Photos courtesy Emerald City Mudhens
Emerald City checked the first tick on the to-do list: Win the DII club Pacific Northwest (PNW) title. After a 91-0 semifinal win over ORSU on Saturday, the Mudhens defeated 2016 PNW champion Bend 34-10 in the Sunday final. Emerald City now advances to the Pacific North championship against the NorCal runner-up, to be decided this weekend.
ORSU brought its typically physical game to the semifinals, but with only 14 players available, the Oregon side was at disadvantage. Emerald City scored early and, with the exception of a 10-minute block of pressure, sustained momentum in the shutout victory. Meanwhile, host Bend defeated Portland 26-15 for a chance to defend its title.
“Even though you can win by a lot, that doesn’t mean you can’t make mistakes,” Emerald City coach John Wooler reflected on a season of lopsided scores, save the Sept. 24 league match against Bend (28-17). “We’re keen to keep polishing technical aspects of our game. We’re very motivated by geography – what we do when we’re on different areas of the field – and no matter who we go up against, we stick to the game plan.”
Defense has been a focus and Saturday’s win marked the team’s third-straight shutout. But Emerald City knew it the Lady Roughriders would present more of a challenge, given their scrappy nature and hometown advantage.
“They played at outside game and like to push the wide to try to attack our backline and get line-breaks,” Wooler said. “So we made a little adjustment and used the umbrella defense to come around and try to trap players in the midfield; force them to pass back in. We weren’t used to it because our opposition typically likes to crash through the middle. … They controlled the game in the mid-field a bit, but we had about 70% of the momentum.”
The Mudhens took a 20-0 halftime lead, and flyhalf Rachel Manning accounted for 15 of those points on a try, two conversions and two penalties. She’d end the day with 19 points.
“Rachel’s kicking has been superb; it’s a real plus for us,” Wooler said. “Any time we get a penalty 20-30 meters out, she can slot it over. It’s a nice tool to have in the tool kit. When you add three points every so often, having the scoreboard tick over is psychologically good.”
Manning also did a great job of managing Emerald City’s territorial game and kept the pressure on both ORSU and Bend. She pairs nicely with scrumhalf and captain Jenna Middleton, who earned high marks from Wooler on the weekend.
Bend scored its 10 points in the second half, as Giselle Faux kicked a penalty and converted fullback Megan Turnidge’s try in the waning minutes. Meanwhile, lock Megan Delany scored her second try on the day and inside center Erin Hickey added a try in the 34-10 final.
“Both of our locks were just phenomenal in their carries,” Wooler commended Delany and fellow second row Deycha Robinson. “They’re really solid players crashing through the midfield. We run them off rucks and they were really strong.”
Wooler also praised the work of props Celid Lira and Kailyn Schmidt for their work in the front row, setting the tone for an improved set piece. The coach was also pleased to see players like Isabella Kharrazi and Kearstin Williams step into starting positions and contribute to the wins.
“We talked about this as the start of our journey. It’s not about retribution and then it’s all done; we’re looking beyond Bend,” Wooler referenced last year’s 20-15 final’s loss to the Roughriders. “The goal was to use this game as a stepping stone and to get motivated by that.
“In one way, we’re excited to play a team we’ve never played before. It’s nice for a change,” the coach looked toward the Pacific North championship. “We don’t know what to expect, so all we can do is improve our game and polish the basics, so we’ll hold up against stronger opposition. … If we execute our game plan, we will always win.”
The DII Pacific North championship will be held Saturday, May 6 in San Francisco. Emerald City will play the NorCal runner-up (the NorCal champion advances to the DI national quarterfinals), which will likely be San Francisco Golden Gate. The Pacific North champion will then continue to the DII national quarterfinals in Tucson, Ariz., May 20-21.