The
young,
fierce
BW
women's
rugby
team
is
headed
to
the
2021
Collegiate
Rugby
Championship
May
29-31.
The
National
Collegiate
Rugby-sponsored
tournament
will
take
place
at
Gold
Mine
Stadium
in
New
Orleans,
home
of
the
NOLA
Gold
professional
rugby
team.
Under the direction of head coach Mark Montgomery and assistant coaches Tony Williams and Casi Montgomery, BW women's rugby returned to the campus roster of club teams in fall 2019.
While COVID-19 halted team activities in March 2020, the team continued to meet virtually and stay connected. They were ready to return to the field when practices resumed in fall 2020 under strict protocols that included training pods.
When matches resumed in late March, the women burst onto the field, ready to show off their skills. In three weeks of tournaments and nine matches, the team outscored their opponents by 186 points, scoring a total of 230 points so far this year.
As the season progressed, the women rose to a first-place ranking in the region.
The
achievements
are
astounding,
considering
73%
of
the
team
did
not
play
rugby
in
high
school
and
are
new
to
the
team
at
BW.
Every
athlete
on
the
team
has
seen
playing
time
this
year.
At
least
six
of
the
players
have
scored
tries,
which
are
like
touchdowns
in
football,
giving
the
team
five
points
with
a
chance
to
kick
a
conversion
for
two
additional
points.
Player Alex Seamon '22 said, "Coach Montgomery has created a welcoming environment for veteran and new rugby players alike. As someone who has never played rugby before, I was very nervous to try out for the team. But after attending a few practices, I realized this sport was a place where I could continue to grow not only as an amateur athlete but also as an individual."
This year's co-captains are Molly Cancian '24 and Jill Wood '23. On and off the field, they have continued to lead their team.
Cancian said, "It's been great seeing everyone on the team improve so much in such a short amount of time."
Wood added, "These women put their everything into this program and watching the club become this successful has truly been amazing."
