CLUB SPORTS — This year’s edition of the UCSD women’s rugby
team is admittedly a little younger and a little smaller than its fellow
competitors, but that hasn’t held it back.
Competing in what has been considered the fastest growing
women’s sport in the nation, UCSD has helped forge the way for West Coast
teams. The sport is profoundly more popular back east, where teams receive more
funding and have larger squads.
Despite the roadblocks it has faced, the UCSD squad has
built a reputation for itself and now competes against Division I foes
But before league play gets underway, the Tritons traveled to
on Jan. 19 and 20 to compete in the Stanford Invitational and get one final
tuneup. As last year’s national runner-up, Stanford headlined the 16-team
field, which included many other top teams in the west.
Team president and captain Kim Wise said the team made great
strides competing at such a high level and was proud of the team’s fourth-place
finish.
“Everyone played really well this weekend and the rookies
really stepped it up,” she said. “We’re a young team this year, and we lost some
key players during the matches. Had a few things worked the other way, we
could’ve come away with some more wins.”
UCSD opened up against
Tritons 10-5, but the results weren’t considered official, according to Wise.
“
playing its alumni so the game didn’t really matter,” Wise said. “It was more
of a friendly match and a warm-up.”
After the opening match, the Tritons faced UC Berkeley in
what grew into an 80-minute grudge match. UCSD was forced to play shorthanded
for the better part of the match when two players went down with injuries.
Despite the disadvantage, the Tritons played with a vengeance but came up short
in the end, losing 15-14.
The injuries played a large role in the heartbreaking
defeat, as the Tritons spent more time playing defense instead of trying to
advance the ball.
“If we had had one more person, we could’ve won,” Wise said.
UCSD didn’t let down; the rookies helped the Tritons shut
down out-of-state foe Oregon State 39-0 to close day one with a victory and
gain momentum heading into the second day.
On the second day, the Tritons faced rival UCLA and
tournament host Stanford and came away with a split decision. UCSD took home a
promising win against conference rival Bruins and will look to build off the
confidence that came with the victory.
The afternoon match against the Cardinal was a different
story. Wise said that while the Tritons were excited to play a team that
expects to make the national tournament, it’s intimidating to play such a great
program.
“They were one of the best teams in the nation last year and
have a great program,” she said. “It was a close match but they are just a good
team. We really learned a lot about our team from playing them and we are
excited to move into our regular season.”
The Tritons will head east next for a friendly match against
the
and a conference match against
Wise said the team is confident that they can come away with two victories and
build some momentum heading into its matchup against UCLA.
Readers can contact Matt Croskey at [email protected].
