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Midwest, Mid-Atlantic R32 Review

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Midwest, Mid-Atlantic R32 Review

The Midwest and Mid-Atlantic brackets have named their Round of 16 representatives for the USA Rugby Women's DII College Fall Championships, hosted by ACRA. The West and Northeast regions have one more game to decide, and we'll update once those results come across.

MIDWEST
Notre Dame College walloped UW Stout 121-0, and Davenport nearly matched the point tally in its 111-0 win over Illinois State. Both teams were expected to win their respective Round of 32 games, but by 100-plus margins are impressive. Clearly both teams have high-powered offenses, and when the duo faces each other next Saturday, it’s the defenses that will have to show up.

Davenport’s Ashlee Byrge scored six tries and slotted 12 conversions for an unprecedented 54 points. Danielle Ordway also chipped in three tries to extend her team-leading try count. The Falcons were led by captain Hannah Gauthreaux's seven tries, and Stephanie Kronenberger followed with five five-pointers.

The other side of the bracket held a different kind of drama. Ithaca College (N.Y.) controlled its game against Ohio’s Denison, as Shannon Lipe and Amy Johnstone scored hat tricks in the 59-10 win (read more). But the Cincinnati vs. Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) never happened. Lack of communication between all interested parties resulted in IUP clarifying that it was playing toward the spring championships, not the fall, and the late notification prevented a replacement team from competing Saturday. Long story short, Cincinnati received a bye to the Round of 16. Sometimes an extra week of rest pays off, but we think Cincinnati could have used a warm-up, especially when Ithaca awaits.

MID-ATLANTIC
This region had a nice mix of games. There was a blowout, a one-score game, and a come-from-behind conference championship.

Stonehill was solid yesterday and found little resistance against New England Small Colleges’ Tufts. Sarah Buonopane, the Rugby Northeast’s #2 point-scorer this season, was on fire in the 78-10 win and scored six tries. Although the Skyhawks have become accustomed to these lopsided games, the Massachusetts team is unlikely to experience the run-away next week. Next up is Kutztown, last year’s Round of 16 opponent, and victor.

“Tufts had some big forwards so that was helpful in preparation for next week,” Stonehill coach Derek Jenesky said with an eye toward Kutztown’s powerful pack. “We know what we will be facing on Saturday and feel very good about ourselves as a team.”

Kutztown didn’t lock up its Mid-Atlantic seed until yesterday, when the Mid-Atlantic Rugby Conference (MARC) championship evolved. Bloomsburg, a first-year DII team that won its division, surprised the favorite, taking the first lead of the game when Rachel Harpster scored and Kelly Mason converted, 7-0. Kutztown turned it on, but Bloomsburg was still in it at half – 20-7. But another 25 points in the second half gave Kutztown its first conference title, 45-7. The tournament isn’t over for Bloomsburg, however, and the team will join the Northeast bracket in the Round of 16.

On the other side of the bracket, Vassar controlled the majority of its game against Buffalo State, building a 34-point lead before surrendering the shutout. Six Brewers crossed for tries in the 39-12 win, with Nathalie Freeman leading with two scores. Cierra Thomas in the backs and Meg Slattery in the forwards put in noteworthy performances around the park.

Vassar hosts the Round of 16 next weekend and will play Vermont in front of the hometown crowd. Four inches of snow preceded the UVM vs. Colgate Round of 32 match in Hamilton, N.Y. Vermont put the ball in its capable forwards’ hands and kept the ball in tight, while a smaller, faster Colgate team tried to adapt its game plan. Neither could exert their will on the other, and two stout defenses contributed to the stalemate. But Colgate committed one mistake that proved all the difference: a penalty in front of the posts, an advantage on which Vermont capitalized for the 3-0 win.

Stay tuned for more detailed match reports, and check out the entire DII championship brackets.