Rugged women for these rugged times

A few years back, the catch phrase of the Oberlin Women's Rugby team was "Hit 'em hard, and thump 'em on the ground." This year, it just might have to be condensed to "Scrum 'em around." While the Rhino Ruggers were defeated last weekend by Ashland College, the scrum proved to be all-powerful in holding their line of scrimmage against their opponents for the better part of the match.

"The scrum has been really strong," said sophomore prop Lisa Katona. "Everybody's trying different positions, but they're all doing well, even when we make substitutions in the middle of the game." The Ruggers' back line played fairly well, but lost three tris [ed. note: five point goal], to Ashland's back line, who beat the Ruggers around the outside.

Though the teams were fairly well matched skill-wise, Ashland's back line was a hair faster, which allowed them to score on their breakaways. "They had a faster line than ours," said first-year Caitlin Gray, a fullback. "They just outran us. I think we were playing well, but we just didn't have the right dynamic."

The 50 minute, 0-15 match against Ashland may have been a defeat, but the Rhino Ruggers' season debut against Kenyon College on Sep. 25 was a triumphant victory. Katona, a returning player, managed to score both tris for the Ruggers, who finished with a 10-0 win. While Katona's performance was especially strong, she said she is impressed with the new players. "Even though there's a lot of rookies, there's been a lot of improvement," she said. "Everyone's really eager, so we're coming on strong."

"Our team is really new," said Gray, who is a rookie Rugger this semester. "We have a lot of potential, but we have a disadvantage because so many people had never played before this year. But on the other hand, it's really amazing that we're playing the actual game of rugby, considering I had no idea how it worked a month ago."

A third of the rugby team consists of women who had never before touched a bound-in-leather rugby ball before September, but the Ruggers have jumpstarted a rock solid season. In the aftermath of last Saturday's loss, the Rhinos have been gearing up for a win Saturday against Muskingum College. "We've been packing down a lot," said Katona, "and the line has been working on their passing. We have the speed; we just need to pass better."

If nothing else, the Rhino Ruggers know how to put on a good show. The second half of the Kenyon game was interrupted by a visit from the Allen Memorial Hospital paramedics when one Kenyon player was seriously injured. Kenyon continued to sub their 40 plus ruggers throughout the hot-weather battle, while Oberlin remained strong during the entire 40 minute game. Due to the overlap with Parent's Weekend, Rugger fan support was solid, and a few parents even attended the always entertaining postgame kegger.

"I think we were as good, if not better than [Ashland]; it just wasn't working for us," said Gray. "But I think we have a good chance of winning on Saturday."

Tomorrow, the Ruggers play Muskingum College, who will battle the Ruggers head-to-head here on our very own North Fields at 1 p.m. Be there in support.

Saturday's a rugby day: Members of Oberlin College's Women's Rugby team, the Rhino Ruggers, practice out on North Fields. The team has split its two games so far this season and faces Muskingum on Saturday. (photo by Gitta Zomorodi)