NOVA was one of, if not the biggest, driver of formalizing a women’s club 7s championship supported by the USA Rugby. So it’s no surprise that the Piranhas committed to the 2021 USA Club 7s National Championship, which kicks off this weekend, Aug. 14-15, in Tukwila, Wash.
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“Sevens has always been important to NOVA,” NOVA 7s coach Nancy Fitz drew upon the club’s history. “Fifteens is important to NOVA, too, as the defending [DI] national champion, and one of my goals over the course of the summer was to help people get back in rugby shape and rebuild those skills so they’re ready for 15s. But 7s is its own focus and has its own build-up. So people who are still playing 7s, they’re pretty focused on competing this weekend and then they’ll take some time off and recalibrate for 15s.”
NOVA did have to discuss how it was going to participate at nationals – whether committing fully from the onset, or taking the option to only compete if it qualified through the Mid-Atlantic Conference (MAC) series.
“We decided as a team to be 100% in … and, yes, I do think that made a difference,” Fitz said of the decision’s impact on the rest of the summer. “There would have been more uncertainty otherwise. This way we knew that we’d spend that first month getting back to playing rugby. Then we knew we had three weekends of tournaments, a couple of weekends in between, and then we’d culminate with nationals in mid-August. [Committing early] gave us a schedule.”
With a plan in place, NOVA started training in June.
“Skills were a little rusty,” Fitz said of the players’ state of return. “Even people who had been working out fitness wise, it’s still different from cutting and reacting. We tried to build relatively slowly – 3-4 weeks before contact then gradually built contact up to prepare for games.
“It was what I was expecting pretty much but I was pleasantly surprised by numbers,” the coach continued. “We were consistently getting 25-30 people at practice. So it was great to see that level of interest, and everyone was enthusiastic and open to learning. So maybe the time off kind of made people appreciate the opportunity to play again.”
NOVA has experienced a big turnover in players, and captains Ariel Johnson and Emily Blease – two long-time NOVA 7s and 15s players – had to expand their roles. There was a lot more teaching and explaining 7s to newcomers, and picking up the intensity at practice. Chelle Schneider and Taylor Noel are also important veterans who helped perpetuate the team culture and NOVA way. Emma Auld and Emily Wessel are also back, and they represented NOVA in the 2019 championship. Sarah Cokington was supposed to be on that squad if it wasn’t for a late-season injury, but is back now for the Seattle run.
“Still, we’re pretty young. Half of the team’s 25 or younger,” Fitz said. “It’s a good mix – the young enthusiasm and the experienced 7s-savvy group.
“One of the good things about the younger players is they just follow the lead of the experienced players. They play hard and just go 100%,” Fitz said of the dynamic. “One of the challenges is making it clear – particularly in 7s – that everyone has to communicate at the same time. You can’t rely on 1-2 people to call the defense or what they’re seeing. That’s been one of my goals, building up people’s comfort level with that.”
NOVA worked toward those goals during three 7s tournaments this summer. The first two outings were part of the MAC 7s series, but the final stop was canceled due to lack of women’s teams. NOVA replaced that fixture with an impromptu round robin with nationals-bound Scion and D.C. Furies. The aforementioned have been the most consistent opponents in the region.
“That’s all we’ve competed in,” Fitz said of NOVA’s elite and social teams. “It’s been great to actually get to play rugby again but Covid just really hit the women’s teams hard.”
This Saturday, NOVA is competing in Pool B with Rocky Mountain Magic and Life West Gladiatrix. The top-two teams advance to the Cup quarterfinals, but only after playing a seeding match in round three of play – a circumstance of having a 13-team competition.
“The approach and tenor we’re trying to set is: Hey, let’s go out and do the basics well and play hard and see how it goes,” Fitz said. “I feel pretty good. We have the potential to do pretty well and give a lot of teams a run for their money. There is a bit of an unknown since we haven’t been tested that much, with only three tournaments, but I see a lot of up-sides with this team.”
Overall, Fitz said the team is simply excited to play. There’s good buzz at training, and NOVA alumnae have been showing up to help and also lend depth to the club’s history in 7s.
“I’m excited to see how we gel,” Fitz closed. “I’m looking forward to it being a fun yet competitive tournament.”
For more information of club 7s nationals, visit www.usaclub7s.com.