The National Intercollegiate Rugby Association (NIRA) is home to the country’s NCAA varsity women’s rugby programs, and 23 teams were slated to compete in the 2020 championship season. Covid-19 has obviously derailed the competition, and at the time of print, at least five teams have had their fall seasons canceled (Bowdoin, Brown, Dartmouth, Harvard, Post). NIRA as a whole, however, has not made any decisions regarding Return-to-Play this fall or beyond.
NIRA commissioner Amy Rusert met with the member institutions’ athletic directors, by division, on Friday, July 10, and they will reconvene in a couple of weeks for updates.
“All of our member institutions are presently working through their primary NCAA conferences and those conferences presidents councils while simultaneously working with their institutional leadership and state governments and keep me apprised as appropriate,” Rusert explained. “NIRA will not make a sweeping determination for our member institutions but rather we will be responsive to institutional and conference outcomes and subsequent needs and requirements.”
Rely on NIRA’s website and social media for updates:
Facebook @ncaawomensrugby
Twitter @NIRArugby
Instagram @ncaawomenrugby