside center Marissa Shaw for incredible runs, ball handling, and tackling. Also a very happy birthday to hooker Canary “Finally Legal” Ly (’17), and thank you to the parents who brought snacks and cheer.

We look forward to taking on Bates in our last regular season game this Saturday! Hope to see you there.

First Half
Sarah Minahan – 5 (Emily Duh – 2)
Sarah Minahan – 5 (Emily Duh – 2)
Emily Duh – 5 (Emily Duh – 2)
Emily Duh – 5 (Emily Duh – 2)
Tiff Chang – 5 
Emily Duh – 5 (Emily Duh – 2)
Marissa Shaw – 5
 
Second Half
Tiff Chang – 5 (Emily Duh – 2)
Emily Duh – 3
Molly Benedetto – 5
Emily Duh – 5 (Emily Duh – 2)

Final Score, 5 – 14, loss

It was a fairly evenly matched game, but we weren’t able to fight Colby off at the rucks and they had some great runners that went through our defensive line. 7 – 0 at the half, with another try early in the second half for 14 – 0. We finally stepped it up for the last 30 minutes or so of the game with a try from 8-man Marissa Shaw (’14).

First Half
Colby – 7

Second Half
Colby – 7
Marissa Shaw – 5

Final Score, 5 – 29, Loss

We headed down to Tufts this weekend to play our 3^rd NESCAC game of the season. Going into what we knew would be a hard game, we were looking to work on an aggressive defensive line, strong tackles and supporting our teammates.

It was a hard first half with great playing from both teams. The game felt evenly matched, but due to our lack of ability to cover the outside and playing down a player for much of the half, Tufts managed to score two tries by running down the outside line.

Despite being down a player, we fought hard and held off Tufts for much of the second half as well. They scored pretty early in the half, which we retaliated with our own try. After a great series of attack coming from both forwards and backs, we received a scrum within about 10 meters of our try line. 8-man Marissa “Pinky” Shaw (’14) took the ball off the scrum, went weak and popped it off to scrum half Sarah “Ricky Ricardo” Minahan (’14) who ran it in and touched it down for a try.

Shortly after this Tufts gained possession and got a quick run down the side line. Luckily full back Stevie “Drevie” Durocher (’15.5) was there to take her down and saved us from another try. Unfortunately, this cost Stevie a leg injury and we had to play out the rest of the second half with just 13 players. Despite this set back, we held Tufts off for most of the half, maintaining much of the possession and playing mostly in their half. In the last few minutes they finally broke through our defensive line for 2 more tries for a final score of 29 – 5.

Shout out to full back Tiff “2 Changz” Chang (’17) for her hard work, great runs and tackles. Amazing hits and runs by fly half Kyra “R-e-s-p-e-c-t” Grey (’17) and inside center Emily Duh (’14). Great rucking from lock Molly “Janis Ian” Benedetto (’14) and prop Katie “AARP” Linder (’15).

It was a hard loss, but we played our hearts out and left everything on the field. It was a truly impressive game, and personally I’ve never been so proud of my team.

Thanks to our family, friends and alums who made it to the game; Jess Berry (’13), Hannah Elkin (’13), Evan Pagano (’12), Melissa Hayes (’12), and Logan Gallogaly (’12) all made it out and it was great to see them and have their support!

Next week we play Colby at home for parents weekend! 10:00am at the rugby pitch, see you there!

First Half
Tufts – 5
Tufts – 5, 2

Second Half
Tufts – 5
Sarah Minahan – 5
Tufts – 5, 2
Tufts – 5

Final Score, 29 – 3, Win

A beautiful day for rugby. Middlebury up 7 – 0 at the half with a try coming off a great run from wing Heather “BIG HEAT” Tourgee (’17) and conversion from Emily “Ann” Duh (’14).

The second half was much stronger as we stepped up our level of play, getting to the rucks quicker and playing harder on both offense and defense. A great run by prop Sarah “Sick” Sicular (’16) got us within 5 meters of our try line. 8-man Marissa Shaw (’14) called for a quick punch to the weak side to score our second try of the game.

The next try came from outside center Lissa “De Rúgbi” Ortega (’17) after a beautiful quick ball out from the back line. Another series of strong offensive brought us close to our try line, where Emily Duh (’14) got a pass off the ruck and ran it in to score in the center of the try zone. Sometime in the 2^nd half Williams earned a penalty and completed an impressive kick to earn 3 points.

Our last try of the game was from wing Caitlin “Wheels” Towers (’16), who was playing in her first game ever! It was another great quick ball out that created an overlap that allowed Caitlin to run by their defensive line.

It was a great game of rugby, with players stepping up to play new positions and work hard through the whole game. Thank you to Marissa’s parents for snacks after the game!!

