Women’s Rugby makes it to the semi-finals this past weekend
Photo courtesy of Steve Schirmer
This past Sunday, Oct. 20th, Women’s Rugby had their senior game, spotlighting 10 seniors and ending this exciting game with a score of 65-0, favoring our Warthogs. A great end to the Hog’s regular fall season, mercy ruling all but one team so far this semester, as they move on to the semi-finals this Sunday. This day honored seniors: full-back Ava Spottek, outside center Ali Wallace, scrum-half Sophia “Joey” Weik, inside center Caitlin Schirmer, flanker/8-man Maria Netto, 8-man/second-row Maddie Specaru, scrum-half/flanker Claire “CJ” Lewis, Prop Sara Cicero, second-row Angela Totaro, and former second-row Kjersti Mygland.
The women’s team showed no mercy against SUNY Fredonia, running up the score within the first 20 minutes to create a total of 32-0, which afforded the Hogs a mercy rule. To reach this relentless score, the Warthogs kicked the ball to the Fredonia Blackhorses at the game’s start, but they did not stay in possession long. Sepcaru stole the ball back and gave a good run before being taken down by three of Fredonia’s players. The forwards had a strong ruck over Specaru, protecting the ball just long enough for Weik to get it out and to junior hooker Jessica Leonard, to cut through Fredonia’s defense. The back line, with quick hands and clean plays, goes from freshman fly-half Rileigh Madden to Schirmer, then to Wallace, and finally to Spottek for the first try of the day. With a celebration for the first breakthrough of Fredonia’s defense, Spottek took a breath to set up for a successful conversion, starting the beautiful day off with a 7-0 score.
A penalty was awarded to Geneseo, and Schirmer decided to kick the ball out of the line of touch to perform a line-out. With a powerful jump from junior flanker Sophia Bobeck and a precise throw from Leonard, the Hogs got the ball down from the air, secured it, and got ready to maul. Weik got the ball from junior second-row Rachel Dennie, giving a fast pass to Madden. With quick hands down the back line, the ball was spun out to freshman Jill Cynar for her day’s first try. With another kickoff from Fredonia, the ball traveled right into Sepcaru’s arms as she made a half-field run into the try zone with Weik behind her in support.
Defensively, players like sophomore prop Amanda Naas, Junior Wings Anna Taylor, Bobek, Netto, and freshman prop Logan Schojan made every tackle they went for. While making every tackle and holding off the other team's opposing rucks, Netto managed to make impressive runs with the ball before offloading to the other forwards, such as Dennie, who managed to break through Fredonia’s defense—getting the team closer to the try zone.
In the second half, the two-position switches, Lewis and Weik, moved to Scrum-half and out to the wing, respectively. Lewis got the ball out of a ruck and to Leonard in the middle of the front for her first career try; Lewis got rumbles going for the forwards, tricking Fredonia’s defense and giving them no time to react to Geneseo’s powerful forwards advancing quickly. With no surprise, after Schirmer handed off the ball to Wallace, she made an all but shocking 40-yard dash to touch down the ball past the point of recollection. The backline demonstrated their persistent practice as Madden called plays and got the ball to Schirmer, who broke through Fredonia’s players to make an impressive run through the try zone for her second and final goal. Forwards like freshman second-row Molly Roche got to rucks quickly to blow Fredonia off and give Lewis a chance to get the ball to Madden. They then ran through the Blackhorses to score her second try of the day while Fredonia’s defense held onto her for dear life.
With a giant cheer from Geneseo’s large audience of friends, family members, and alumni, the match came to an exciting end and solidified the Warthog’s place in the semi-finals against Plattsburgh on Sunday, Oct. 27.