Rugby tosses Lyons to the lions

Author: Jeff Patterson

The Middlebury women's rugby team tamed the Mount Holyoke Lyons on Saturday with a 22-14 win. Co-Captain Rita Tarnate '07 was yellow carded late in the game, but the short-handed Panthers turned into sure-handed ones. Not only did they hold the Lyons from scoring, but they grabbed a pivotal loose ball along the sideline and turned it into five points, thanks to Cheryl McClurg's '08 try - and incredible effort. By that point, the game was out of reach for Mount Holyoke's team.

"Cheryl and the rest of the girls we have as wings are really fast," said Co-captain and President of the Women's Rugby Club Camille Padilla '07. "We're doing a lot of really good off-loading, which is just being there before they can tackle, to dump the ball out to keep going around with some pace."

Tarnate's yellow card was the result of "a continuous infraction." As she explained it, "I kept coming offsides for about five calls, so finally [the referee] just took me out and I got ten minutes off."

"It was kind of frustrating," continued Tarnate, who as a result had to stand on the far-end of the field and watch her teammates try to contain the Lyon attack. "I was pretty mad at myself. I should have paid attention to the fouls."

Despite the penalty, the team did not turn yellow. They fought courageously and it paid off. "They stayed strong, even with one man down," said Tarnate. "We got a sub in for my position, they held that tri-zone, they kept defending and didn't let them score." Mount Holyoke threatened time and again, but each threat was diverted.

At full-strength, Middlebury's attack was as balanced as it was powerful. Five different players scored sophomores, juniors and seniors alike. Rachel Korschun '09 scored the team's first five-point try and Amelia Magistrali '09 converted the two-point conversion. Later in the game, Maria Dickinson '07 and Lacey Elmore '09 also added five-points each to the scoreboard, before McClurg sealed the game.

"We had a really good game," said Padilla. "We think Mount Holyoke is going to be one of our tougher sides this year, so we're really happy with how we played. These girls just have a lot of heart. They just take it in there and give it all to the game."

With the win and the good weather, there were smiles on many Middlebury faces. "The ground was nice and soft to fall on - so that was great and it wasn't that hard to run on," said Tarnate.

As almost everyone knows, rugby is a contact sport. "The other team had some girls taken off," said Padilla nonchalantly. "We had a couple of cuts."

With twice as many players as last year, the women's rugby team is fielding a capable team, which has yet to lose this season. "Our rookies are doing an outstanding job," said Padilla.