2016 USA Rugby Women’s College Elite, DI and DII Championships

USA Rugby Women’s College Elite DI Playoffs

This weekend, Penn State University will host the East playoff rounds. The hosts and will receive a Quarterfinal bye Saturday, April 23, after Indiana University dropped out. They will play either Life University or Lindenwood University in one of the D1 Elite Semifinals Sunday, April 24. Central Washington University hosts the West playoff round Friday, April 22, and Saturday, with the Wildcats set to play University of New Mexico, and Brigham Young University matched up with Stanford University on day one.

The two finalists from this weekend will travel to Moraga, Calif., for the College 15s National Championship weekendSaturday, May 7, at Saint Mary’s College.

The Elite DI Championship will be broadcast on The Rugby Channel, kicking off at 1 p.m. PT.

Date	Home	Score	Away	Score	Competition
4/22/2016	Brigham Young University	70	Stanford University	5	Quarterfinals
4/22/2016	Central Washington	114	University of New Mexico	0	Quarterfinals
4/23/2016	Central Washington	10	BYU	24	Semifinals
4/23/2016	Penn State	28	Indiana Univ (BYE)	0	Quarterfinals
4/23/2016	Life University	35	Lindenwood University	15	Quarterfinals
4/24/2016	Penn State	13	Life University	7	Semifinals
5/7/2016	BYU		Penn State		Championships

USA Rugby Women’s DI College Playoffs

by Alex Solomon, USA Rugby – UC Davis and Virginia will play for the Women’s Division I Spring Championship after each team won their two playoff matches.

Virginia entered the East Regional at Life University with plenty of confidence, and it showed throughout the weekend. First, the Cavaliers carved James Madison University to the tune of 82-12. Outside center Summer Harris-Jones and winger Joy Jefferson were unstoppable, as the two dynamic backs combined for 11 tries on the day.

In the other half of the East bracket, North Carolina was forced to work much harder to fend off its Quarterfinal opponent – Central Florida. Women’s Eagles Sevens prospect Naya Tapper led the Tar Heels’ charge with four tries in the No. 12 jumper to help produce a 32-12 lead. Central Florida would score 17 of the match’s final 22 points to produce a much more respectful score at full time, 39-29.

On the second day of Spring Playoffs, it was North Carolina who took the early advantage as Tapper scored her fifth try of the weekend and Tavoiya Whitworth converted. However, Virginia would score 34 unanswered points, including two apiece by Elizabeth Anderson, Harris-Jones, and Jefferson to qualify for the Spring Final, 34-7.

Central Florida refused to leave Marietta, Ga., without a win, beating James Madison, 34-24, in Sunday’s consolation match.

In California, the Aggies hosted the West Regional on their Davis campus and impressed their fans with a 44-0 blanking of Washington State to open play. On the other end of the West draw, it was Chico State that narrowly upended UC San Diego, 29-27.

April 10’s Spring Semifinal witnessed another dominating performance by UC Davis. The Aggies jumped all over Chico State, and eventually sent the Wildcats packing in defeat, 35-5.

Washington State rebounded well in yesterday’s consolation match, beating UC San Diego, 43-12.

UC Davis and Virginia have booked their tickets to the 2016 USA Rugby College 15s championship weekend at Saint Mary’s College. The Spring Championship Final will be played Saturday, May 7, in Moraga.

The DI Championship will be broadcast on The Rugby Channel, kicking off at 11 a.m. PT.

Date	Home	Score	Away	Score	Competition
4/9/2016	UC Davis	44	Washington St	0	Quarterfinals
4/9/2016	UC San Diego	27	Chico St	29	Quarterfinals
4/9/2016	Virginia	82	James Madison	12	Quarterfinals
4/9/2016	North Carolina	39	U Central Florida	29	Quarterfinals
4/10/2016	UC Davis	35	Chico St	5	Semifinals
4/10/2016	Virginia	34	North Carolina	7	Semifinals
5/7/2016	UC Davis		Virginia		Championships

USA Rugby Women’s DII College Playoffs

by Alex Solomon, USA Rugby – The Women’s Spring Division II field shrunk from 16 teams to just four after four Regional Playoffs eliminated 12 teams from the competition. Humboldt State, Salisbury University, University of Southern California, and Tulane University each won two games over the weekend, qualifying themselves for the April 23-24 Spring Championship.

