A donation from Steve and Jane Beers (standing, right) allowed John Brown to buy its first set of jerseys this year.
The DII Mid-America conference has awoken for its second half of the season, and John Brown kicked off the action with a forfeit win (that was played) over Missouri. The young Arkansas program launched onto the scene last year, challenging long-established leader Kansas State, and gaining valuable insight into what it takes to compete beyond the conference.
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“Last year was our first competitive year so we learned a lot about how our division works and what competitive rugby looks like,” John Brown head coach Jarrod Heathcote explained. “We kind of rode this wave of success until regionals, which really tested us. That’s when we all learned that if we want to push past our division, we are going to have to work hard and really commit to practice and growing the next group of women.”
The team retained a good number of players from last year and boosted the roster with a solid recruitment class. The veterans have done well to integrate the rookies and set a competitive tone, building toward a post-season push.
“I think our senior players have really pushed to see how far the team can go,” Heathcote praised Rebeca Baugher and Alison Friesen. “They were there from the beginning, the inception of the team, and have seen it grow, and they really want to see how far they can push the bar up before they graduate.”
Baugher and Micah Wood have represented the senior Mid-America all-stars for two years, and that experience trickles down through the ranks. They along with fellow returners like Karlie Bright, Julia Hightower, Alexis Barnes, Karyleigh Olson, Robin Graefen, Bridget Schneider, Mia Dickson and Callie Owensby have all been instrumental in building momentum. Heathcote is looking forward to seeing newcomers like Vashti Smith, Anna Carlson, Sara Frey, Mary Freeman, Jeannine Pringle, Mo Quarles, Dani Argueta, Eva Bohlender and McKenna Bandy contribute as the competition evolves.
John Brown is currently 5-0-1 and has two more league games against Washington and Central Missouri before playoffs. Women’s Rugby at Kansas State has easily been John Brown’s best competition, and the two are favored for a conference final.
“I think there was some disappointment but also encouragement,” Heathcote reflected on the 31-31 decision against KSU in late October. “We knew possession was going to be key and unfortunately we were not able to hold it in the closing minutes of the game. The encouraging thing was we had the lead! We played really well and it was one of the best games we have played against them – much better than last fall’s match and even better than our regional performance.”
The rest of the results have been lopsided. On Saturday, Missouri had 11 players, and so they teams played 10-minute quarters of 10s. John Brown won 74-5. There have also been forfeits.
“Forfeits are an unfortunate byproduct of growth I think. A lot of young clubs are student-led and coached. There is a lot of pressure on students,” Heathcote sympathized. “Travel is hard and our division travels quite a bit. I totally get why there are forfeits. I think the best thing that we can do is over-communicate between teams. Talk. Let the other team know what’s going on what struggles your having and compromise. We need competition to grow the sport but we also need to support each other. Play 7s, 10s, or have some of your players play on the other team for the match as a friendly.”
The league is set to contest three games this weekend:
John Brown v Washington
Nebraska v Arkansas
Kansas State v Truman State
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