Jarosz during the single-school final (photo: Jackie Finlan) /// interior photos: Kathleen Barczak
The national girls’ high school tournament brought 24 teams to Indiana, showcasing approximately 500 athletes. It can be difficult to distinguish oneself across such a field, but the Girls’ High School Breakout Player of Spring 2017 did just that. Divine Savior Holy Angels (DSHA) flyhalf Jackie Jarosz deployed a skilled backline attack, and she did it as a first-season freshman.
RELATED: DSHA Wins Single-School Nationals • Spring ’17 Award: Standout HS Team • Spring ’17 Award: Standout HS Coach
The 14-year-old attended a DSHA rugby camp last summer, and the coaching staff took note.
“Right then and there, I knew you had a special talent,” DSHA head coach John Klein recalled his first impressions. “Right away she could pass – it didn’t take long to teach her. The way the ball flew off her hands, there was something special there. And then she started kicking the ball around, and that was nice, to say the least.”
Even early on, she showed a natural ability for taking the ball to the line, and when she joined the team in the fall, Klein started her as the B side flyhalf. Jarosz benefitted from the instruction of assistant coach Kathleen Mahoney, a former 10 herself, and focused on field time with the B side.
“The B side gets to come to every single national trip because they’re a part of it,” Klein explained the B side’s role in the program. “Without them, the A side would not be what it is. … It’s all part of that family atmosphere.”
Jarosz was promoted to A side during the fall and settled in at inside center.
“I didn’t want to put pressure on her right away because we also had an incredible talent there – Sadie Brennan,” Klein explained. “So we moved Jackie to #12 and moved Danielle Macpherson, a senior captain, to the forward pack, which made the pack faster and allowed us to be more flexible with having that second flyhalf-type at inside center.”
Jarosz finished out the state-winning fall season at inside center, and once basketball ended in the New Year, rejoined the rugby team. In her first spring season, the freshman took over A-side flyhalf.
She proved to be a quick learner and flourished in that pivotal role with uncommon poise. During the single-school championship, Jarosz launched a well drilled, fast offense, and set up her able teammates outside of her. She attacked the line aggressively, had a good read of gaps and had the speed to slip through them. In the final, the freshman kicked the only points of the game, two penalty goals.
Jarosz is clearly a player to watch, and she was fortunate to be playing between two standouts.
“Sadie Brennan is just fantastic, and she and Jackie are dear friends, so having them at flyhalf and inside center makes a great combo,” Klein said. “And [scrumhalf] Genevieve Ruesch – we are going to miss her. She’s a senior captain and I’m just in awe of her. The way she’s been giving the ball as cleanly as she has this past season – she has phenomenal ability.”
The whole program – from the B side, to the newcomers, to the senior captains and staff – was united in its goal to win the national title, which has evaded the Wisconsin school since 2009.
“Everybody understands the tradition and wants to live up to the people who came before them,” Klein said. “I was blessed to have a team that ran the table from ‘04-’09, and ever since then there’s an expectation to try and be the best. To be honest, the girls want that pressure and they thrive off of it.
“It was really nice to have it back,” the coach said of the title. “I’m so impressed with these young ladies. They were a special team coming in [to the school year], and having Jackie come in on top of all that – that’s why she’s a blessing. … She is a great talent and still has a lot of room to grow, which makes me so excited for what she can become.”