Coast Guard in its fall quarterfinal win over St. Michael’s. /// Photo courtesy USCG Women’s Rugby •
These two awards – collegiate team and collegiate game of fall 2016 – are announced together because the recipients’ performances were detailed recently.
Quietly going about its business in the New England Wide DII conference, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy (USCGA) didn’t surrender any points-against until week six. The Bears played two competitive games against New Hampshire (17-7) and New Haven (25-20) to round out the 8-0 league season, and then opened up the fall Round of 32 with a 32-0 win over University of Maine-Orono, New England Small Colleges’ runner-up.
The New London, Conn., team then readied for the double-header in Kutztown, Pa. There, USCGA faced 2015 fall semifinalist Bloomsburg in the Round of 16 and, after that 48-22 victory, St. Michael’s College in the fall quarterfinals.
“Defeating Bloomsburg and making it to the [fall quarterfinals] made U.S. Coast Guard Academy women’s rugby history,” USCGA flyhalf and Canterbury Player of November Ashley Palmieri noted. “Then, winning against St. Michael’s the following day made us realize that all of our hard work since August has truly paid off.”
Coast Guard beat Rugby Northeast champion St. Michael’s 22-17 in a brutal Round of 8 contest (read more). The Vermont team had been a favorite for a fall semifinal berth, given its strong performances against DI colleges during the regular season. Instead, USCGA became the lone newcomer to Furman University, joining 2015 returners Davenport, runner-up Winona State and third-place victor Vassar College.
“Making it to the [fall semifinals] has be an honor not only for our team but also for the program as a whole at the Academy,” Palmieri concluded. “Traveling to South Carolina for the tournament was a competitor’s dream, and allowed us to put Coast Guard on the map for DII women’s rugby. We look forward to continued success next season and will work even harder in the off-season to make it happen.”
Coast Guard ended its fall campaign with a consolation match against Vassar College, which triumphed 15-10 for third place among fall teams. The day prior, the Brewers contested the College Game of Fall 2016, nearly derailing defending champion Davenport in the semifinals.
The 47-32 decision was the closest game that the Panthers had played – by far – against a DII college team that fall, and it was the result of a Vassar’s dedication and execution of its game plan.
“Our game plan for Davenport wasn’t much different than our previous games,” Vassar co-captain and flyhalf Mary Margaret McElduff explained. “We are always aiming to get over the gain line and minimize any mistakes. We use a variety of patterns to confuse the defense and switch up our plays.”
Vassar had Davenport on the ropes into the second half, trailing 29-22 at one point. Davenport did pull away in the end, and the experience helped produce the Panthers’ best game of the season against Winona in Sunday’s final. Still, Vassar’s performance was not lost on the field, as per the weekend coverage (read more) and the subsequent rankings (read more).
“I am hugely proud of our performance in this game,” McElduff concluded. “It was a big step up from the semifinal last year. Of course it was a little disappointing to lose, but we should all be very proud of the game against Davenport.”
FALL 2016 AWARDS
Best Club Game: Chicago North Shore v Beantown
College Coach: Air Force’s Amy Rusert
High School Player: Summit’s Cassidy Bargell