Poughkeepsie, N.Y. - On a glorious fall afternoon under a blue sky with bright sunshine that had melted away the early morning frost, the Vassar College Women took on Tri-State Conference rivals Fairfield University Women for the Tri-State title. It all went according to the Vassar script, and the good-sized crowd, including family, friends, and Vassar Rugby Alumnae/i, was treated to some excellent tries.
Although several key players were missing from both lineups, it was the Vassar College Brewers who immediately set out their stall. Before one could say "Boo" to a goose, Kira Nolan had scored to give the home team and defending Conference champions a 5-0 lead. Nolan opened and closed the Vassar account, providing the bookends to a host of tries. The Fairfield University Women had played an exciting semi-final last weekend, defeating Montclair State University Women in overtime 29-24.
Vassar College Women 75 v 7 Fairfield University Women
Tries: Kira Nolan (2), Lauren Thompson (1), Emily Howell (7), Julia Busby (2), Halle Hutchinson (1).
Cons: Kira Nolan (5).
In recent weeks, quite a lot of work has gone into improving the set-piece, and it was in this area, Vassar wanted to concentrate their efforts. In the regular-season game between these two teams, the scrums had gone to being uncontested because of inexperience. Vassar not only wanted to be dominant in the scrum but also at the lineout, given that Fairfield has a sharp-back division. The Stags have plenty of speed, and it was essential to deny them the ball. It all starts with a solid platform upfront, and Vassar took control of the game in this crucial area.
Vassar hooker, Hannah Thompson, was able to steal the Fairfield put-in several times, and the beneficiary was Number 8, Emily Howell. The senior set a new school record for most tries in a game by going over the whitewash seven times! Howell was all over the field and worked hard in both attack and defense. She scored five tries in the first half and a further 2 in the second, no mean feat by any standard.
Vassar lost tighthead prop Gillian Ciaccio early on, as she came close to scoring but injured her knee when tackled hard at the goal line, and Andie Authers replaced her. The freshman did an admirable job, and not only did the Vassar pack continue to dominate in the scrums, but Louise Ambler had a banner day in the lineout, so a steady supply of good quality ball was assured.
Fairfield threatened sporadically in the first half with a couple of kicks. Still, Vassar's fullback, Vivika Sheppard, was certainly up to the task of returning the ball with interest and some storming runs to set up others to go over. A team kicks to Sheppard at their peril, for she can run around defenders and seems to relish contact as she sometimes chooses to run right through would-be tacklers!
The score stood at 36-0, and one Fairfield kick went deep with their speedy fullback, managing to get a foot on it and fly hack the ball down the field. She picked up and scored to give the visitors a faint glimmer of hope at 36-7. But it was Howell who scored the next two tries, and Vassar was back in total control at 48-7 after the first 40 minutes of play.
An excellent feature of the first half, and indeed the whole game as it turned out, was the defensive efforts of the Vassar's backs. MC Cicenia, Kira Nolan, and Lauren Thompson consistently shut down any Fairfield backs' threats. Fairfield was being tackled short of the gain line in their efforts to get the ball wide.
A more expansive approach in the second half produced five more tries, and at the same time, Vassar emptied their bench to give all available for this game a run-out. It was terrific to see rookies putting in tackles and getting involved. Katie Canavan is a force and will challenge for a starting spot; Sophia Tang is all elbows and knees and improves with each outing; Julie Geller, despite one "Hail Mary" pass, is also contributing positively, while Lucy Sinclair and Peyton Wilder were quick to adapt to the pace of the game.
The win for Vassar means a Conference title and a bye next weekend (Nov. 13) before the Brewers will host the Quarterfinals and Semifinals of the American Collegiate Rugby Association Fall Championship. The playoffs will take place on November 20th and 21st, 2021, with games at 9:00 am, 10:45 am, 12:30 pm, and 2:15 pm, all at the Vassar Farm. Vassar will be in the 9:00 am game on Saturday and face Colby College, the number 1 team from the Rugby NE Conference.
American Collegiate Rugby Association Fall Championship 2021
Saturday, Nov. 13, 2021
Wildcard round
Rugby NE #2 seed St. Michael's College at Tri-State #2 seed Fairfield University
Mid-Atlantic #2 seed Kutztown University at New England Wide #2 seed U.S. Coast Guard Academy
Saturday, Nov. 20, 2021, at Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY
Quarterfinals
New England Wide #1 University of Vermont v Rugby NE #2 SMC or Tri-State #2 FU
Mid-Atlantic #1 Temple University v Rocky Mtn #2 Colorado Mines or Mesa
Tri-State #1 Vassar College v Rugby NE #1 Colby College
Rocky Mtn #1 Colorado Mines or Mesa v Mid-Atlantic #2 Kutztown University or New England Wide #2 USCGA
Vassar College Women 2021-22:
Team v Fairfield: 15 Vivika Sheppard 14 Zoe Lynch 13 Lauren Thompson 12 Kira Nolan 11 Kasey Drake 10 Marie Claire Cicenia 9 Julia Busby 1 Sophia Florida 2 Hannah Thompson 3 Gillian Ciaccio 4 Louise Ambler 5 Grace Skakel 6 Lauren Showalter 7 Halle Hutchinson 8 Emily Howell.
Subs: Andie Authers for Gillian Ciaccio, Julie Geller for Hannah Thompson, Sophie Tang for Emily Howell, Peyton Wilder for Zoe Lynch, Lucy Sinclair for Julia Busby, Katie Canavan for Lauren Showalter, Julia Reigrut for Lauren Thompson.
DNP: Asia Baker, Claire Zickl, Lydia Yu, Brittany Andrade, Audrey Ehrhardt.
Injured: Isabel Snyder, Jamie Marinez, Hannah Charlson, Mia Walsh, Claire Dwyer, Maeve Smith, Dariana Serrano.
Overall record: 8-1