First Half
Heather Tourgee – 5  (first try!!) (Emily Duh – 2)

Second Half
Marissa Shaw – 5 (Emily Duh – 2)
Lissa Ortega – 5 (first try!!)
Emily Duh – 5
Williams – 3
Caitlin Towers – 5  (first try!!)

Final Score 5 – 25, Loss

We played a good game with strong runs and hits coming from many players.  Bowdoin scored 2 tries in the first half, followed by a strong serious of Middlebury attack to gain us a try by 8-man Marissa “Sailor” Shaw (’14).

During the second half, an unfortunate injury to our talented fly half Sarah “Sarsh” Kravitz (’16) and an inability to cover the outside allowed Bowdoin 3 more tries. We had a few series of strong offensive that got us to the try zone, but unfortunately had 2 tries “held up”.

Despite the loss, we fought hard and played well. Excellent runs and defense by inside center Emily “Titanic” Duh, 8-man Marissa Shaw, prop Katie “Old Man” Linder (’15) and outside center Stevie “Drevie” Durocher (’15.5). Special shout out to Kyra “Trampoline” Grey (’17) and Brenda “bad-ass” Li (’17) on playing in their first rugby game ever!

First Half
Bowdoin — 5
Bowdoin — 5
Marissa Shaw — 5

Second Half
Bowdoin — 5
Bowdoin — 5
Bowdoin — 5

Final Score 79 – 5, win

As always, it was a beautiful day for rugby as we headed to St. Mike’s for our first full game of the season. The game was split into four 20-minute quarters to allow time for extra coaching and regrouping on both sides.

Excellent runs from centers Emily “LQB” Duh (’14) and Stevie “Drevie” Durocher (’15.5), along with lightening quick balls from both backs and forwards helped us gain many points throughout the game. We also had great scrums, winning both offensively and defensively, so special shout out to front row Katie “Old Man” Linder (’15), Canary “I love rugby” Ly (’17), and Lissa “Aca-awkward” Ortega (’17).

Great job to Heather “German Parliament” Tourgee, Tiff “ My Leg Bruises are Exploding in Colors” Chang, Brenna “Gondola” Chirstensen, Canary Ly, and Lissa Ortega in their first rugby game ever! And congrats to fly half Sarah “Lenny” Kravitz (’16), prop Katie Linder (’15), and flanker/fullback Tiff Chang (’17), on their first tries!

Overall, it was an amazing start to the season and we are excited for our first regular season game against Bowdoin next weekend.

Sarah Minahan – 5
Stevie Durocher – 5, Emily Duh – 2
Marissa Shaw – 5, Emily Duh – 2
Sarah Kravitz – 5, Emily Duh – 2
Stevie Durocher – 5
Emily Duh – 5, Emily Duh – 2
Sarah Minahan – 5, Emily Duh – 2
Katie Linder – 5
Tiffany Chang – 5, Emily Duh – 2
Emily Duh – 5, Emily Duh – 2
Stevie Durocher – 5, Emily Duh – 2

Final Score 10 – 15, Loss

We traveled to Bowdoin this weekend to compete in the NESCAC championship game. We were looking forward to a rematch against Bowdoin after our regular season loss early in October. Both teams came out hard and the game was scoreless for nearly the entire first half, until a series of punches brought Bowdoin their first try at 38 minutes.

We went into the second half ready to continue playing hard and hoping to put some points on the board. Excellent tackling from fly half Julia “World’s Best Cheddar” Gulka (’13) and outside center Stevie “Still a Diva” Durocher (‘15.5) along with strong defense all around held Bowdoin off most of the next 40 minutes, although they did find the space to the outside two more times to make the score 15 – 0 with 13 minutes remaining.

Determined to keep fighting to the final whistle, we continued with strong defense and offensive playing. Strong counter rucking from 8-man Katy “I speak so many languages” Svec (’15) and hard runs from inside center Laura “Turtleneck” Hoffman (’15) allowed the ball to get out down the back line to lock Ali “Oprah” Hentges (’15) who offloaded it up to fullback Julianna “Stale Bread” Gardner (’13). Julianna sprinted the ball across the try line to gain us our first 5 points.

A similar series of aggressive offensive play opened up the space for a sprint down the side line from wing Mel “Tufts’ favorite” Haas (’13). Mel was tackled just before the try line and Julianna was there in support once again to finish the run and score. Unfortunately there was only about a minute remaining at this point, so we finished the game down 10 – 15.

Amazing game from everyone, specifically incredible both offensive and defensive play from Julia Gulka and Julianna Gardner. Thanks to all our fans, and to Bowdoin for hosting us for food and socialing after the game!

First Half
Bowdoin – 5

Second Half
Bowdoin – 5
Bowdoin – 5
Julianna Gardner – 5
Julianna Gardner – 5