Known for a historically strong men’s program, it was the women of Salisbury who flexed their muscles at the East Regional. First, Salisbury slammed UNC-Charlotte, 53-20, to set up a match against 2014 National Champions Mary Washington – who outplayed South Carolina on day one, 25-19.

In a rematch of the Capital Conference Final, Salisbury once again had its way with Mary Washington, ending its season with a 48-14 defeat. In the East consolation match, South Carolina showed a lot of heart by downing UNC-Charlotte, 41-17.

In Atlanta, Tulane only allowed 10 points over 160 minutes of rugby to advance to the Spring Semifinals. In its April 9 win over Eckerd College, Tulane received a two-try performance from No. 8 Maddie Brenner on the team’s way to a 30-10 win. Later in the day, Arkansas staved off a Georgia comeback to outlast the Bulldogs, 20-15, and set up a Sunday date with Tulane.

The short turnaround had little effect on the Green Wave, as Tulane jumped all over Arkansas. Brenner netted herself two more scores and flanker Tristan Peronard collected nine points off the tee in Tulane’s 39-0 shutout of the Razorbacks.

After reaching last year’s DII title game and hosting one of the four regionals this past weekend, many pegged UC Riverside as the Western favorite. Instead, Fresno State beat the 2015 runner-up in a back-in-forth affair. The epic fixture already saw the lead change hands six times when Riverside held a late, 27-24, advantage. With only precious seconds remaining, Bulldog outside center Stephanie Rovetti went over the line for the game-winner. The successful conversion made it a 31-27 win for Fresno State.

In an equally dramatic Quarterfinal, USC stormed back after trailing IC Irvine, 20-7, to win, 22-20. It was the Trojans’ Catherine Tran who was crucial in the end, scoring two tries to advance Southern California.

Fresno State controlled yesterday’s West Semifinal for the first 40 minutes, as Rovetti scored twice to produce a 24-10 lead for the Bulldogs at intermission. USC was the more spirited side in the second 40 minutes, running off 31 consecutive points for the 41-24 victory.

In the Pacific Regional in Davis, Calif., Humboldt and Nevada-Reno played through wet conditions to post easy day one wins. Humboldt ran past Long Beach State, 52-5, and Nevada-Reno was far too potent in its 57-5 bashing of Western Oregon. In the Pacific Final, it was Humboldt with more left in the tank, as the Lumberjacks posted a 37-12 victory over Reno. In the consolation match, Long Beach looked much better in the region’s second day – besting Western Oregon, 22-10.

The four Spring Semifinalists will have two weeks to rest and prepare for the April 23-24 Spring Championship at UC Davis. In one semifinal fixture, Humboldt will take on USC, while Salisbury pits itself against Tulane. The winner of each contest will play the following day with a chance to play in the May 7 Women’s DII National Championship on the line.

Awaiting the winner of the Spring Championship is Fall Champion Davenport University. The May 7s Women’s DII National Championship will be played at Saint Mary’s College in Moraga, Calif., as part of the USA Rugby College 15s National Championships.

UPDATE 5/2: Tulane has withdrawn from the competition (funding issues) and the University of Southern California will replace them.

The DII Championship will be broadcast on The Rugby Channel, kicking off at 9 a.m. PT.

Date	Home	Score	Away	Score	Competition
4/9/2016	Humboldt	W	Long Beach		Round of 16
4/9/2016	Reno	W	Western Oregon		Round of 16
4/9/2016	UC Riverside		Fresno State	W	Round of 16
4/9/2016	USC	W	UC Irvine		Round of 16
4/9/2016	Salisbury	W	UNC Charlotte		Round of 16
4/9/2016	South Carolina		Mary Washington	W	Round of 16
4/9/2016	Eckerd		Tulane	W	Round of 16
4/9/2016	Georgia		Arkansas	W	Round of 16
4/10/2016	Humboldt	W	Reno		Quarterfinals
4/10/2016	Fresno State		USC	W	Quarterfinals
4/10/2016	Salisbury	W	Mary Washington		Quarterfinals
4/10/2016	Tulane	W	Arkansas		Quarterfinals
4/22/2016	Humboldt	40	USC	15	Semifinals
4/22/2016	Salisbury	53	Tulane	31	Semifinals
4/24/2016	Tulane	53	Humboldt	31	Spring Regional Championship
5/7/2016	Davenport University		Tulane Univ of Southern California		Championship