UMW Women’s Rugby wins Mid Atlantic 7s event during senior day
3 min read
The Mary Wash women’s rugby team posing with their seniors at their final home match of the season, a tournament with six other teams. | @umwrugby, Instagram
by AYIANA ALLEN
Staff Writer
As the end of the season approaches, UMW women’s rugby seniors faced an emotional final home game during the Mid Atlantic 7s Series. On Saturday, the team competed against three different universities: George Mason, Virginia Commonwealth University, and William and Mary.
Despite early struggles, UMW’s B Team secured a 22–0 victory over the William and Mary B Team for fifth place in the tournament. Meanwhile, UMW’s A Team dominated their matches, defeating GMU 47–0 and the William & Mary B Team 48–0. Advancing to the semifinals, they overcame VCU 39–0 to reach the finals against the William & Mary A Team. In the final match of the day, the Mary Washington A Team claimed a 12–5 victory.
The match was both a celebration and a bittersweet farewell for those on the cusp of graduation.
“This has been a great season, great freshmen coming up,” said Macy Burnett, a senior accounting major. “We’ve had a really good team, and, you know, we’ve just progressed so much. And I really appreciate everyone on the team.”
She continued,“Everyone has been working so hard, and we’ve just gotten better as time goes on. And we are making big strides.”
For Grace Williams, a senior biology major, the end of the rugby season starts to bring on a flurry of emotions.
“I’ve been playing for three and a half years, and it’s just such a big part of my life,” Williams said. “I’m seeing there’s a lot of rookies out there, which is always really awesome to see. I think one of my favorite parts of being on the team is watching the new girls grow.”
Williams joined the team just as sports resumed after the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, during a time when the rugby team had just four rookies, including herself.
“To see all these big groups of girls come in, especially after the Olympics, is so awesome and so exciting, and it’s awesome watching them grow, especially with such an intimidating sport.” she said.
Morgan Butler, a senior economics major, shared the mix of emotions she’s feeling as the season winds down.
“It’s a lot of sadness, but also a lot of adrenaline knowing that we actually have a fighting chance to go to Nationals, and that’s really exciting,” Butler said. “There’s a lot of great potential with the freshmen this year, and it’s really exciting to see everyone’s pouring their heart and effort into the team, and you can see it really paying off.”
Senior Isabella Lazarte, a psychology major who has been on the team for four years, but says this season feels particularly special.
“I’ve been on the team for four years, and my freshman year, we came pretty close,” Lazarte said. “Being able to potentially go to Nationals for my senior year is super exciting.”
Psychology major Brianna Daly reflected on the progress of the team throughout the game.
“Our side started off a little slow, lacking confidence, but as we went on throughout the day, we were able to build the confidence. The hits were getting made just like they should be, and our passes were looking a lot better.” Daly said.
Next up for UMW women’s rugby is the MARC 7s Automatic Qualifier on April 5 and 6 at the University of Maryland. 16 teams will compete for a spot in the Collegiate Rugby National 7s Championship.
