Photos courtesy Lindenwood University Women’s Rugby
Lindenwood University is located in St. Charles, Mo., and the DI Elite program is accustomed to traveling around the country for competition. The Lions have already battled the WPL and DI Glendale Merlins and local University of Missouri, and before year’s end will head to Arkansas and New York City. This previous weekend, the Lions ventured to the East Coast and outscored NIRA’s Army West Point (N.Y.) and American International College (Mass.) 166-31.
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Twenty-five players made the traveling squad, and familiar upperclassmen like McKenzie Hawkins, AnnaKaren Pedraza, Ariana Lewis, Laura Enk and Annemarie Reed led the way in terms of experience.
The trip also provided more face time with Lindenwood’s recruitment class, which included: two players, Alia Ah Far and Sativa Tarau-Peehikuru, from New Zealand; Girls’ High School All-Americans Destiny Arena (Calif.), Natalie Gray (Colo.), Charity Tenney (Utah), Annie Rolf (Ohio), Penina Tuilaepa (Wash.) and McKenna Strong (Wash.); freshmen Meg Gold from Idaho and Selena Tuilaepa from Colorado; Wayne State College transfer Faith Sorensen; and former Fallbrook High School standout Casey Karl.
The Lions opened up against Army on Friday and ran away with a 90-5 win. Captain Teresa Bueso-Gomez and wing Tarau-Peehikuru scored three tries apiece, while Hawkins added 30 points on two tries and 10 conversions. Isabel Manu (2), Caring De Freitas, Mary Healy, vice captain Nika Paogofie-Buyten and Ah Far also scored tries.
Army’s been hampered by season-ending injuries this fall and has lost several USA Rugby and NIRA All-Americans, including Bayleigh Gable, Sydney Hawkins and Zye Crittington, among others.
On Sunday, rookies comprised the majority of Lindenwood’s starting lineup against AIC and they helped propel a 20-point first-half lead. AIC’s Kayla Clark scored the first of her two tries to draw the Yellow Jackets closer, 32-19, but then the Lions answered with 44 points in the 76-26 win.
Lindenwood 76
Tries: Hawkins 4, Bueso-Gomez 2, De Freitas 2, Gold, Gray, Pedraza, Tarau-Peehikuru
Cons: Hawkins 5
Pens: Hawkins 2
AIC 26
Tries: Clark 2, Kahele, Welsh
Cons: Harvey 3
“All of the newcomers really stepped up this weekend – from freshman Sativa Tarau-Peehikuru’s smashing tackles, to Casey Karl getting back out and improving the backline, to Natalie Gray stealing lineouts,” Lindenwood coach Billy Nicholas reflected on the weekend. “Overall on the weekend we relied on our veterans when the pressure was on – amongst others, Bueso-Gomez and Hawkins did a great job of corralling and leading the team by voice and example.”
The team selected MVPs for the weekend: Sorensen and Reed won the Hit Stick; Paogofie-Buyten and Gray the Forwards MVPs; and Tenney and Hawkins as Backs MVPs.
Lindenwood will host a double-header against the St. Louis Sabres and Tulane University for homecoming weekend this Saturday, and then face Penn State, Mid-America All-Stars and NIRA’s Notre Dame College through the first weekend in November. The Lions will round out 2017 with two tournaments: Ozark 15s in Arkansas and New York 7s during Thanksgiving.
As a DI Elite program, the fall acts as pre-season, and the spring builds toward a dense championship season between the 15s and 7s national championships in April-May and the CRC 7s in early June.